🪐 Coldplay: Music of the Spheres 🪐 | Out Now! | Discussion

[Famous_Old_Painter]

37 minutes ago, harrisonrules said:

Any meaning behind that cause I couldn't find anything 

It's a city in Russia ?

[LisaFeehily]

2 hours ago, harrisonrules said:

I imagine Higher Power will be featured in an upcoming BMW commercial 

Yes, or maybe something to do with climate change? Or something esports-related?

[harrisonrules]

1 hour ago, Famous_Old_Painter said:

It's a city in Russia ?

That's a song title ft country that they could run with it 

Welcome to Russian Sex Shop lmao 

[lennyrott1]

Couple things have stood out over the past few days : 

1. Chris' discussion of Max Martin seems to suggest the album will be very poppy, which I think we already were expecting. He basically said that Max is helping members of the band realize they can make songs that are more pop. Hard to know if he was talking about Higher Power or this whole era. 

2. The band is still recording? Chris said he had a song for Max Martin just the other day, and it seems like they're doing their interviews from the same building where they could be wrapping up the record. So maybe MOTS wasn't finished around the same time as EL like some of us predicted. Or maybe it was and they've completely changed it?  

3. Jonny mentioned during the Twitter Q&A that he's loving the Meris Enzo guitar pedal. It can create some synth sounds that are unrecognizable as guitar, so this suggests more synth sounds will be present on the album -- or more songs where there isn't traditional Coldplay guitar sounds. 

[AnaMarie]

1 hour ago, lennyrott1 said:

Couple things have stood out over the past few days : 

1. Chris' discussion of Max Martin seems to suggest the album will be very poppy, which I think we already were expecting. He basically said that Max is helping members of the band realize they can make songs that are more pop. Hard to know if he was talking about Higher Power or this whole era. 

2. The band is still recording? Chris said he had a song for Max Martin just the other day, and it seems like they're doing their interviews from the same building where they could be wrapping up the record. So maybe MOTS wasn't finished around the same time as EL like some of us predicted. Or maybe it was and they've completely changed it?  

3. Jonny mentioned during the Twitter Q&A that he's loving the Meris Enzo guitar pedal. It can create some synth sounds that are unrecognizable as guitar, so this suggests more synth sounds will be present on the album -- or more songs where there isn't traditional Coldplay guitar sounds. 

I really don’t know how to feel about this, I just really hope Max Martin is trying to be more experimental and is trying some new sounds himself, working with the band to create something bigger than them, and himself; as in: I hope he isn’t trying to make something formulaic, but that he is pushing his own boundaries to grow too... let’s hope the guys are strong enough to not “follow the crowd” blindly and stand strong with their convictions on what sounds they like! 
 

[42Escapist]

1 hour ago, AnaMarie said:

I really don’t know how to feel about this, I just really hope Max Martin is trying to be more experimental and is trying some new sounds himself, working with the band to create something bigger than them, and himself; as in: I hope he isn’t trying to make something formulaic, but that he is pushing his own boundaries to grow too... let’s hope the guys are strong enough to not “follow the crowd” blindly and stand strong with their convictions on what sounds they like! 
 

I would think working with Stargate on AHFOD is what got them to indulge in the sounds of mainstream pop, not working with Max Martin several years later.

If they really want to work with a successful pop producer, I wish Coldplay would work with Greg Kurstin instead... he may be known for his work with pop stars like Sia, but he did an incredible job on the last two Foo Fighters albums. And the Foo Fighters aren't mainstream pop. They're a popular alternative rock band and Kurstin helped them experiment, but he didn't turn them into something poppy at all.

[CP-EST]

3 hours ago, lennyrott1 said:

Couple things have stood out over the past few days : 

1. Chris' discussion of Max Martin seems to suggest the album will be very poppy, which I think we already were expecting. He basically said that Max is helping members of the band realize they can make songs that are more pop. Hard to know if he was talking about Higher Power or this whole era. 

2. The band is still recording? Chris said he had a song for Max Martin just the other day, and it seems like they're doing their interviews from the same building where they could be wrapping up the record. So maybe MOTS wasn't finished around the same time as EL like some of us predicted. Or maybe it was and they've completely changed it?  

3. Jonny mentioned during the Twitter Q&A that he's loving the Meris Enzo guitar pedal. It can create some synth sounds that are unrecognizable as guitar, so this suggests more synth sounds will be present on the album -- or more songs where there isn't traditional Coldplay guitar sounds. 

Great post!

That guitar pedal is definitely interesting! Giving some very interesting opportunities to mix up the sound a bit. Also I have felt like they are definitely still recording, maybe changing up a few things after being able to rehearse and play in live setting. Also rehearsing and playing new songs live could help to decide on tracklist and inspire writing more new songs of course. Considering there still seems to be some time until the release of the whole project, I guess it's quite sensible to still work on it.

About the album being poppy. It probably will be, but I guess the production will still have quite a lot alternative and experimental side too and I see this being way way better than AHFOD productionwise. After hearing Higher Power I'm not worried at all about production or the instrumentals from Jonny, Guy, Will and Max Martin. Higher Power has shown such a strong production/mixing, it delivers a bit differently with studio and live versions, but both are amazing. Also Human Heart has proven there will be definitely some variety as always on Coldplay albums.

What I'm a bit worried about is that amazing production can sometimes overshadow the mediocre songwriting. Hopefully it will be balanced and songwriting/quality of production will be on the same level. In terms of songwriting, Higher Power for me is kind of walking on edge - it is quite cleverly structured, very catchy and so full of energy, but nowhere close to getting masterpiece hit song status. I was waiting a bit more to be honest, when considering the amount of promotion. It seemed like it wanted to become a massive hit, but maybe it was just the most perfect song to come back with and they didn't really care. Right now it feels like it's a great show opener like A Head Full of Dreams and Hurts Like Heaven, but not achieving massive hit status (I could be wrong and they could have something else as opener for tour). Also with Higher Power being out now for month already and comparing it to everything else and Coldplay's past releases, I'm more and more starting to feel it is actually way more "alternative" in the current music scene than I thought at first. Dynamics and production are just too rich and too different to most of the current (mainly solo artists') music and funnily enough - feels a like a rock band still at the time, where there hardly is even any bands in charts. Or maybe I'm just overthinking and it's just a flop pop song.  ? 

[Strawberry Swinger]

15 hours ago, AnaMarie said:

I really don’t know how to feel about this, I just really hope Max Martin is trying to be more experimental and is trying some new sounds himself, working with the band to create something bigger than them, and himself; as in: I hope he isn’t trying to make something formulaic, but that he is pushing his own boundaries to grow too... let’s hope the guys are strong enough to not “follow the crowd” blindly and stand strong with their convictions on what sounds they like! 
 

I really risk being called out for being too negative, but I am unfortunately certain that they will follow the crowd... I hope at least there will be 2-3 songs that I like.

I can't stand Higher Power, I think it is abysmal. Mind you, I love 90% of their stuff. I think Everyday Life was their best album since Viva. 

But this... God, I hate everything about Higher Power... Human Heart sounds OK. 

[The Philosopher]

No one is wondering yet about what could be the song with a colour name, but I would like to start that topic.

[Strawberry Swinger]

7 minutes ago, The Philosopher said:

No one is wondering yet about what could be the song with a colour name, but I would like to start that topic.

There haven't been any color songs since MX, right? OK, Color Spectrum was there if you count that. 

[The Philosopher]

22 minutes ago, Strawberry Swinger said:

There haven't been any color songs since MX, right? OK, Color Spectrum was there if you count that. 

Yes, I absolutely count Colour Spectrum because it has all the colours in it. And even if you think about it, you could doubt more of that in Everyday Life, because you wonder: where is the colour song there? 0k, there wasn't a colour song itself, but they were more twisted in that album. The second half of the album is called "Sunset", and "Sunset" is also a colour:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunset_(color)

They always think about that.

[LisaFeehily]

So it's been confirmed that HP is the soundtrack for the latest BMW commercial.

I guess what Coldplay and BMW have in common is their goal to become more environmentally friendly. That, and how with their latest launches and their changes in style they've alienated large parts of their fan bases.

[lennyrott1]

 

Quote

What I'm a bit worried about is that amazing production can sometimes overshadow the mediocre songwriting. Hopefully it will be balanced and songwriting/quality of production will be on the same level. In terms of songwriting, Higher Power for me is kind of walking on edge - it is quite cleverly structured, very catchy and so full of energy, but nowhere close to getting masterpiece hit song status. 

^This. Exactly this. Production is one thing, but songwriting is another. My issue with Newplay isn't necessarily that Jonny's guitar or Guy's is sometimes mixed poorly (though that is a problem), it's mostly that some songs just aren't as sharply written or as catchy as Oldplay. Higher Power is overall a well written song with fun, clean production. But does it feel as cinematic as Paradise? Or as danceable as AOAL? Or as catchy as Magic? Or as energetic and raw as Orphans? Not in my opinon.

Only time will tell on how MOTS shapes out -- I doubt it will be 100% pop songs, but the ratio could be bigger than ever. Or maybe not!  I was expecting a way poppier AHFOD with Stargate and was super angry about that back in 2015, but in hindsight the percussion and atmosphere on that album is pretty dang nice sounding and it gave us some tunes Oldplayers can love -- Birds, Amazing Day, Up&Up.

Chris also said in interviews that this is a new thing for Max to be working with a band like Coldplay, so I don't think we can really predict the final sound. With Higher Power, I'm torn. It seems so far like the song is kind of flopping the U.S. and I agree that it's kind of a 50/50 between rock and pop, just like a lot of AHFOD and GS. I simultaneously feel bad for the band if Higher Power is their huge flagship for this era and it's their least successful single, but also I hope that it is their flagship and that means other songs will be more weird & spacey. Chris did say they were trying to imagine what alien music sounds like, and so far it just sounds like Coldplay lol. 

Edited June 11, 2021 by lennyrott1

[TheBigBadBono]

I must admit I'm not feeling entirely hopeful about the new era.

But I think people are forgetting that Music of the Spheres as a concept started during the Viva days and that all the reused terms (Alien Radio) and reused set ideas and costumes from the MX tour seem to confirm this. Just like the MX and Viva eras, Jon Hopkins is allegedly back (from his reddit AMA) and that we've heard only one pop song (HP) while hearing another in the vein of Everyday Life (HH) and a weird ambient intro that sounds like the Escapist, MMIX, and Always in My Head combined.

People are also overlooking how ambitious this is. This has entire worlds and planets, a concept, a language and culture, weird radio transmissions that suggest further clues, etc. This feels way too ambitious to be something like GS or AHFOD but rather something like MX or VLV. Will said his favorite song which was played on BBC big weekend but not broadcasted is something they've never done before - Chris also talked about a new song that was "weird and new", comparing it to metal/jazz-fusion.

I think there's something much more exciting to come than what we've seen so far.

[harrisonrules]

55 minutes ago, TheBigBadBono said:

I must admit I'm not feeling entirely hopeful about the new era.

But I think people are forgetting that Music of the Spheres as a concept started during the Viva days and that all the reused terms (Alien Radio) and reused set ideas and costumes from the MX tour seem to confirm this. Just like the MX and Viva eras, Jon Hopkins is allegedly back (from his reddit AMA) and that we've heard only one pop song (HP) while hearing another in the vein of Everyday Life (HH) and a weird ambient intro that sounds like the Escapist, MMIX, and Always in My Head combined.

People are also overlooking how ambitious this is. This has entire worlds and planets, a concept, a language and culture, weird radio transmissions that suggest further clues, etc. This feels way too ambitious to be something like GS or AHFOD but rather something like MX or VLV. Will said his favorite song which was played on BBC big weekend but not broadcasted is something they've never done before - Chris also talked about a new song that was "weird and new", comparing it to metal/jazz-fusion.

I think there's something much more exciting to come than what we've seen so far.

I'm kinda hoping they bring back some MX era songs that never saw the light of day 

Great Expectations 

Sex and Violence 

Etc

[harrisonrules]

Picture it

The year is 2047 and Coldplay has just released their 17 studio album that Chris claims will likely be their last

 

[Doomotron]

1 hour ago, harrisonrules said:

Picture it

The year is 2047 and Coldplay has just released their 17 studio album that Chris claims will likely be their last

 

I thought that you'd posted a picture of New Order or The Who there...

[MosesTheMarshmallow]

On 6/10/2021 at 4:16 PM, lennyrott1 said:

Couple things have stood out over the past few days : 

1. Chris' discussion of Max Martin seems to suggest the album will be very poppy, which I think we already were expecting. He basically said that Max is helping members of the band realize they can make songs that are more pop. Hard to know if he was talking about Higher Power or this whole era. 

2. The band is still recording? Chris said he had a song for Max Martin just the other day, and it seems like they're doing their interviews from the same building where they could be wrapping up the record. So maybe MOTS wasn't finished around the same time as EL like some of us predicted. Or maybe it was and they've completely changed it?  

3. Jonny mentioned during the Twitter Q&A that he's loving the Meris Enzo guitar pedal. It can create some synth sounds that are unrecognizable as guitar, so this suggests more synth sounds will be present on the album -- or more songs where there isn't traditional Coldplay guitar sounds. 

I'm so excited by this guitar-synth thing. Jonny already makes such cool sounds on the guitar, whether that's the main riff in POC, the ambient intro of MX-era GPASUYF or AROBTTH-era Spies. Matthew Bellamy (guitarist of Muse) and Chris Wolstenholme (bassist) both run their instruments through lots of synth pedals and get super interesting results.

Simple application - arpeggiator on the guitar

 

More complex application - making dubstep with guitars and bass ?

 

 

 

[harrisonrules]

30 minutes ago, MosesTheMarshmallow said:

I'm so excited by this guitar-synth thing. Jonny already makes such cool sounds on the guitar, whether that's the main riff in POC, the ambient intro of MX-era GPASUYF or AROBTTH-era Spies. Matthew Bellamy (guitarist of Muse) and Chris Wolstenholme (bassist) both run their instruments through lots of synth pedals and get super interesting results.

Simple application - arpeggiator on the guitar

 

More complex application - making dubstep with guitars and bass ?

 

 

 

Muse rocks 

[harrisonrules]

Why are there so many sex shops in Kaotica

3rd one is unclear but I see S and E in back and possibly X 

[Strawberry Swinger]

5 hours ago, MosesTheMarshmallow said:

I'm so excited by this guitar-synth thing. Jonny already makes such cool sounds on the guitar, whether that's the main riff in POC, the ambient intro of MX-era GPASUYF or AROBTTH-era Spies. Matthew Bellamy (guitarist of Muse) and Chris Wolstenholme (bassist) both run their instruments through lots of synth pedals and get super interesting results.

Simple application - arpeggiator on the guitar

 

More complex application - making dubstep with guitars and bass ?

 

 

 

motp = best muse song

[harrisonrules]

3 minutes ago, Strawberry Swinger said:

motp = best muse song

Gonna have to disagree they have several that are better IMO though 

Knights of Cydonia Bliss and Hysteria to name few

My personal favorite is Muscle Museum

 

[harrisonrules]

Most underrated imo

[IcebatofvalikinRRBZ8]

What about Mercy? That’s my favorite along with Something Human and Get Up & Fight

[42Escapist]

7 hours ago, MosesTheMarshmallow said:

I'm so excited by this guitar-synth thing. Jonny already makes such cool sounds on the guitar, whether that's the main riff in POC, the ambient intro of MX-era GPASUYF or AROBTTH-era Spies. Matthew Bellamy (guitarist of Muse) and Chris Wolstenholme (bassist) both run their instruments through lots of synth pedals and get super interesting results.

Simple application - arpeggiator on the guitar

 

More complex application - making dubstep with guitars and bass ?

 

 

 

I was thinking about this a while back when Chris did that little live stream solo gig, I think it was something for Dell? And he had a MIDI controller on his instruments, which he jokingly called "Coldplay in a box." The one on his acoustic guitar definitely reminded me of the (much more advanced) Kaoss Pad that Matt Bellamy uses. And when that's combined with synth pedals, it really can let one musician make an extremely wide range of different sounds with a single instrument. It'd be so cool if Jonny were to use a guitar-synth device alongside what he already does. He could do some even more other-worldy stuff and that'd be great for an album like MOTS that's supposed to be space and alien-themed.

If only Coldplay would do something that sounds like Black Holes & Revelations... or maybe The Resistance. Imagine a spiritual successor to X&Y that's heavier and angrier, with orchestral stuff sprinkled in. But I think they're done with "angry Coldplay" for now after Trouble In Town, Arabesque, and Guns.

By the way, I love that you posted this version of Map of the Problematique. I was at Glasto for it and it was definitely a highlight of the set.