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


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3 hours ago, ToniMoreno said:

Is fantastic to hear Viva la Vida or Fix You in live, but we have been hearing this song more than 10 years and always hearing the same. Other bands change or adapt their older songs to the sound of the new album, making yhe whole concert with a specific sound and thematic. But Coldplay doesn´t, they play the same songs with the same sound. And I think that for lot of fans that is quite bored.

Do you want to play Viva la Vida another tour? Ok, at least change the sound of the song. Because I have a lot of live versions of Viva la Vida (from the official releases) and ITS THE SAME.

To be fair, they have been changing Fix You over the last several years. They gave it a more electronic arrangement in 2016 that sampled Midnight and added a string section backing track. They used it through the end of the AHFOD tour. Then, in late 2019 and very early 2020, they did a more acoustic arrangement that sounded more like something off of Everyday Life. The Glastonbury 2021 live stream had the original version. Now they're using the Midnight version again.

They've been changing GPASUYF ever since the version from the Viva tour. It'll probably sound different once again if they decide to keep playing it. In My Place was stripped-down on the AHFOD tour and by the end of the tour, they had Will singing it instead of Chris. The Sirius XM broadcast the other night had a new acoustic version of Yellow.

But other than that... I see what you mean. They aren't exactly going and re-arranging all the popular songs that get played on every tour. Just a couple songs here and there. Still the same Clocks, The Scientist, Viva la Vida, etc.

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Well, really GPASUYF is the only song that changes in different tours. Maybe too much xD

But the other songs keep very similar. In Fix You the differents between versions are very small. Only in EL we have something a little different... And yes, the songs that they played in the AHFOD tour in the C stage were different, but thats because the small format.

Hope they change more other songs, we will see in next concerts

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On 9/25/2021 at 12:16 AM, Bauk said:

Thanks! I don't really understand how this can be real, since there will only be 5000 copies and unique polaroids included.. How is this possible, when it's not from the Coldplay store? 

Even though I'm wondering about this, I still couldn't resist... ?:escaping:

The Merchbar is legit, the only problem is that they list stuff that's no longer available as out of stock,
plus, in my case, they don't ship some items to my country.

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3 hours ago, Ccrules2791 said:

Wonder what they play at Global Citizen... would be surprised if they really play a new song given the lengths they went to hide people of the pride?

Maybe they go Higher Power >> Clocks >>> Viva La Vida >>> Fix You >> My Universe?

According to this, they soundchecked Humankind ?

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/coldplay/2021/great-lawn-in-central-park-new-york-ny-138da92d.html

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Reading all your comments about EL's songs not being included in the setlist it makes me feel really sad that such a great album is being left behind. I agree that EL doesn't have an ASFOS as GS, but there are some songs that could be played in a stadium with no problem. Also in my opinion EL is more intimate and is perfect for studio concerts, personally I love the Tiny Desk presentation the band had, the EL songs were perfect and I really love the sound of the album, one of my favorites... I think we'll have to keep that album as a personal gift for Coldplayers (Wich I don't think is something bad).

Changing subject, I read that People of the Pride is a final version of The Man Who Swears... Can't wait to hear it! The lyrics of that demo are kind of dark, but let's wait and see...

 

Edited by eddmen
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2 minutes ago, eddmen said:

Reading all your comments about EL's songs not being included in the setlist it makes me feel really sad that such a great album is being left behind. I agree that EL doesn't have an ASFOS as GS, but there are some songs that could be played in a stadium with no problem. Also in my opinion EL is more intimate and is perfect for studio concerts, personally I love the Tiny Desk presentation the band had, the EL songs were perfect and I really love the sound of the album, one of my favorites... I think we'll have to keep that album as a personal gift for Coldplayers (Wich I don't think is something bad).

Changing subject, I read that People of the Pride is a final version of The Man Who Swears... Can't wait to hear it! The lyrics of that demo are kind of dark, but let's wait and see...

 

Yes, I also think we should consider EL as a gift to the fans, especially to the devoted ones who have followed the band throughout different periods; I don't really think that they are going to play EL songs while promoting MOTS or on a possible following tour, but maybe in the long run they might decide to play them every now and then. After all, even though EL era was quite brief, the band seemed satisfied with the album. I wonder if without the pandemic EL destiny would have been the same. 

This is obviously just my personal opinion.

anyway people of the pride lyrics are basically the same of the man who swears, and personally I have always loved that kind of  "darkness" in the lyrics of VLV period! 

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10 minutes ago, only.your.imagination said:

Yes, I also think we should consider EL as a gift to the fans, especially to the devoted ones who have followed the band throughout different periods; I don't really think that they are going to play EL songs while promoting MOTS or on a possible following tour, but maybe in the long run they might decide to play them every now and then. After all, even though EL era was quite brief, the band seemed satisfied with the album. I wonder if without the pandemic EL destiny would have been the same. 

This is obviously just my personal opinion.

anyway people of the pride lyrics are basically the same of the man who swears, and personally I have always loved that kind of  "darkness" in the lyrics of VLV period! 

We'll never know, but I think it would have been different without the pandemic, even GS (that it was more like a Chris' personal project) had a better promotion than EL. Anyway I'll keep watching the Live in Jordan as many times I want haha.

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During the AHFOD tour they play part of the GS, so its possible than in the next tour they will play some of the EL songs. I think I read in an interview that chris said they will not play Orphans in the future (personally I dont like that song...), but I dont remember that he said something about the whole album.

I think songs like Arabesque, Champion of the World or Trouble in Town could fit perfectly in a stadium with other newones from MOTS.

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9 minutes ago, ToniMoreno said:

During the AHFOD tour they play part of the GS, so its possible than in the next tour they will play some of the EL songs. I think I read in an interview that chris said they will not play Orphans in the future (personally I dont like that song...), but I dont remember that he said something about the whole album.

I think songs like Arabesque, Champion of the World or Trouble in Town could fit perfectly in a stadium with other newones from MOTS.

I think Champion of the World has a chance given that it's mostly a Coldplay song. I LOVE Arabesque but I'm wondering how much Chris would do that unless Femi Kuti is there personally. Church is sort of tough on his vocal range, so that's out. A bunch of the other ones are still kind of small stage - so maybe a b-stage (tops). Everyday Life itself I'm sure will get played at some point. But with the exception of Champion of the World, I don't see them being rotational. Trouble in Town is a great song, albeit pretty heavy too...

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11 minutes ago, Aiko said:

 

Personally I don't believe this is one of the best Coldplay song, however I'm already happy with Coloratura, Human heart (and possibly people of the pride) so far. 

I've watched the video for sheer curiosity as I always find interesting these types of "behind the scenes" (the hope was to get some "hints" at what's coming next at this point, however nothing interesting unfortunately for us came out?)

I don't know if someone has already mentioned this topic, but I watched the Global Citizen live yesterday and I've really appreciated the version of "Fix you" with Billie Eilish. And judging from Will's reaction at the very end of the song, I would dare to say he might agree with me!

(I'm sorry for my English, I'm Italian)

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2 hours ago, Ccrules2791 said:

I think Champion of the World has a chance given that it's mostly a Coldplay song. I LOVE Arabesque but I'm wondering how much Chris would do that unless Femi Kuti is there personally. Church is sort of tough on his vocal range, so that's out. A bunch of the other ones are still kind of small stage - so maybe a b-stage (tops). Everyday Life itself I'm sure will get played at some point. But with the exception of Champion of the World, I don't see them being rotational. Trouble in Town is a great song, albeit pretty heavy too...

They can play Arabesque with samples ¿loopers? and keyboards as in Viva la Vida, for example. But I sadly think Chris doesnt like very much that song cause it has low vocals...

Trouble in Town matchs good with Violet Hill or People of the Pride...

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Talking about POTP, It’s so funny how those sessions with Brian Eno keeps on giving! Every new project has an old song that started back then.

 

Kaleidoscope EP had ALIENS, EL has Arabesque and now the finished The Man Who Swears on MOTS. That was definitely their creative peak!

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9 hours ago, gustavothehuman said:

hot take but a Max Martin X Brian Eno produced album would easily become their best

Oh it could be!

If (as I suppose) they have more materials than the demos we already know left from VLV sessions with Eno, I think we are going to get some good songs in a few years. Maybe they will keep the old basic idea but with something new (see People of the pride, Max Martin helped them to shape something they already had).

However Imho they will carefully reuse these oltre demos in different albums; in MOTS we have already one, and so probably we won't get a second track of that group (at least not a track developed from the demos we know).

I may be completely wrong of course, it's just a personal thought, we will see?

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51 minutes ago, 42JTR said:

Unfortunately, yes. EL came close though. 

El is their best produced album without the help of Eno and Hopkins, but MOTS could be a close second if the rest of the songs are good.

But that period of Eno, Dravs, and Hopkins was truly the best - the band truly shone in a live setting, let their experimental side show through, had great ambience and atmosphere in their songs, they pursued different song structures, their most anthemic songs were from this era, they had arguably the weirdest influences during Viva and Mylo, made so many songs in a period of such creativity that the songs are still being used today (Arabesque, ALIENS, POTP) and the rest are found on Youtube.

The Eno era IS peak Coldplay.

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2 hours ago, TheBigBadBono said:

El is their best produced album without the help of Eno and Hopkins, but MOTS could be a close second if the rest of the songs are good.

But that period of Eno, Dravs, and Hopkins was truly the best - the band truly shone in a live setting, let their experimental side show through, had great ambience and atmosphere in their songs, they pursued different song structures, their most anthemic songs were from this era, they had arguably the weirdest influences during Viva and Mylo, made so many songs in a period of such creativity that the songs are still being used today (Arabesque, ALIENS, POTP) and the rest are found on Youtube.

The Eno era IS peak Coldplay.

and that era only happened because... they changed their sound!

Edited by gustavothehuman
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2 hours ago, TheBigBadBono said:

El is their best produced album without the help of Eno and Hopkins, but MOTS could be a close second if the rest of the songs are good.

But that period of Eno, Dravs, and Hopkins was truly the best - the band truly shone in a live setting, let their experimental side show through, had great ambience and atmosphere in their songs, they pursued different song structures, their most anthemic songs were from this era, they had arguably the weirdest influences during Viva and Mylo, made so many songs in a period of such creativity that the songs are still being used today (Arabesque, ALIENS, POTP) and the rest are found on Youtube.

The Eno era IS peak Coldplay.

EL had their best production since AROBTTH. I'm still fucking bummed they didn't tour that album!

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It's hard to define what good production is & there's a conversation about subjectivity or whatever, but for me MOTS will likely go on to be Coldplay's best produced "pop album" based on what we've heard so far, so that is including it in league with Ghost Stories, AHFOD & MX. And before I get any hate, I wanna make it clear I love these albums/era overall. 

For me a pop album is about sounding "clean" to make the melodies and catchy choruses hit harder. MX is an oddball because it had some clean sounding moments that miss the mark for me (UFO, Up In Flames) but they still had Eno giving the album a lot of color, guitars, and texture. Ghost Stories on the other hand feels somewhat sterile and mixed too quietly. It's almost too watery, if that makes sense. And AHFOD had some great produced moments, but some songs felt like they either needed a bit more or a bit less (AHFOD, Fun, Army of One). Perhaps we owe this to Stargate. 

Now with MOTS, it's sounding really clean but also punchy. The synths on HP & MU hit hard and Chris's vocals sound great. On top of that, Jonny's minimal pop guitar, the basslines, and drums sound better mixed than they have for a long time in my opinion. The layering on Human Heart is heavenly and huge, and Coloratura is just a masterpiece from start to finish with such incredible production value. And what we've heard from POTP seems like a good mix of clean & catchy presentation without giving up the instruments. It seems like they're doing a good job carrying over some of the styles and lessons of Everyday Life but in a pop music/love song package. So I'm so far liking Max Martin. The songwriting? That's another story.

Edited by lennyrott1
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1 hour ago, lennyrott1 said:

It's hard to define what good production is & there's a conversation about subjectivity or whatever, but for me MOTS will likely go on to be Coldplay's best produced "pop album" based on what we've heard so far, so that is including it in league with Ghost Stories, AHFOD & MX. And before I get any hate, I wanna make it clear I love these albums/era overall. 

For me a pop album is about sounding "clean" to make the melodies and catchy choruses hit harder. MX is an oddball because it had some clean sounding moments that miss the mark for me (UFO, Up In Flames) but they still had Eno giving the album a lot of color, guitars, and texture. Ghost Stories on the other hand feels somewhat sterile and mixed too quietly. It's almost too watery, if that makes sense. And AHFOD had some great produced moments, but some songs felt like they either needed a bit more or a bit less (AHFOD, Fun, Army of One). Perhaps we owe this to Stargate. 

Now with MOTS, it's sounding really clean but also punchy. The synths on HP & MU hit hard and Chris's vocals sound great. On top of that, Jonny's minimal pop guitar, the basslines, and drums sound better mixed than they have for a long time in my opinion. The layering on Human Heart is heavenly and huge, and Coloratura is just a masterpiece from start to finish with such incredible production value. And what we've heard from POTP seems like a good mix of clean & catchy presentation without giving up the instruments. It seems like they're doing a good job carrying over some of the styles and lessons of Everyday Life but in a pop music/love song package. So I'm so far liking Max Martin. The songwriting? That's another story.

I agree on a lot of these points and think your framing is a good direction to talk about these things! 

-I'll add that UATW is one of their best songs ever but the production is so-so, with the notable flaw that Will's voice is mixed quite low. I actually have less of a problem with UFO. I'd also add that HLH and Charlie Brown are a bit weird from a production perspective, for me the most noticeable thing being that on HLH, Jonny's 1st guitar solo gets all muddy and almost sounds incorrect when he does the big descent (as compared to the live version). 

-I actually disagree about GS in that I think it sounds watery on purpose. Most of that album is produced exactly as it's supposed to be because everything minus ASFOS is supposed to feel underwater. I think on Oceans on the first instance of "got to find yourself alone in this world" Chris is intentionally going in and out because it sounds like someone singing at the crests of waves. (see what I did there?!)

-I also agree about AHFOD though I find the title track pretty impeccable. Army of One and AOAL have the vocal samples a little bit too loud.

-MOTS *is* very clean and punchy. Same goes for Orphans by the way, where you can hear Guy's bassline really clearly even without headphones. I do dislike though on the mixing for MOTS how low Jonny's guitar lines are except for in Coloratura. But otherwise MOTS is quite nice. If you go back and listen to ETIAW or Paradise or HLH there are just SO MANY layers of synths and stuff and it's a bit much compared to what you get in HP. 

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I think that while many of the faults of MX and AHFOD aren't seen at first glimpse you see how flawed the production is in a life setting. 

Mylo Xyloto, while my second favorite album of their 2010s albums, is flawed on the production side. On the one hand, you have these excellent guitar-rockers like ETIAW or Hurts Like Heaven, then there are good tracks but a bit too loud - Major Minus and DLIBYH. There are odd songs that are quiet and acoustic, almost sounding like they came straight off of Prospekt's March, such as UWTB, UFO, and UATW. And then you have Paradise and Princess of China, which are great live, but the production just wants to make you tear your ears out, especially in POC. I adore the song live but I absolutely despise the studio track.

AHFOD lacks the thing that still made MX appealing, and that was the ambition and songwriting introduced by Eno. Even though the MX tracks would seem muddied or too loud the structures were different, lyrics were different, and the melodies were different and more interesting. AHFOD by comparison does have its bright spots, but even those are hard hit by the terrible production of Stargate. Up&Up, AOAL, HFTW, and Amazing Day are all vastly better live. Birds and AHFOD are pretty good in the studio version but are even better live, and the flawed production especially shows when the stripped down Everglow is released as a single later on. 

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  • Captain Crieff changed the title to 🪐 Coldplay: Music of the Spheres 🪐 | Out Now! | Discussion

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