Ok, I'll preface this (much belated) review with the fact that I picked up a coldplay obsession shortly after EL was released, so I started well into the newplay era. My favorite of the leas singles so far is ETIAW (yes, I know, I like it more than In My Place, sue me) and honestly Higher Power dosen't give me quite the same chill as ETIAW. When ETIAW comes on, I literally can't keep from crying. My friends are like "wtf dude stop" and I just can't. I also think this was a bit of a risky musical choice for them, even though Blinding Lights made the sound popular on the radio, I think it was very risky in pertaining to their community, which shows me even more that they truly are making music for themselves, and we are along for the ride. That's what gives coldplay that special something to me, that they don't care what others think of their music, and if it turns out to be a hit that's just bonus points. No other band makes me feel that way but coldplay, and that's why I listened to HP 19 times yesterday (or so Newpipe tells me).
On to HP itself. I really do feel that it has a uniqueness to it that hasn't been shown in any coldplay song yet. Just like EL, this shows me that they aren't scared to do something new, exciting, and out of this world. (i couldn't not fit a space pun in there somewhere... c'mon). The sound is really something else. I hear the COTW influence in the beginning, which i f-ing love, and the Birds in there too. I'm a sucker for Birds by the way. I love the way the choruses stack on top of each other in this way where you hardly even realize it's building up to something until the end of the song, when it's all yanked away from you at such a speed that it left me dizzy. I love the east asian influence in the synth in the background, that reminds me of Rainy Day. Seriously, this song sounds like MX had a child with Rainy Day. I can't believe no one has drawn a comparison there! The half-second long synth right before the chorus reminds me of the longer buildup to the explosion in Atlas, except this buildup is so subtle that it makes the chorus sound tamer. I work at an amusement park, and the start of the final chorus makes me feel the same way as when I ride the giant pendulum ride and go all the way over the top. My stomach feels like it's missing, and my world is in free-fall. (I use hyperbole a lot in case you haven't figured that out by now). Listening to this in the car bumps, the bass is absolutely amazing! leading me on to Guy's bass-line, holy crap! now THAT is an 'electric' bass-line (see what i did there?) Overall the sound makes me feel like I'm traveling a million miles an hour in free fall through space.
Now for the lyrics. First of all, reading them like a poem it definitely seems that the majority of this song is not from the point of view of the protagonist in this story. The first verse is about how the main character feels down, (maybe due to covid? LOL,) Then a female character ("it's alright, it's alright she said) tells him (this boy is electric) that he has a higher power, that he is electric, that he's got her singin' every second, and dancin' every hour, and that he's once in a lifetime. Perhaps these two are in a relationship? Or I've just been culturally conditioned to think that if a male and a female like each other, they must be in a relationship (see Morgan and Garcia from the show Criminal Minds anyone?)
Then for a bit of Kaotica theorizing. What if this is an expansion on Moving To Mars? What if after we moved to mars, and transformed the place into this perfect world where we can be whatever we want to be? Just a thought.
Overall I can't wait to see what MOTS brings. I also wish Jon's guitar had come out more, but I know that he'll be highlighted in other places in the album. In an interview with iHeartRadio, Chris said that there is more Max Martin coming soon. The lyrics could've been more creative, but for the sake of radio friendliness I'm glad they at least made a hook into what the rest of MOTS will bring.