john_crawford44

When I heard the first verse, I was thinking that this was going to be a classic. It may still be, but something about the chorus doesn't sound right... yet. I HOPE that the falsetto was just because Chris defaulted to what he knows best when performing... for some reason, it sticks out on this track as a range that Chris can't seem to sing comfortably in. Damn, because up to the chorus it was perfect.

Must confess: "Paradise" is completely and utterly embedded in my head like a really good commercial jingle.

para-para-parrotdies, I meant...

I think "parrot-parrot-parrotdies" (brilliant name, btw) has a great point - if you go by his (I assume he's a he) thread title. I wonder myself if having everything you ever wanted can suck the creative juices out of you, especially a band like Coldplay that relies on going deep inside their soul for inspiration. That being said, I will have to reference my previous comment that Coldplay has always had high watermarks and cellar dwellars when it comes to their lyrical content (Chris' vision). What scares me about this particular record (and it's just based on the first two singles and the Rihanna guest vocals) is that the substance is gone... there is no connection for me personally. Mylo Xyloto: the Musical - "Grease" set in the future. It screams of a later Broadway play, like "American Idiot". It's so gradiose and so universal that it loses its sincerity. It reminds me of U2, in a way. You get so big and you are flying private jets and hanging with celebrities in your downtime and you begin to, without realizing it sometimes, lose your ability to relate to the common person and their struggles. So you create a story abut someone else... which could be cool if you are good enough to do that lyrically, a la Bob Dylan. But it could be a disaster if you cannot. I hope Chris Martin proves me wrong.

I honestly don't think the lyrics have gotten "worse", by any stretch.... there have always been watermarks and cellar dwellers on each album in their entire catalog ( in my opinion). Some alt-rock songs have fairly remedial lyrics that to me mean something entirely different than their intention ("Holocene" by Bon Iver, as an example). It's the whole song in its context that "feels" like a place you visited. Chris Martin would never win any poetry contests, but it doesn't mean that every once in awhile he doesn't hit a homerun with his prose ("Amsterdam", for example) and music combined. Goosebumps. I was looking for goosebumps in these singles, and while I find myself humming "Paradise" daily it doesn't remind me of my life at all. Does that make sense?

I like the majority of the Muse titles as well, but I think that Absolution seems to tell a similar story, no? The album incorporates themes of fear, mistrust, personal achievement and joy - sound familiar?

Illuminati??

There won't be an LP6. I would bet the house on it... maybe an EP but unlikely as well.

Just because you have been a fan since Parachutes (and I would not want a Parachutes II, by the way), does not mean you have to wave the pom poms and blindly support a band. As an avid fan, I think of Coldplay as family - anyone in my family can be highly critical of each other, but no one else can. I highly doubt there is anyone in this forum who WILL NOT buy the new album, regradless of the first two singles... so we have a certain right to QUESTION the direction of the new album. They still could win me back around... as much as I don't like the new sound, I can't get "Para-Para-Paradise" out of my head. Take, for example, U2. When U2 released Achtung Baby, it surprised alot of people in the beginning. The first single was "The Fly" and I remember kids I was friends with thinking. "wtf?" Then they released "Mysterious Ways" and it sounded a little more like U2. The album turned out to be a masterpiece and "One", the third single I believe, blew up. I LOVED that direction.... I hated the "Pop" direction that followed. But I love the courage it took to take a chance... but that does not mean we have to love the direction.

It's only a dumb thread if you read the entire thing and then post a dumb comment.

True...I know that even though I don't love the two singles, I'll still buy the album.

Just a hunch, really... they cannot get any bigger or have bigger aspirations. Maybe an EP, but if you think they will be still able to be creative in three years than they will be the exception to the rule. The idea of a proper "album" may be obsolete by then, anyway. Coldplay have hit a whole other level... it follows a blueprint of many other really big bands that they will crumble under the enormous expectations surrounding them. What more can they achieve? Just a thought... besides, Chris has hinted that each time they finish an album. It's a draining process- especially when you start bringing in different producers and consultants (Eno).

"Paradise" has the same recipe that a song like "I Kissed a Girl" in that it gets stuck in your head like a commercial jingle. It's been in my head all day and I must confess that it's catchy - but not epic. I was expecting epic... especially hearing the first verse. It sounds like a Chris Martin solo song. I am sure it will be a hit (if it isn't already on iTunes), but it's not what I expected. I honestly believe this will be Coldplay's last album. _________________________________________________________________ Why is that if I Google "Jay-Z, Beyonce and Rihanna" (all "friends" of Chris Martin) it finishes with Illuminati??? Crazy stuff if you check it out... Does that explain the "one eye watching you" lyric and Coldplay selling their souls? Damn, there is even Illuminati references in "ETIAW" video? Oh boy... say it ain't so~:)

Great observation, Cleggy... their insecurity was endearing. When you try to, as an example, make a movie that everyone will like, you make a Summer Blockbuster. When the movie's over, you leave being mildly entertained but overly disappointed (most of the time). As far as the above bands making music that is "different" (the Who, Zeppelin, U2), they seemed to be going against the trend. This is different for them but sounds like a cookie-cutter version of all the other popular music out today - devoid of genuine feeling to appease everyone (Katy Perry, anyone>?). With that being said, I still have some hope that this will turn out o.k. But the alien stuff is the only encouraging part of the "story" - and we haven't heard that part of it yet.

I didn't hear piano in the 30 sec clip... and the section I heard I thought was the chorus wasnt the chorus. I heard the beginning part that eventually leaked and heard "Paradise"in the first verse. I had no idea it would repeated over and over again. I was wrong... but I stand by my statement. I was caught off-guard - which was my friend's intention. He wouldn't tell me ANYTHING about it except there was guitar. Enough said. Whatever... I never claimed to be an expert.

NOTE: The last verses on "Amsterdam" are classic.

To me, it's not necessarily the lyrics per se... it's that feeling you get when you can no longer "relate" to your favorite band anymore. Personally, this "story" doesn't hit home to me - so far. Great, a love story with butterflies and little girls... sounds like a children's book or a Japanimation comic book. Some bands can narrate a story well (Think Arcade Fire's "The Suburbs") about other people. I think Chris is trying to step out of his comfort zone, and I admire that in principal. But trying to be like his friends Jay Z and Beyonce and not like Damon Albarn is disappointing. I just have an awful feeling in my stomach that this album will not speak to me. "Amsterdam" didn't have classically great lyrics but in the right context that made you get goosebumps. Pink Floyd's lyrics on Dark Side of the Moon weren't, by any means, "great"... in fact, they were elementary ("Breathe... breathe in the air. Don't be afraid to care"). But, combined with the music, they hit you over the head. "Clocks" is like that to me... "a tiger waiting to be tamed" - not classic, but relateable in any context and set with the incredible piano, a classic. I want classics... not "flavors of the month". Hopefully some of the others will be. I love "Charlie Brown", but really hate the title. What does Charlie Brown have to do with the story?! Again, it's too cartoony.

Ummm, Lukestar1991: I think you mean "premature", not immature. But I digress. Stevie Wonder can see this band has changed its sound dramatically on these two new singles. Some people are going to like it and people like myself and others are not loving what they hear SO FAR. Two chapters into the book, and I am not loving the book. I know some exciting chapters may come later, but the story sucks so far (in my opinion). I agree with Para-Para-ParrotDies (great name by the way!) - the best thing about Coldplay, no matter how trite the lyrics may have been, was their ability to make the fan feel a certain way. The music, combined with the lyrics, evoked a past experience or feeling. These two singles don't make me feel anything. I think Coldplay has always been "poppy" in some capacity... it's just that they made cool "pop"music that challenged you and now they make radio hits that challenge no one. "ETIAW", to my ears, was the equivalent to a Summer Blockbuster Movie: catered to appease everyone and connecting to no one. And then "Paradise" and now Rihanna? Gulp... please, God - say it ain't so. I'm crossing my fingers.

Nice blog... you reassured me. I think that the fans have reasons to be concerned—much the way I felt when I first heard "discotheque" by U2. The only reason I'm disappointed is that bands don't churn out albums as quickly as they used to. So even Coldplay deserves a mulligan... but then we wait three more years for LP6!

You nailed it.

FOR THE RECORD: I like the lyrics I made up for the artwork (and my artwork, come to think of it) better than the ones I have heard so far.

Dude, I told you I heard 30 seconds of each song... and I never heard the "para-para-paradise" part. I stand by that... it sounded epic. My friend is a journalist. Get over it.

Dude, I told you I heard 30 seconds of each song... and I never heard the "para-para-paradise" part. I stand by that... it sounded epic. My friend is a journalist. Get over it.

Second request: Can someone please convince me that this will not be a dud... I need some cheering up!

I have to admit that when I originally heard that Coldplay were doing a "concept" album of sorts, I was excited. But when I heard it was loosely based on a love story, OCD, and songs where Chris was writing from another person's perspective, I started to worry. Then I got really excited when I saw some of the song titles making their way around the internet. When "Every Teardrop" finally fell in our laps, however, I was disappointed. But then I heard "Charlie Brown", "HLH", "UATW" and a few others and I thought: o.k., ETIW was just a hiccup, a Summer song. Besides, I really dug Moving to Mars. Then, September 12. Like many of you, I got a snippet of "Paradise" before it came out and I thought it was building to something epic. And it is epic... but not a "forced" epic. It has zero feeling to it. I can't relate to the story and the emotion and that was what Coldplay has been able to do better than any band I like: no matter what the lyrics meant, the "feeling" I would get was personal. It's like Christmas morning and I am staring at the gift I didn't expect... and I can't pretend it doesn't hurt anymore than if you accidentally dropped a 25-pound weight on my foot. It hurts. It could be a cool, dark album or an absolute disaster... and so far, what we have is a very feminine few songs that seem way too forced and crafted. Concept albums are hit or miss - but am I the only fan who doesn't care about this story based on what we have heard so far?