lennyrott1

Very fair points!! And I nonetheless think it is really cool that Coldplay has done so much on their recent albums :) I warmed to ASFOS somewhat and already am with Hymn for the Weekend. While I may not like how they sound within their respective albums, it is pretty cool to shuffle through Coldplay and have an acoustic ballad, a hard-rocker, an ambient piano ballad, and then an EDM explosion! :) They really are a talented band who writes relatable and diverse music, so it makes sense that they have so many fans! I just hope they can veer away from the overwhelming pop production on AHFOD. I think that as talented musicians they still have a lot of sounds and genres to explore but they need to do so with the right atmosphere and production style. Stargate really helped them get a fun pop sound down, but that kind of constrained the albums creativity in my opinion and left some songs feeling more generic than dynamic.

^Agreed. This song possibly enters my top 5 Coldplay tracks. It simply has really gorgeous and textured production. It feels like an honest track performed with life instruments and live synths/strings. Most tracks on this record while great feel very fabricated (over produced). The indie vibe in Birds (like Tame Impala, Strokes, The Cure) simply make it a superior, fresh sounding song in Coldplay's discography. I argue it is the most raw and beautiful thing on this album.

Arguably, every Coldplay album is for everybody--especially GS and AHFOD. And that is why they are my least favorite. With earlier albums they would commit to just a few primary sounds on an album that people would either love or hate, though they were still accessible and mostly pop rock albums. With GS and AHFOD you get a whole swath of stuff. Straight Pop/Contemporary Dance: True Love, ASFOS, HFTW, AOAL, Army of One. Indie-pop: Magic, Ink, Fun, Birds, AIMH. Stadium/Alt-Rock: AHFOD, Amazing Day, Up&Up R&B/Hip-Hop: Another's Arms, X Marks the Spot. Ambient/Electronic: Midnight, Kaleidoscope Piano Ballad: O, Everglow Heck, you could even extend that list back to MX. The truth is, Coldplay says they want to channel ALL of their influences which in turn aims to please fans of EVERY genre. This is admirable, and they do a good job at every genre in my opinion--but not a great job. So I am pleased insofar as I like the genres of Indie-pop, alt-rock, and ambience and ballads--but if I don't love Coldplay's stuff in other genres, then I won't enjoy the entirety of their albums (i.e. True Love, ASFOS, HFTW, Fun) I think they need to go back and make something with a more straight-forward sound that sticks to just a few genres, or experiments within a similar soundscape like Viva La Vida did. When they did this, I still really liked my least favorite songs. Nowadays, on the last 3 albums, I just really don't enjoy entire tracks and that compromises the quality of the album.

Well, like I guessed, this is going to be Coldplay's worst reviewed album. Kind of like Ghost Stories I think you either are going to love it or hate it. But these two albums are very similar. I agree with most reviewers that even though it is striving to be perfect pop, it didn't quite get there. Is part of that because they finished prematurely? That Facebook interview earlier today certainly suggested that they finally got to a point where they were like "meh, good enough." I know they do that for every album, but still. Too much of this thing was left to producers and not the band--because the band was largely separated during the recording process. And totally agree. THIS ALBUM IS NOT AS FUN TO LISTEN TO AS IT WAS FOR THE BAND TO MAKE IT. Which says something about its quality. I would rather listen to MX to feel happy, frankly.

Man, I went on a tirade last year about why Coldplay ISN'T a good superbowl band..but that is okay. I mean, it has become a big pop show anyways but is usually fun to watch. Nothing will ever compare to their Paralympic games ceremony though.

I don't know... My issue is that I really agree with a lot of what the Pitchfork reviewer says. When I listen to AHFOD while say, doing homework, it just starts and is over. There is nothing that really grabs me. It feels like a pop playlist with a few catchy sparkles. So objectively I can totally see why a professional music critic--who listens to tons of quality stuff all the time--finds AHFOD to be a bad album... it really is overly saccharine, and it doesn't really do anything radically different to the Coldplay formula. I feel like in order to enjoy these songs I really gotta convince myself to as a Coldplay fan...and thats not good. In all honestly, since last Friday I have played the whole album through once a day and I am already kind of over it. It just feels like it is missing something... I hope I am just crazy, but maybe 7 albums in and its hard to enjoy new stuff when there are only so many songs a band can write you know? I am just partial to Oldplay stuff. With these recent albums I feel like I just end by grabbing 3-4 tracks to love (Birds, AOAL, Amazing Day, Up&Up) and just forget the rest...

^^^^Agree. This song has really strong individual parts that don't fit together. I love brassy "put your wings on me" and "drink from me" but then it just blows up into this boring 4/4 chorus with like no instrumentation? Why didn't they just blast a bunch of horns and strings and wailing guitars at this part, that would make for a better song that is still catchy and radio-worthy.

I am starting this thread prematurely--the album isn't even out yet--but nonetheless I have to ask all of you: Will we be getting B-sides or EP's for the AHFOD era? I for one am hoping so, since I want something less pop-driven! Remember that every era has had some so far, but GS and MX combined only delivered MTM, All Your Friends, Ghost Story, and O (Reprise). Does this indicate a death of Coldplay B-sides? Or are they going to surprise us with a huge EP like Prospekt's March? DISCUSS! :p

My Final Review (sorry that it is so long! ) Whether we like it or not, Coldplay has fully delved into pop music on AHFOD—and as always, they know how to put together a cohesive, thoroughly entertaining album. Plus, it has some of each member's flashiest instrumental moments and even some refreshingly thoughtful lyrics and themes from the usually platitudinous Chris Martin. Unfortunately, AHFOD is not the new classic Coldplay album many were hoping for, and while the life-affirming concepts and colorful energy comes through, poor choices in production sometimes hamper otherwise great songs. The first two tracks on the album are perhaps the strongest. AHFOD sparkles into existence with a funky bass-line, disco-flavored drums, and sharp Edge-inspired guitar. After Guy, Jonny and Will felt hushed on Ghost Stories, this is a welcome return to form for the world’s biggest pop rock band, with a signature emotional sing-along to boot. The song seamlessly slips into Birds, the strongest track here which is propelled by a post-punk, Cure-esque rhythm section and sloppily perfect, twanging guitars throughout. The melody is perfect, and Martin’s mumbled vocals recalls Coldplay’s earlier work, building into a massive string-filled and fittingly soaring conclusion. From here on out, however, the album mostly feels more glossy than textured, much like its predecessor. The admittedly catchy Hymn For the Weekend never lives up to its brassy, funky potential and settles with a generic pop chorus that rambles about being drunk on love and life; a huge pity considering the great Queen Bey provide backing vocals. Even Everglow—a track that has one of Martin’s most beautiful piano melodies to date—suffers from a dull, heavy drumbeat and a chorus that feels all too familiar. The album’s lead single Adventure of A Lifetime luckily offers up an excellent pop tune that is forgivable given its dance ready, euphoric bridges. But Fun, a flaccid wall of sound with an utterly forgettable melody, kills that momentum despite lovely backing vocals from Tove Lo and a full contribution from the band. The center piece of the album, Kaleidoscope recites “The Guest House,” a poignant poem about finding peace and acceptance in times of joy and despair. Backed with classical piano and psychedelic atmospheres, it is a strong piece of music, but one is left pondering if the album’s lyrics have earned sampling this famous piece of literature. The next two tracks, Army of One and X-Marks the Spots find Coldplay treading new territories. The former is Coldplay doing a solid, albeit unoriginal, version of synth-pop while the latter controversially dives straight into hip-hop, sounding more like Kendrick Lamar’s “Swimming Pools” than anything else. Nonetheless these songs are an enjoyable and catchy detour from Coldplay’s typical rock quartet sound, even if they out of place on this album. Our album ends on two heavily celebrated live tracks, Amazing Day and Up&Up. While they maintain their lovely melodies and most important instrumental moments (guitar solos!), they are held back from too many electronic flourishes that drown out the instrumentation that we want to hear. The use of a drumpad for both of these songs, for example, feels confounding and even headache inducing if your headphones are turned too far up. What is left, however, is a very good pop album. If you can get over the minor annoyances of an over-modulated drum pads or overused themes, every song on AHFOD has something enjoyable and creative to offer. But Coldplay continues the frustrating trend of trying to be too many things at once. Up&Up, for example, tries to be a Britpop, soul and choir filled explosion of hope, while also retaining a bass heavy pop beat. Like ASFOS before it, this track and many songs on AHFOD suffer from this forced union of genres which results in neither coming out the victor. This leaves tracks that are not as emotionally down to earth or optimistically explosive as they should be. But quite a few moments on this record do reach levels of such enjoyment and creative pop melding, leaving us with numerous classic Coldplay moments to treasure when this era has passed. AHFOD-9/10, Birds-10/10, HFTW-7/10, Everglow-8/10, AOAL-9/10, Fun-6/10, Kaleidoscope-9/10, AoO-8/10, XMtS-7.5/10, AD-8.5/10, Up&Up-9/10 As a music fan, my review is a 7.5/10. As a Coldplay fan, my review is an 8.3/10.

I am starting this thread prematurely--the album isn't even out yet--but nonetheless I have to ask all of you: Will we be getting B-sides or EP's for the AHFOD era? I for one am hoping for more songs that are less pop-driven from this era! Remember that every era has had some so far, but GS and MX combined only delivered MTM, All Your Friends, Ghost Story, and O (Reprise). Does this indicate a death of Coldplay B-sides? Or are they going to surprise us with a huge EP like Prospekt's March? DISCUSS! :P

Yeah I hate when they trash that stuff! Maybe that Us Against The World melody will come back on an acoustic B-side? Note that AHFOD doesn't have an acoustic track at all which has to be a first for Coldplay (every era has one). Best case scenario is that Coldplay releases a big EP next year (or even a surprise album?) with like 6 new tracks that are a bit more alternative and acoustic/stripped sounding. If more session songs have the vibe of birds I need them ASAP. In regard to the ending of the track....I actually kind of love the abruptness into the bird sounds :) For me the track just swells to this perfect moment where the strings, guitar, piano, drums find their perfect balance, and by cutting the song short at that point they aren't overdoing it. Coldplay sometimes has a tendency to push a song too far imo which makes it less meaningful. That said, if there was an extended version of birds where the strings became more prominent I would be all over it.

I am having a hard time placing AHFOD right now...it will definitely need to grow on me like GS, but here it goes: 1. VLVODAAHF (9.8/10): Every song wonderful, and love the experimentation. Beautiful song writing. (42, CiL, LiJ, VH) 2. AROBTTH (9.5/10): An dreary alt-rock masterpiece with pop perfection. (Politik, The Scientist, Amsterdam, A Whisper) 3. Parachutes (9/10): A beautiful debut record. Indie flavoring with britpop flare. (Don't Panic, Yellow, Spies, ENL) 4. X&Y (8.9/10): A plethora of great songs and gritty space rock. (Square One, White Shadows, Low, Til Kingdom Come) 5. Mylo Xyloto (8.7/10): An incredible concept record of great alternative pop sounds. (HLH, Paradise, DLIBYH, Major Minus) 6/7. Ghost Stories (8.3/10): A dreamy electronic pop record with some real stunners. (AIMH, Ink, Midnight, O) AHFOD (8.3/10): A full out pop excursion with genre experimentation and positive vibes (Birds, Everglow, AD, Up&Up) Conclusion: Every Coldplay album is really good. Clearly I prefer some of their older styles to those so far this decade, but I still love every album.

^The snippet is actually somewhat accurate. But yeah. I am with everyone on this thread. Best song on the album by far and I might argue one of Coldplay's best songs ever--lyrically and instrumentally.

It is decent but nothing special. Stargate definitely makes a few interesting choices I liked throughout the album, but I also feel like some songs got dumbed down. For example. The melody on Army of One is great, and I love the idea of having a synth-pop song similar to Chvrches. But by the second verse the song doesn't change--no new noises, no new instrumentation. Makes it less palatable. But sometimes the song writing can just be boring too. That is the case with Fun imo. They could have produced that anyway they wanted but it still is incredibly boring. Listened to it 10 times and still don't remember the melody. Finally, the drumbeats on this album really let me down. On Everglow, Up&Up, Amazing Day, Fun--the beats are just really plain and uninteresting to me. Also they are mixed really loudly which drowns out the stuff I want to hear: strings, acoustic guitar, basslines, etc. Excited to hear the higher quality version.

Yeah, for me that sounds like boiling out all the interesting stuff to just straight drumbeat sounds. All of these songs have the potential to be like Viva--full of strings, textures, interesting drumming. But they got boiled down. To bum bum bum tis. bum bum bum. bum-bum tis. Not going to lie, the first time I listened to the studio version of amazing day I got a headache from how loud the damn bass drum was.

I mean, I enjoy this song.... It is clearly inspired by Kendrick Lamar's Swimming Pools (similar atmosphere and beat). Chris isn't a good rapper, though. If they decide to produce songs for hip-hop artists then I am totally on board. I love hip-hop production. But frankly the vocals aren't great here. Nonetheless this is great hip-hop production and I feel like this song will be put on after concerts when everyone is leaving :) haha It is damn catchy.. And I know is this will sound crazy...but I like this track more than Fun....

I really get the feeling that Coldplay is trying to please as many as possible with their last couple albums and now with AHFOD. Now the counterargument is that the band has diverse tastes and thus explores as many genres as they can. I just don' know. AHFOD is just so bizarre to me, frankly. It goes from U2 stadium rock right into a new wave indie pop song. Then it tries out a brassy early-2000's style dance song, a pop-piano ballad and then disco track. Then a sappy rock love duet, a spoken word classical piece, a nearly fully electronic synthpop song, a straigh hip-hop track, a 50's era slowjam, and then a britpop/R&B fusion as a conclusion. GS had similar vibes where every song had a different genre to it. Now I like both of these albums we have got over the past few years, but this diversity takes its toll. They are trying to be too much at once. I may love the indie sounding songs, but I think ASFOS and HFTW are incredibly dull. I love AHFOD into Birds. If the whole album kept the vibe of those two songs, I would absolutely adore it, but instead we get all sorts of surprises down the line... So what do you guys think? Will they ever go back and make an album that has a more consistent sound to it?

I am not so sure this record will have the hype to fair well on the charts. Also I am expecting some pretty negative reviews... What do you guys think?

^yeah...they mixed the bass drum so high on this track that you can hardly hear the piano, guitar solos, or anything else... Same with Amazing Day.. Don't know if I should blame Stargate or Will.

1. Birds-- 10/10--Wow. Just a great track, post-punk, The Cure-esque. Wonderful lyrics and instrumentation. Just lush. Instant Classic. 2. Up&Up--9.5/10--Better live, but love the tune and instrumentation (SOLOS!) But wish there was more piano and less electronic drumbeats. But a lovely closer. 3. Kaleidiscope/Colour Spectrum--9.5/10--Really enjoyed these interludes. Beautiful and dense. Wish they were longer if anything. 4. AOAL-8.8/10-- A solid disco-pop song. Great guitar riff, fun, danceable. Groovy rhythm section. 5.Amazing Day--8.8/10-- Quite beautiful. Love the strings. Wish there weren't electronic drums though. 6. AHFOD--8.5/10-- A good intro. Love the atmospherics, guitar, and dancy drums and bass. Too short though, feels incomplete. 7. Everglow--8/10-- Really gorgeous piano and guitar. Decent lyrics. Pop production kills the chorus, though. Feels a pop diva could swoop in and the song wouldn't skip a beat. 8.Army of One--8/10-- A solid synthpop song. Good lyrics, nice instrumentation. Feels incomplete too, however. Relies on same beat instead of mixing it up. 9. Hymn for the Weekend--6.5/10-- I like the intro a lot. Good piano and beat. Really lackluster chorus, however. Feels generic like ASFOS, nothing to come back for. 10. X-Marks the Spot--6/10-- I am giving it a D for effort. I like hip-hop, but Chris is a 40-year old, white, English alt-rocker. Good production but awful lyrics. 11. Fun--5.5/10-- I really don't enjoy this song at all. I have listened to it 5 times and can't remember a single lyric or melodic feature. It is simply one of the worst songs Coldplay has ever written and exemplifies the dullness of simple pop production. Overall--8/10--This is being generous somewhat. I like the album but don't love it. Just my initial thought. Any of these could grow on me.

1. Birds-- 10/10--Wow. Just a great track, post-punk, The Cure-esque. Wonderful lyrics and instrumentation. Just lush. Instant Classic. 2. Up&Up--9.5/10--Better live, but love the tune and instrumentation (SOLOS!) But wish there was more piano and less electronic drumbeats. But a lovely closer. 3. Kaleidiscope/Colour Spectrum--9.5/10--Really enjoyed these interludes. Beautiful and dense. Wish they were longer if anything. 4. AOAL-8.8/10-- A solid disco-pop song. Great guitar riff, fun, danceable. Groovy rhythm section. 5.Amazing Day--8.8/10-- Quite beautiful. Love the strings. Wish there weren't electronic drums though. 6. AHFOD--8.5/10-- A good intro. Love the atmospherics, guitar, and dancy drums and bass. Too short though, feels incomplete. 7. Everglow--8/10-- Really gorgeous piano and guitar. Decent lyrics. Pop production kills the chorus, though. Feels a pop diva could swoop in and the song wouldn't skip a beat. 8.Army of One--8/10-- A solid synthpop song. Good lyrics, nice instrumentation. Feels incomplete too, however. Relies on same beat instead of mixing it up. 9. Hymn for the Weekend--6.5/10-- I like the intro a lot. Good piano and beat. Really lackluster chorus, however. Feels generic like ASFOS, nothing to come back for. 10. X-Marks the Spot--6/10-- I am giving it a D for effort. I like hip-hop, but Chris is a 40-year old, white, English alt-rocker. Good production but awful lyrics. 11. Fun--5.5/10-- I really don't enjoy this song at all. I have listened to it 5 times and can't remember a single lyric or melodic feature. It is simply one of the worst songs Coldplay has ever written and exemplifies the dullness of simple pop production. Overall--8/10--This is being generous somewhat. I like the album but don't love it. Just my initial thought. Any of these could grow on me.

What a crazy day guys.... I was getting ready for a family trip when I saw the leak. I downloaded it and was able to listen to the album about three times through throughout the day. Obviously it takes a while for albums to settle in, GS definitely did for me. Overall I am getting similar reactions to Ghost Stories though.. There are songs right of the bat that I love and some that I don't like at all...and when I try to step back and look at the album as a whole I am just confused hahahaa Tons of diversity on this thing. Truly, not one track sounds like the next. I don't know. I just feel like the songwriting is not very strong? Also, the tracks I love the most suffer from some production choices that are frustrating. Amazing Day and Up&Up are spectacular...but then they mix electronic drums to be really loud?? Why? It makes the actual instrumentation too quiet. You can definitely feel the influence of Stargate throughout this whole thing and while it isn't disastrous, it isn't very good either. I am excited to have his new bunch of songs...but I can't say I love the album. It is good. Not great.

I would take a PM if this is real :)

Initial review would be 7/10 Really torn. I love the piano and guitar. It is really Oldplay. The piano melody sounds between MX and Viva eras. The production though is so so so sappy. The chorus just feels like an American Idol performance with that cheesy generic drumbeat... Mixed feelings. Like parts of it tremendously, other parts not so much. Some lyrics great, others cringeworthy. I love Coldplay slowjams, but this song sounds like it could be performed by Rihanna or Beyonce, not Chris. I blame that on the clean pop production. Other than that, the song is great.

Australian tour probably?