lennyrott1

Some new thoughts on Amazing Day-- First, 100% agree with Jc's post!!! Thanks for that! But something I like about these lyrics: For me they are more ambiguous than what we got on GS, which was: I'm sad, I love you, I'm sad, I still love you though, I will overcome. I like ASFOS lyrically and vocally, but Amazing day can be interpreted in a couple ways. One is that he and a person he loves on the roof looking at the stars enjoying it and wanting to dance. After watching the background video during the song though, my interpretation is that he is actually talking about the universe or the world. He is wanting to wrap himself up in the milky way and sway. There are some hints of bad things going, but he is happy having a perfect day (night)? Either interpretation is basically Chris spewing out a stream of rainbow cheese, but I rather like that fact about the song. Same with God, it doesn't have to mean an old white man upstairs, it could just be some greater force we don't understand but appreciate.

Looking down the next few weeks, there aren't any "major" album releases that I can see...They have made a few headlines with these last few shows, time to accelerate that hype with a new single or hell, why not the whole album!? For those criticizing Ariana and One Direction: I get it, but there is no need to be overly critical. I used to cringe when Chris would only praise pop artists, but now I realize it isn't a big deal. Do these artists write their own songs? No. Are they very original or artistic? No. But that is besides the point. Ariana's album last year was a fun pop record with some really good tracks. One Direction also has some good songs. Everyone has some pop sensibility. At the end of the day though, that duet with Ariana was awesome. She is a powerful performer. You don't have to like or listen to their music, but understand that there is such a thing as good pop music even from the most commerical of artists. A lot of work goes into those pop songs from expert song writers, even if they are generic and cheesy. For example: some of my favourite albums of this year have been by Carly Rae Jepsen and The Weekend, both very poppy. Check them out!

After a third listen, I actually quite like this song, which I wasn't expecting after hearing the soundcheck version. It is incredibly Coldplay... almost feels like it could fit on a faith-based album with Miracles ahahaha. But at the same time, it sounds like Christmas Lights, lovely piano, great string section, pleasant guitar, almost waltz-worthy. I really love Guy's bass at the beginning of the song, really cool. I think the studio version, with louder piano and string sections could be quite stunning. I somewhat hope this is a charity single, though I think it could be fine slow song on an album. I am not amazed by any means, but this song is very................pleasant. Very pleasant indeed. I feel like this could have been A PERFECT REPLACEMENT FOR ASFOS considering the fact that it is basically the more mature brother: stars, sad a little, but okay with it, want in your arms... really Chris? you don't got many tricks up your theme sleeve do you? Critiques: very similar to AIMH, not sure I need another OOHHH OOHHH chant in a Coldplay song, Will's drumming is dull, wish he would spruce it up a bit with some more cymbals or off-beat tempos.

Could be unreleased. Who knows. Either way I am disappointed with this snippet, though it is absurd to be too judgmental about such a tiny excerpt of a song.. Nice to hear something new, but this track is boring. Regardless of comparisons to AIMH (Coldplay has made tons of songs that are similar to ones prior). I like the strings, I like the live instrumentation, but there is nothing interesting going on frankly. I could see it being a pretty song, I want something interesting. Chris talking about sitting on a roof with stars and dancing with a swelling string section and chanting ohhh oohh ohh just feels bland and overdone. This is a reminder that though we anticipate an incredible album, there is a very good chance that we get something that doesn't take a lot of risks, pumping out the same decent track after another.

Does anyone think they will have a mandala for the album cover? It looks like one might feature in the video, and it would totally match the color wheel and shape themes we have been seeing while being intricate and beautiful!

Gotta throw in here: UATW is an incredible live track, same with UFO I imagine. I think the album versions are still great but definitely overproduced a bit. They needed to sound more organic and wooden rather than overly glossy, I also level that criticism at GS acoustic tracks. And I am with getithom... in my personal opinion, Up In Flames is the worst Coldplay song hands down. From the first time I heard it, and every proceeding time, I hated it. The piano is sappy and cheesy, the drumbeat overbearing and dull, and when the guitar hits it feels like Jonny has done one too many guitar loops on the album. But ultimately its Chris' lyrics and vocals that are so horrendously bad I can't even.... I just can't.. Sorry guys, I can see the instrumental being ehh. But as a whole, I think Up In Flames is indefensible. One positive thing: i like the piano/synths send off at the end when CHRIS ISN'T HOWLING INCESSANTLY.

^Perfect!! That would be preferable haha! I remember watching the Ghost Stories NBC special. I don't watch very much TV so it was an odd feeling seeing them on national television. But either way it was really great quality and nice to see them in glorious big-screened HD!!!! Very cinematic.

cool thanks!! i know some Coldplayer usually has it downloaded but I just thought I would double check! Don't wanna miss a new track! And yes! Wish I could make it down to Vegas. It is about as close as they ever get to me, but I would prefer seeing them on tour next year if they do a big U.S. one.

Will anyone be copying down the audio or video of the show? Or does yahoo get rid of it? I just found out I have to work all of Friday night and will miss the live broadcast :(

My vote is also for ghost stories :) just wanted to build some hype so people keep viva in theiR heads!

Viva La Vida Era: Amazing, masterpiece of an album. Incredible EP with plenty of solid B-sides. Jangly pianos, sharp guitar work, tons of reverb and atmosphere, surprises around every corner. Epic stadium rock. Cool unreleased tracks: Death Will Never Conquer, Dubliners, Lhuna (sort of), Famous Old Painters, Lukas (sort of), Don quixote Every music video is great! Live shows were incredible! Tons of acoustic versions of songs, great covers, mandolins, acoustic guitars, screaming guitar solos and even a creepy techno remix that seamlessly mixed GPASUYF/Talk? Whoa. Great Lyrics. Great performances. Proved they could do rock, pop, indie, electronic, and explore tons of genres. BEAT THAT!!!!!!!!

I have said it before and I will say it again: Coldplay can do anything (rock, pop, alternative, electronic, synth, dance, blackmetal) THEY CAN DOING ANYTHING so long as the PRODUCTION IS GOOD! We already know Chris and the gang can write a brilliantly catchy, fun, beautiful piece of music no matter the era. what matters is how that music comes across once it is produced!! ASFOS could have been a masterpiece if that style of production wasn't chosen (they would have been forced to make it more dynamic, but the skeleton of the song is there!) So I actually look forward to something dancy, if the reports are true. I love music that makes me want to dance and it can come from virtually any genre. I look forward to seeing Coldplay explore that side so long as the production IS GOOD!!!

I feel like they are going to release the single with the video. Just my thought. They did it with Midnight and I think that worked really well because the video was kind of attention grabbing. A shocking "is Coldplay going Kid-A?" If they release this video with the song then mark my words the headlines will read: "Coldplay frolic at holi festival in explosive new video for colorful new single 'Lamhein'" :) Much more attention grabbing!! Turns more heads then just audio. Plus it will be fun for us fans to get AHFOD themes coming all at once! I don't know if anyone has mentioned this, but if Lamhein and Julenns Ljus really are part of the new era (and maybe they are not at all) then what would that mean about AHFOD? Two song titles in different languages? How cool would it be if every song had a different language for its title and tried representing that region! That would be pretty sweet. EDIT: Julens Ljus is Christmas Lights haha nevermind! But the thought still stands!

The Mumbai shoot was most certainly a music video. No offense to iHeart Radio, but it is not big enough to warrant a huge multi-day video shoot hahaha. Either way, I was doing some research on music video production and we should expect something soon. It makes sense: the planning and organizing that goes into a video shoot is enormous. By the time the shooting is all wrapped up, the footage should be exactly what they need. So adding colours, effects, and laying over the music should take 1-2 weeks. If this video is anything like ASFOS (1 or 2 camera's, everything done live in real time), then it should take them even less time. I would hope for tomorrow, but that is a little optimistic maybe :)

Virtual reality music videos are becoming a bigger deal, as they should. I suspect this one will be far more entertaining than ASFOS live 2014. The idea is just to put the viewer IN the experience. Sometimes that even means giving the viewer a first person perspective. So maybe in the video you are a little kid running around the festival while Coldplay play music and Chris dances around. It focuses on using wider angles and super "touchy" moments. Imagine playing a video game and running through exploding holi! Sounds fun to me! And could make for a unique video. That director has been tweeting a lot recently about his work with a VR Foster the People video.

There are different kinds of production and mixing all with their strengths and weaknesses, and Coldplay has dabbled in just about all of it. MX went for bombast, and I personally think it mostly worked. On tracks like HLH, Charlie Brown, Paradise, ETIAW, I feel like the songs are exploding with detail even though they are blasting through your speakers. I love that production, but then on a great song like DLIBYH, they totally overdid it. GS has the opposite problem in some cases. In attempting make every instrument clean and add "space" as Guy once said, the album was overmixed. Tracks like AIMH, Magic, Midnight all have really great mixes with detail and atmosphere that works. But I think that other tracks (and the album taken as a whole) have incredibly fabricated and glossy, as if they weren't played live in a studio, like they were rather pieced together with a computer and lots of treble. This is my greatest concern for AHFOD. The songs need to feel organic, even if they include a lot of added production and sparks. Loud, explosive music is great, but you need to be able to make out each detail and instrument being played AND keep it interesting. Sure, on ASFOS you could hear the guitar and bass, but they are simply boring. Imo Viva had the best production, which mixed a lot of strings and electronics with live instrumentation. Even if AHFOD is closer to MX, they can still achieve this perfect balance.

ASFOS 1 is pretty awful hahahahaha I mean, I see why people like it, but the visuals are only ho hum and when Chris starts levitating?! It is horrendously cheesy and poorly executed. But part two isn't much better... If the music video had a silly acoustic version that actually matched the instruments they are carrying down the street that would have been really cool. Not saying that it is bad, but not great either. Doesn't help that the song sucks too. Coldplay's videos have been on the decline ever since the amazing VLV era: Strawberry Swing is one of the best videos EVER made. Loved Paradise and the stop motion of ETIAW, but Charlie Brown and PoC were unbearable. Same with True Love. Huge let down with no emotion, gravity, humour, or originality. Here's to hoping for a great next era :D

What an exciting day!!! I was working and at school which forced me to take a lot of sneak peaks on the forum. From my perspective it is still way too early to judge any of this, but I kind of understand why some folks are nervous on here. Those outfits are IDENTICAL to MX era. It looks like they literally plastered new colour wheels and shapes over the old spirals haha. I am not saying that i am against an MX Part 2, but it would have been cool to see some new original outfits. I also feel like the exploding holi festival theme (the cool colourful dust) has been done before (i.e. that music video that was posted is probably going to be very comparable.) I can't wait to see the actual artwork for the era. I like the colours, but at some point don't bright colours and shapes make you think of being a toddler?? Jamie xx already covered the colour wheel this year. They should just copy Radiohead's "In Rainbows" :) Also, the presence of real drums and guitars in the music video doesn't say anything about the music. Will had a drumkit in the ASFOS v.1 video too but you can't hear those being played. It is just too early to judge on the musical style. It would be great if it was Indian inspired (sitar or hand drums maybe?) but for all we know it could be an all out rave edm explosion too! Either way I am incredibly excited of what's to come. I don't know how long it takes to put together a whole music video, but I imagine they could pump it out in a weeks time if they are committed!!!

Another good point, jc. Perhaps the whole free part isn't entirely plausible. But it is also true that Apple would pay them and their label a ridiculous sum of money to do this. They also could just announce that the album is available to stream for a limited time for free on Apple Music. Or maybe just a free single? It certainly would be a surprise release of sorts!

^cheers! Got that corrected. And yes, that is a very important point. Chris did throw his support behind tidal only 6 months ago, but who knows. Songs of Innocence had huge success and Coldplay has a well established relationship with the company. But it also could easily just be the weekend or dre, one of Apple's new posterchildren haha

Something to keep an eye on: Apple is having a huge event next TOMORROW, 8 Sept. in San Francisco to roll out their new product line. They booked a 7,000 seat auditorium for the reveal, and a lot of folks have been speculating that there might be a massive musical guest, especially if they are trying to push Apple Music even further. One inside source has claimed that the event will be "bigger" than a concert.... so you have to wonder. Some are speculating Dr. Dre, some Drake. What about Coldplay? After all, it was exactly one year ago that U2 released Songs of Innocence at the exact same event for free! I know that whole thing was controversial, but there is no such thing as bad publicity right? WHAT IF: This time, Coldplay comes out, performs new songs, reveals that A Head Full Of Dreams is free on Apple Music (not forced). Then the guys could just zip over to Las Vegas and play new music without skipping a beat. I found it odd anyways that they were not performing at Apple Music festival this year, so maybe this is the reason? Thoughts?

Looks way too similar, but there is a lot that we may not be seeing... Somebody should ask those guys! It would be cool to see a combination of every era in one album cover. It would have the colourfulness of MX, the splash paint of Viva, the geometric shapes of X&Y, the haunting digitally made head of AROBTTH (hence A HEAD FOD) and perhaps the haziness yet detail of Parachutes and GS. I White background again would be a very welcome sight! This little piece of art kind of suggests some of those things? But yeah it looks just like the center of the MX graffiti wall. In fact, that is undoubtedly spray paint so unfortunately I doubt it is AHFOD related...

Eleven days! I am so excited. Yes, that tweet could be just a generic byline, but I actually wouldn't doubt the odds things getting "crazy." I mean, think of the last three era's first openings. Viva suddenly had the boys wearing bizarre handmaid clothing with a strange retro, almost 19th century feel. MX was most surprising. Once again they were wearing original garb but this time lazers and colourful animations and swirls shot across the stage with grafitti everywhere. Even GS, as hushed as it was, had a strange appeal and explosive live moments with Midnight and ASFOS. So yeah, if they are going to start the new era with iHeart Radio, and if we believe this era to be happy, bright, and upbeat, then I suspect the stage to be wild. Maybe even a return of Xylobands, confetti and lasers? They could easily incorporate Clocks, Fix You, Paradise, and ASFOS before suddenly pumping out the new single with massive theatricality. Anyone agree?

The smiley face is not only atrocious, but already has too many associations. Here are just a few examples: Blink 182, Nirvana, Radiohead, Acid House, and Watchmen (graphic novel). Same for the triangles and rainbows they teased with True Love, the T shirt, and the Powers of Ten video. The triangle turning light to color is Pink Floyds and always will be. So yeah. Either option would be infuriating. A title like A Head Full Of Dreams demands something creative, colorful, mysterious and most of all, original!!!

Lovers In Japan--12 Midnight--10 ETIAW--8