lennyrott1

I have a pretty diverse and alternative taste in music but I think MX and GS are certainly more than acceptable. There is always room for Coldplay's sound in one's taste that becomes more accustomed to more abnormal sounds, melodies, structures etc etc. I think GS had some shallowish songs, but I still think every single one is absolutely gorgeous and dreamy (even if simple.) Ok Computer and Dark Sides of the Moon are both masterpieces, but I don't go to those albums for the same reasons. I once heard an opinion on pop music that I really agree with though that everyone should realize. There has always been "good" pop and "bad" pop. Of course it is all opinion, but ever since music has become a common art form, record sales and critical responses of the majority show that there have always been really silly, stupid songs that dominate the radio and ones that become legendary. I agree that pop music has become formulaic, but we can't call all of it crap. I really enjoyed Nicki Minaj's and Taylor Swifts new albums, despite the really stupid singles on each. Hozier and Lorde are two other artists both quality and huge. Yes, we had hit songs that repeated "ass ass ass ass" over and over, but also innovative and wonderful tracks like "Latch" which blew up in 2014. The former won't stick around long while the latter may be classic for years to come. There will always be a mix of classic/quality and shallow/trend following pop music, which is a genre to some extent that will always be formulaic in its ability to be catchy and euphoric. I agree though to a large degree. We do have the right to worry about Coldplay falling into the easy, clean, shallow pop trends that are temporarily successful and not necessarily "artful." I personally believe this has happened with major parts of songs like ASFOS, PoC, True Love, Up In Flames, and most recently, Miracles, and I think that stance is pretty easily defendable from my standpoint, though I really am glad so many people love these songs. That is what makes music and art so great.

Everyone is entitled to their opinions. Having an opinion that is unpopular is not trolling. Calling someone stupid for having a different perspective is true trolling. Both of you should respect the fact that you both feel differently. howyousawtheworld has valid points, though I don't agree entirely. I agree that top 40 pop music over the last few decades has been dominated by record labels in a struggling industry that use artists like products to produce easy, accessible and formulaic music. I personally believe much pop music is not very innovative as a result, (of course not all of it.) Coldplay has always defied pop conformity but stayed relevant. Unfortunately for some of our tastes, their last two eras have a few examples of tracks that follow some top 40 radio trends. While the eras have been nonetheless superb with a diverse mix of tracks, I share the fear that Coldplay will make an album of ASFOS', though they likely won't. We just don't want to see them sound more like mainstream artists. At the same time, however, Jc90 is right. We are freaking out right now about something completely hypothetical and we are being way too severe with our criticisms when we don't have any real information yet. I don't want another Rihanna track either, but we don't even know if it is true, or more importantly, how it would sound. PoC was a hit, even if some of us didn't like it, and I even admit to kind of liking the song, other than the god awful lyricism. So there is no need to panic, but also no need to bash someone who might have an opinion that appears negative. Coldplaying has always been civil and I love that fact. We have to accept a mix of negative and positive opinions and work out ideas together. This forum needn't be gleefully optimistic about everything our favorite band does, nor does it need to be overwhelmingly critical. Regardless, we are all anxious for a new album!

I would really like something in this vein. Really cool looking and it would be refreshing in my opinion. Though, I think they could do something that stands out even more clearly in the crowd. All their albums have thus far.

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. If this is real, it must be for Rihanna's new record. I could see that being the most likely explanation. However, this doesn't seem real. The Grammy's is like a three hour show, and only pop artists are listed here. Usually there is about that many performances but a good mix of genres to please a whole crowd. I don't buy it, but anytime there is a new Coldplay song I am happy...

I totally agree that Eno, or some other big producer, should come back (not Paul Epworth.) I love to see them experimenting and being forced to change their style because as much as they are progressive from album to album, they sometimes can get swamped in being very 'Coldplay' in my opinion or not fully exploring their sound. I also am wondering how the dynamic in this video has changed. This was pre-mylo, but as we now know Chris is in LA and the recording happens a bit differently now with GS and AHFOD. One thing I really noticed here is that Eno mentions Chris can be a bit dominating in the song writing process, as he usually is the one to start songs. I don't mean to diss Chris' songwriting genius, but I really hope that he isn't being dominating for LP7. I feel like his musical taste of late is the one that brings out tracks I tend to not be crazy about like ASFOS. That song, as we know, was very controversial amongst the band and it really came out quickly. Some of the bands best tracks show that mulled over for a very long time and that THE WHOLE band was really involved to refine the sound. I know not everyone agrees, but I think ASFOS and some of GS kind of felt this way, maybe not completely finished or half baked. I want LP7 asap, but if it takes longer to cook up for qualities sake, like Viva and Mylo, then I can deal with it.

^It is harder to classify albums as mainstream than singles because even the most popular artist will have a out of the ordinary track. That said, I gotta agree with Kingzilla. I totally agree that GS is very artful and a bit more mature than most pop albums out there, but to me it was far more accessible through and through than all other Coldplay albums. Despite the beautiful and cool production choices made, AIMH, Magic, Ink, True Love, AA, Oceans, ASFOS,O...all of them are not as challenging or deep in my opinion as Viva. They also all are very cleanly produced, pure and lovely. Now I realize a lot of that was intentional, but I personally miss some of the left turns of Viva and even MX when songs got really dirty or completely switched and swam in atmosphere. I don't mean to say Viva is that much better than GS, they are different albums and I love the atmosphere of GS, I just think it could have been less mainstream sounding and I would have liked it on Viva's level. So I want to see them ditch the pop music formula a little bit too. I still want songs like Magic and Ink, but I would love for them to make those songs and really step outside the box and strive for creativity to PROVE that they are the best at making pop music--I want Coldplay on par with the Beatles one day. Gotta also agree with Jonny The Cake here too. I think LP7 is going to influenced by the mainstream pretty heavily with of course some alternative influences to please us fans who like their darker, more challenging stuff. If AHFOD is like a brighter companion to GS then this has to be true. I think we can all just hope that throughout the recording process they have been influenced by far more than Top 40 singles. I personally hope for more inspiration from Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Arcade Fire, Folk Music, Jon Hopkins, Brian Eno, Leonard Cohen, Blur etc. though they have been there done that (better than Ariana Grande, One Direction, and Ed Sheeran imo)

I agree with the rawness. It absolutely needs to step outside the box and be "unique" to pop music. Of course, it will still follow a pop formula as all their hits do, but it has to be different. Honestly ASFOS was their first track that just isn't different imo, so that is why in 2020 when they look back at the decade in best singles, it won't fall on the list. It has to push some musical boundaries... Explosive and beautiful like only Coldplay can do.

Gotta be dat Midnight.

Midnight is my favourite track on GS, but being an American, I know it wouldn't have made the radiowaves ever. Even Magic, my other favourite track didn't make it on mainstream stations in my city for more than a month, which is really surprising. People only want to hear those pop bangers or pretty songs that are fast paced: Stay With Me, All Of Me etc. ASFOS is now consistently on repeat, but only as remixes on dance stations along with a lot of other similar sounding tracks, so I just don't see it being very impactful by the end of the decade unfortunately, but I could be wrong since I just am not a huge fan of it. What would a Coldplay song sound like in 2015 that would have immense staying power? I still hear Clocks, Viva, Yellow, Talk on a variety of stations. I am wondering how they could make an artful, serious song like those that will top the charts in an EDM dominated scape...

:laugh3: Fixing double post

This is an interesting conversation to have and I wonder if they can stay AS relevant in the future. Looking at the band-scape of the 2000's, I don't think that anyone can argue Coldplay wasn't the biggest. They were the most successful commercially, critically, and on the radio compared to most other groups in pop music. Now, Radiohead might rival that argument, but I wouldn't consider them entirely pop music, nor were they as commercially successful (much of this has to do with Coldplay's label and more accessible nature, however, but that is another discussion entirely.) I don't think they have had as big of an impact thus far, but of course there is still time. Paradise and ASFOS have been big, but as far as the rest of pop music and radio of this decade, they don't stand out as strongly as Viva, Clocks, Yellow, etc. I think this has to do with the shift of their last two records to more pop oriented singles. I personally believe that songs like Magic and ETIAW are incredibly underrated singles that had the potential to stand out as "different" modern pop songs, but that didn't really happen. MX and GS were also overall received more poorly than Viva (which I think was the height of their career). Music has really changed over Coldplay's career, and it feels like big bands on the radio are hard to come by anymore, so it is hard to answer your question. Imagine Dragons, Bastille, and Maroon 5 come to mind, but in my opinion each hardly sound like bands anymore and make generic tunes that are hardly revolutionary by pop standards. Most successful artists nowadays are singer/song writers, pop divas, or electronic dance gurus, so Coldplay would have to really do something really big to reclaim their former glory. I don't know what that could be though.

Good find!! But that video doesn't necessarily mean we will get a lot of modular synths, which they have been using for a while. It is just a goal of his, but I don't know if that means a lot more for Coldplay. So did the boys record in several locations for GS too? It seems like since Chris is in LA that is something they were up to for the last era.. Don't know what to think about that.

^I am right with ya! I want to hear some really flashy, drum oriented songs with cymbal flares and dynamic beats that are surprising and fresh! But if they go back toward drumpads, I want to see some really intense experimentation, not just 2x4 4x4 beats that there were a ton of on GS. I am talking shattering sounds and wobbles and cool synthy percussion. Nothing pleases me more than cool drumming and I love how many new corridors drumpads are opening up for percussionists, especially in Hip-Hop. it is the future of music.

^There is still hope for our kind. With the trend Coldplay has been moving in during this decade, I unfortunately cannot deny the existence of some songs that don't suit my more alternative taste. However, MX an GS are albums I still love despite their glossy pop tunes. No matter how we look at it, there will be alternative leaning tracks, and all out radio chart toppers. That has always been Coldplay. The scale has been leaning towards pure pop with the last two albums, but maybe it will sway back towards something like Viva with this one. If we get an album with say, 10 alternative leaning tracks and two ASFOS' I would be very pleased. And ASFOS was really close to being a good song in my opinion. They could make a super poppy album with really good production styles to make it work for me. I am feeling optimistic, but then again, that could destroy my expectations down the road...

^ I could not agree more with you. I am really anxious for some old-style instrumentation laced with some of the modern elements of their songs like Midnight and Magic which are absolutely superb. They are such talented musicians and have a great knack for atmosphere, especially when it is hauntingly beautiful, so they are capable of coming up with a truly incredible alternative pop album that can please all of us :) I was listening to their discography on shuffle today and a couple songs stood out that I would like to see more of that demonstrate this: I Bloom Blaum, Lovers In Japan/Reign of Love, Violet Hill, Death Will Never Conquer, ETIAW, Major Minus, Daylight. Miracles hopefully is a sign of more guitar and piano to come (but like you say, hopefully not so aggressively upbeat which I found to be electronic claps, yeah yeah yeah's, etc.) And I agree that an MX 2 would be very welcome. I know that album as a whole meets some hostility, but I agree that it is a beautiful companion to Viva sonically and sometimes lyrically. If it weren't for a few of the latter tracks like POC and Up In Flames, it could have been a 10/10 album in my rating. What I really miss from Coldplay on parts of GS and Miracles are those little surprises you can find in a song which is what I am hoping for in AHFOD. I am talking about those sparkling xylobrytes, those tremulous, wobbling, sharp guitars, those epic, sometimes folky strings/acoustic guitar, glockenspiels, worldly drums, ominous foggy atmospheres, layers upon layers of dense, rich sounds both colorful and somber. Most of all, I hope that as a pop album, it will stay away from some of the plasticy molds that sometimes dominate mainstream radio hits. Miracles is a fine song, but it has some of these little pop tricks that sound cheap to me, especially in the drumming department. ASFOS does this even more so. They have proven time and time again that they can make a worldwide radio hit without conformity or sacrificing originality: Clocks, VLV, Paradise, Talk. A rich, alternative album with stellar, original, unique pop hits from Coldplay--- adding it to my new year's wish list :santa2:

I bet Moving To Mars. That entire song could have been a David Bowie song. It was no doubt inspired by him, so I wonder if Chris tried getting him on board with it.

I am hoping for some metal inspirations like this: [video=youtube;YlOyl8m5X00]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlOyl8m5X00

By far my favourite album of the year. Never gets old. Every track is amazing: Run The Jewels 2--Run The Jewels

The drumbeat is identical, but it extend far beyond these two songs assuredly. " Also, the actual live drumming sounds a lot like this and other pop "folk" song recently: (my least favourite radio hit of the year easily.) I don't wanna be naive though. There are only so many drumlines in the world and it is impossible to avoid them crossing over often, especially in pop music, but still, I would hope for a few differences, especially with Will who has proven to be a great drummer. Of all my wishes for next LP, it is that Will's drumming or drumbeat avoid these often used radio tendencies.

I kind of hope they go back to fully committing to some crazy theme for the next album. That includes awesome stage props that tie into the music and really ludicrous outfits :)

I like that compromise hahaha :laugh3:

Both of you are right :) once again it comes down to how you feel about the realities of it all.

I want to make one distinction here in this little debacle :) So I am kinda falling in between both arguments. Jonny and the Cake, I completely agree that Nicki Minaj=Massive Attack. I love both artists and what I understand that little equation to mean is that all music is subjective, it is art, some people like one more than the other but it doesn't matter. "It is just music" is absolutely correct. But I have to kind of agree with KidA in some respects. I don't think Nicki Minaj=Massive Attack in one major regard. I think that none of us can deny the fact that the music industry is a lot different than it used to be. If you look at a lot of radio-pop music, for example, a vast majority of the songs you will here are written and produced by the same Record Labels and producers and then divvied out to artists. Miley Cyrus, Bruno Mars, Nicki Minaj, One Direction all have songs written for them for one purpose: to make money For me, that destroys some of the artistic prowess. Sure, these are still pieces of art and I still like many of them, and I do truly think all of those individuals are talented, but the result is pop-music trends, where inspiration comes to these producers through what will make money (EDM in Nicki, folk style delivery for One Direction, etc.) This is why so much pop music sounds the exact same, they actually scientifically follow a formula and don't challenge us. Much of the industry is monopolized to churn out this music. That is why bands like Massive Attack, Radiohead, and Coldplay are so important. They write really popular music as original artists. They mix pop/alternative music effectively and that is actually my favourite genre. (Of course, Radiohead doesn't really care about making records for money anymore considering their fan base haha)

Highs: --Really solid album with Magic, Midnight and Ink which I constantly have on repeat. Also like bonus tracks! --Beautiful live DVD and TV special that are truly special. --AMAZING artwork for this era. Absolutely love it. --Like the return to a few more melancholic and emotional tracks. Whole album has a cool atmosphere. Lows --Didn't like some of the production choices on the albums; sometimes feels a little to glossy and clean on otherwise great tracks (i.e. O, Oceans.) --ASFOS. I unfortunately am not a fan of this track, both as a single and climax to the album. Melody is good, just not the EDM production. --No tour! I still haven't got to see them :( --True Love and ASFOS music videos. The former is their worst to date, right up there with Charlie Brown, didn't achieve its aim imo. The latter was okay, but the song doesn't match the entire aesthetic so it felt awkward. Cool idea though.

I also am not a big fan of Miracles because of the same reasons. Unfortunately I found the electronic drum beat/snaps, the plasticy lifeless acoustic guitar and Chris' computerized hooting in the background a bit too clean and poppy, including the final climax and the "yeah yeah yeahs." So overall, I am mostly going to avoid it in my Coldplay discography. That said I do think there are some really positive things to take away from it. For one thing, I really love the piano/guitar melody and the way they are performed. It is really optimistic and fun. I also love Guy's bassline on the second verse and Will's background singing. It certainly feels like the whole band is involved, and while Chris' lyrics once again leave a lot to be desired, I still think they are a step up from Ghost Stories. And even if AHFOD suffers from the same problems, which I don't think it fully will, then I don't think it should ruin their legacy for anyone. Lets be honest, Coldplay is incapable of making a bad record. Sure, their last two have had a few issues and few too many glossy, radio-friendly numbers, but they are still overall really great. AHFOD won't be different, and if Miracles is a hint at a return to fun guitar, piano, drumming and some beautiful melodic moments, then I feel happy even though I don't like the song itself. Overall, I wouldn't be too worried :P Judging by our dislike of Miracles I am sure there will be moments on AHFOD that we may not like (too poppy/generic) but that won't ruin the whole thing for us, or their entire, beautiful legacy.