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 | Tracklist:
1. Mylo Xyloto
2. Hurts Like Heaven
3. Paradise
4. Charlie Brown
5. Us Against the World
6. M.M.I.X.
7. Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall
8. Major Minus
9. U.F.O.
10. Princess of China (feat. Rihanna)
11. Up in Flames
12. A Hopeful Transmission
13. Don't Let It Break Your Heart
14. Up With the Birds
Release Date: 10/24/2011 | |
| | other reviews | Adam Knott STAFF (5)
Watch Coldplay abandon their sham revolution and take up a real one.... | Robin Smith STAFF (4)
give Coldplay credit for their waterfalls.... | Ryan Fitz (4)
Where Coldplay discovers being Coldplay isn't such a terrible thing.... | Castleman12 (4)
Mylo Xyloto brings Coldplay to a wonderfully bombastic, and colorful, new direction.... | OrangeHologram (3.5)
Whenever you like a band, their lyrics are 'minimalistic'. Whenever you don't, they're 'simple'.... | LudditeStereo (2.5)
It’s hard to enjoy listening to this and feel good about yourself afterwards.... | ShatteredWaves (2.5)
A disappointingly and surprisingly safe effort from the world's nicest rock band... |
On 51 Lists
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| Summary: Coldplay goes way over the top...again. |
The last time we heard Coldplay, they were gently closing the door on 2008’s smash success Viva La Vida with chants of “I don’t want to follow death and all of his friends.” Suffice to say, the only thing that has departed is their musical direction, as Mylo Xyloto ushers in a new era to follow a string of award winning albums dating back to their turn-of-the-millennium debut Parachutes. Although that brand of reserved, contemplative indie rock still surfaces periodically, it appears to be nothing more than a brief cameo in a much more diverse scheme. Mylo Xyloto presents us with a new Coldplay; one that isn’t afraid to indulge its every eccentricity. The result is a pop album bursting at the seams with vivacious melodies, along with electronic fibers that have been skillfully woven into their time-tested fabric to give fans something quite unlike anything they have ever heard.
From the opening track, it is apparent that Coldplay has marched straight off the deep end. The way that ‘Mylo Xyloto’ transitions into the shamelessly upbeat “Hurts Like Heaven” creates a mood happier than anything that could possibly be found on the band’s first four albums. The lyrics are so histrionic at times that they may become laughable (“you use your heart as a weapon, and it hurts like heaven”), but such is the premise of this entire album. Here we have something so grandiose and so over-the-top by nature that it defies words like normalcy and moderation. It swells with glittering synthesizers (‘Paradise’ deserves a special mention here), melodic guitar riffs, hook-laden piano lines, and towering choruses. It has hauntingly beautiful atmospheres, driven home by Chris Martin’s theatrical approach and near-flawless songwriting. There is nary a moment of blasé droning, as every song serves a specific and well-defined purpose within Mylo Xyloto’s progression. Producer Brian Eno deserves a lot of credit for highlighting the importance of every song the way he does, seeing how interludes and shorter acoustic tracks like ‘U.F.O.” find themselves not only seamlessly fitting in, but also creating a buzz of their own. Hell, even Rihanna’s guest appearance on ‘Princess of China’ feels right at home, which is also due to the delivery of what might be her best vocal performance ever. Mylo Xyloto is, quite simply, an all styles inclusive album…and that is what makes it so easy for just about anything to sound like an essential piece of its puzzle.
A lot of adjectives will be used in the coming weeks to describe Coldplay’s new album – cheerful, spacey, emotive, triumphant – but perhaps no word better sums it up than colorful. The album art is actually rather indicative of what you will get. Mylo is a mixed bag of ideas that come together in a fashion that should exceed many people’s expectations, and as long as Coldplay continues to inflate over the coming years, you may find yourself wondering how it is possible for a band to sound this big.
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| Recent reviews by this author | | | |
Album Rating: 4.5
neg'd
Digging: mewithoutYou - Ten Stories Digging: mewithoutYou - Ten Stories | | |
Gonna have to drop my review now
Digging: Amon Tobin - Amon Tobin Digging: Amon Tobin - Amon Tobin
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
who needs your negativity
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Suffice to say, the only thing that has departed is the musical direction they took on Mylo Xyloto,
Think you named the wrong album here
who needs your negativity
A 3 is negative??
| | | Album Rating: 5 | Sound Off
a 3 is neutral
neutral is not a good adjective for music
| | | Album Rating: 2
It says "good" next to 3.
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I need to get around to listening to this. Solid review, Sowing.
Digging: Between the Buried and Me - Colors Digging: Between the Buried and Me - Colors
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
anything lower than i rate an album is negative ; )
also, thanks for pointing that out in the second sentence...i changed it to say what i wanted to say, but i dont think it sounds quite as good. oh well
| | | Album Rating: 4
Good review. I just didn't get that same Viva la Vida love for the album
Digging: Norah Jones - Little Broken Hearts Digging: Norah Jones - Little Broken Hearts | | | Album Rating: 4.5
thanks! this is about equal to viva la vida for me
| | | Album Rating: 3
I don't understand you sputnik, you surprise me sometimes...who'd thought coldplay would be such a loved band here?
This is in no way equal to Viva La Vida for me, not even close, but it has some decent enough tracks.
Digging: The Dead Weather - Sea of Cowards Digging: The Dead Weather - Sea of Cowards | | |
a 3 is neutral
Because it's stuck between being terrible and excellent? Lol no, a 3 is good
| | | Album Rating: 4
I got this and viva at equal ratings, they both are so damn good. Great review, its nice to see so many good ones popping up for this album.
Digging: Marilyn Manson - Born Villain Digging: Marilyn Manson - Born Villain | | |
"I don't understand you sputnik, you surprise me sometimes...who'd thought coldplay would be such a loved band here?"
Jup, site covers a bit too much mainstream as of lately.
Digging: Blien Vesne - Esperar Eternity Digging: Blien Vesne - Esperar Eternity
| | | Album Rating: 4.5
thanks bass demon
and yeah i always thought of a 3 as good but to be honest i dont put as much thought into the ratings anymore...id much rather people read everything i say than look at the number, glance through the review, and try to figure out if they match up
| | | Album Rating: 5 | Sound Off
of the possible ratings on this site a 3 is the middle!
1 / 1.5 / 2 / 2.5 / 3 / 3.5 / 4 / 4.5 / 5
LALALALA
| | | Album Rating: 4
^ It is actually possible to rate an album as a 0.5.
Anyways, great review SS. Coldplay aren't a band that I can seem to get into though. I fully respect them and acknowledge how vital they are in modern music, but something about Chris Martin's vocal delivery doesn't seem to sit well with me. That being said, maybe this album will be the one to change my mind though, and I will in all probability still give it a go.
Digging: My Bloody Valentine - Loveless Digging: My Bloody Valentine - Loveless | | | Album Rating: 3 | Sound Off
Princess of China is hilariously bad.
Digging: M. Ward - A Wasteland Companion Digging: M. Ward - A Wasteland Companion | | | Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off
great review, I love this album.
I don't understand you sputnik, you surprise me sometimes...who'd thought coldplay would be such a loved band here?
two contributors =/= entire userbase. 3.5 is actually a pretty weak average for an album. Coldplay are definitely not universally loved here.
Jup, site covers a bit too much mainstream as of lately.
hipster alert
Digging: Hop Along - Get Disowned | | | Album Rating: 3
Beginning of Charlie Brown sounded like a song off "Old Rave's End" lol
does that mean Deviant liked it?
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