Customer Reviews: Read 340 more reviews...
 Coldplays 4th and best album August 21, 2008
I have never been an avid Coldplay fan, but this album cannot be denied the laurels which it deserves. In an era of music defined by generic punk-pop and ultra-repetitive hip-hop, this album is a breath of much-needed fresh air. Chris Martin and Co. teamed up with Brian Eno to give Coldplay's music a newer sense of urgency and purpose, and the results will surely be admired by the musical community for years to come. Songs such as "Viva La Vida" display an ethereal beauty that not only pleases the listener, but actually draws them into the music. Tales of deposed royalty and clever political commentary help make for an even more interesting listen. Flag-waiving, anthemic music at its best.
 Real disappointment August 20, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
It's really sad to see a great band like coldplay release a botched album like that. Don't get me wrong, it has its moments, but overall, this album lacks coherence and is really... well... not good at all. Coldplay rose and is now down the wrong path: parachutes was really good, a rush of blood to the head was simply a-m-a-z-i-n-g, but then x&y took them back to 'just good', and then this new album. I hate to say this, because I really, really think coldplay is an amazing band... I tried hard, but this new album simply doesn't work for me. After years of critics towards the band about the fact that 'coldplay will always sound like coldplay', they obviously tried to change that, but instead of trying to make their own style evolve, they simply shoved as many random ideas as they could in this album, with songs that simply don't fit together. Don't get me wrong, I realize it's a challenge, but look at radiohead for instance, every single album has almost no connection with the others, and yet they all are coherent in their own way. Also, coldplay introduces the BOGO (buy one get one) concept, with a bunch of songs that actually are two songs in one. While it works amazingly for bands like queen, because again these 'multiple personalities' songs are disjointed yet coherently built, coldplay didn't understand the recipe: they took songs that don't match each other, and stuck them together anyway (happens multiple times on the album, e.g. tracks 5, 6 and 10). Only a handful of bands managed to pull this one off (queen, system of a down, radiohead...), coldplay will not be one of them. And don't get me started on how dull the lyrics can be... Anyway, they deserve at least one star, for viva la vida (the song) which is amazing, but sadly it's only one song buried deep in the album, stuck between 9 others that are so-so - at best. Disappointing - at least that's my opinion, you don't have to agree with me.
runner up to X & Y August 20, 2008
X&Y was what hooked me to coldplay's music, Their first two albums have slowly grown on me but none the less have grown on me. Just when I thought they couldn't sound any better they ring out the wild bells of "Viva la Vida" like they are in this for the long run. What other band can rock out on the cathedral organ and the string quartet like these? Then throw in some distorted guitar, fine tune it with some acoustic guitars, and put you in a trance with Martin's voice? Yes, Chris Martin is no vocal performance master. He has flaws in his voice. But he can take those flaws turn them around and use them make the song actualy sound better. That is what you call a songwriter in case you didn't know. If I want a perfect voice I'd listen to Josh Groban if I want a perfect song I'll listen to Coldplay (or Jack Johnson).
 "A Rush of Blood to The Head" & "X&Y" much better than this. August 19, 2008
I keep on listening it and still I don't like. I rated 3 stars because I only found 3 good songs: track 1, 4, and 6 and maybe the last track; but no matter what I just said. In the deep of my heart I know that Coldplay is a great band.
Some good tracks, not terribly impressed... August 19, 2008
I was hoping to see some better tracks on this CD and was only fairly impressed with the songs I haven't heard before.
My rating *** out of *****.
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