Coldplay Simmers Down on "Ghost Stories"

Coldplay

So this was another one of my downloads from last year that I never reviewed.  And, quite honestly, I didn't even listen to it at all until yesterday.  Why?  I was afraid that it would suck.

In the last decade, Coldplay was one of my favorite bands.  I absolutely loved them, right from my first listen of "Don't Panic" and "Yellow" off their debut, "Parachutes".  The first time I heard "Politik" off of "A Rush of Blood To the Head" with its shoegaze-like Cocteau Twins sound, I was hooked.  That album was a masterpiece, and "X&Y" was their magnum opus.  But then, like many bands, they started settling into a slump.  "Viva La Vida" - while one of the band's most popular releases - was only "okay" to me (whereas their "Prospekt's March" EP was genius).  And "Mylo Xyloto"?  Ugh.  Don't even get me started.  There were only one, or two, songs that really grabbed me on that one.

So yeah, I was afraid to listen to their sixth studio album, "Ghost Stories".  I had already heard the album's two singles - "Magic" and "A Sky Full of Stars" - and, frankly, I was underwhelmed.  (I don't mind them now.)

So after my first listen  my fears were both confirmed and baseless.  This record does not have the innovation of "Rush of Blood", and it doesn't have the passion of "X&Y".  But it is still not a bad album.  It's very subtle.  Nowhere does it get loud and wild.  It's not going to clear any rooms, but it will stand insistently in the living room, clearing it's throat incessantly until you notice its fine points, which are.. subtle.  It has an understated pop vibe that reminds me of '80s act, The Blue Nile.  Much of this album is full of nocturnal washes of hushed ambient sounds with Chris Martin's quiet vocals pairing in a way that really makes me think of Sigur Ros.

The album is strongest on "Ink", a catchy little tune, and on the dreamy "Another's Arms".  My absolute favorite song is "Midnight" with its faint rhythm and computerized harmony that gives it an Imogen Heap vibe.

So, all in all, not a bad record, bit certainly not their best.  Coldplay is in the studio now, finishing up their seventh and, what they say will be, their last album called "A Head Full of Dreams".  They say it will be their "last Harry Potter book" of an album.  I will definitely be reviewing that when it comes out.  I hope they go out with a bang.