I have to admit I really like the title track, probably the only one I'll still be listening to in a year's time.

matt - the people at Coldplaying are really nice and genuine, but the amount of them attempting to justify the band's creative decisions these days with some nigh-offensive reasoning is nauseating. I haven't been on in a while tbh.

Some people have blind loyalty and will follow bands anywhere. We all know the album isn't very good. Let's not play games and pretend. It has 3-4 good songs. The rest.......not so much.

Today, I finally had a chance to listen to the album in its entirety, and it wasn't bad.

A Head Full of Dreams: I love the U2 feeling of this song. It's a solid opener to the album, and welcomes everyone in from the electronic feel of Ghost Stories, which is why I don't have as much of a problem with this sounding a bit more like a dance track than anything, but the emphasis on that could've been a little less. Not bad overall. (7/10)

Birds: The 80s feel on this is sweet, and also has a hint of modern indie. I think this is one of the few songs on the album where it feels like the whole band has a piece in the puzzle, and it makes for a good listen. I love the crescendo at the end, and the way the atmosphere soars to the end, but damnit, why did it have to end with just the word "cool"? They were really on to something, and I wish it could've gone on longer instead of going into the next track... (8/10)

Hymn for the Weekend: Ugh. This one just lurks its way in, but as it is lurking its way in, you can already tell that it is shaping up to be something un-Coldplay-like, and it comes out to be so. It's catchy, yes, but the lyrics are horrid, and there's such a dirty pop feeling to it that seems to leave out most of the band. So much so that I reckon this could be track #1 on Chris's solo album. Instant skip for me. (2/10)

Everglow: After the first listen when it premiered on Zane Lowe's show, the bass-y sound to it didn't sit right, but I think it's okay on second listen. I just wish the guitar was a bit louder because there are some beautiful bits that Jonny did for this song that don't come across clear enough. Overall, it's a nice little tune, and a good pick-me-up from the soul-crushing HFTW. (7/10)

Adventure of a Lifetime: The riff is slick and honestly, I appreciate the percussion and chopped vocals a little more after this listen because it makes for a great atmosphere. Even with the new kind of sound and production, I still get a certain feeling when listening to this song that I get when I listen to Viva la Vida. Albeit it's nowhere near as good as that song, I think this is the direction Coldplay should've taken instead of being all over the place with stuff HFTW and AOO/XMTS added into the mix. It's just a shame that the music video to this song is awful. Second best song on the album for me. (9/10)

Fun: Ehhh. This one is largely forgetful. The only moments in the song that aren't like that are probably the places where Tove Lo's backing vocals are present. Her voice and Chris's blend well with each other. Other than that, the production on this one was sketchy. I could sort of hear the acoustic guitar that was somewhere within mix, until it got to about midway through the song where it was just Chris and the acoustic guitar. That's the way it should've been throughout the whole song, and it's a shame that it wasn't. (5/10)

Kaleidoscope: It's a nice and dreamy interlude. The poem was a good fit for the atmosphere, and I wish it would've lead into something better than what was to come. (4/5)

Army of One: If HFTW was track #1 on Chris's solo album, this would be track #2. When this track got halfway done, it officially seemed like the lowest Coldplay had sunk to me with the cliche backing vocals and the production and arrangement that layered out the rest of the band from the soundscape. Plus, the lyrics are poor. "I'm never so high as when I'm with you, and there isn't a fire, that I wouldn't walk through, my army of one is gonna fight for you." Really? I SERIOUSLY cannot believe that this is the same guy who wrote the lyrics to Violet Hill and The Scientist... (3/10)

X Marks the Spot: Not as bad as I thought it was going to be, but still bad. This could be a track Drake would've done, which does not say much, so I won't say no more about this one. (2/10)

Amazing Day: Lovely little tune. I like the studio version of this better than its live form. There is a little bit of a Paradise-like feeling going on with this song, but it feels a little more developed and spiritual. The lyrics paint a beautiful picture, and is well supported by a strong strings section and guitar work by Jonny. This is a gem that waits for everyone who can stick it out long enough to get to it, and it's one of the most well-produced songs on the album. It's not muddy at all, and everything sits well in the mix. (8/10)

Colour Spectrum: Wow. It may be just an interlude, but boy is it a beautiful one. They hit the nail on the head with this one, it really does carry the lofty atmosphere of AD well. (5/5)

Up&Up: This one starts off slow, and has a soft start with the piano, strings, and drums, but it starts to come into its own as it goes on. After the first solo at around 3:37, I love how the choir-like vocals come in and it just builds from there until Noel's solo at around the 5 minute mark. That is easily the brightest moment on the song, and with the other solo in the song, the brightest moments on the album. It's uplifting, it's sweet, and is shades of Primal Scream's Movin' on Up with a little bit of Champagne Supernova added in. What's not to love about that? Plus, this is another song on the album where it feels like the whole band is involved, and I appreciate that a lot. (10/10)

If the last two full-length tracks (three if you count Colour Spectrum) are any indication of where Coldplay is going, I'm optimistic because they both sound great. They've still got it, but they, Chris especially, needs to stop trying to blending in with trends in pop music to produce songs like HFTW, Fun, and AOO/XMTS. It sounds bland, uninspired, and self-parody-like.

What is good and "innovative" for the band is tracks like Birds, Adventure of a Lifetime, and Up&Up. Everglow and A Head Full of Dreams is nice, but I think the former three execute the new ground being walked on by the band well, while the latter two will shine better in a live form. Amazing Day, to me, falls right in the middle of those two categories.

Overall Rating: 6.4/10

"This is the most LIT Coldplay album" 

lol had a bit too much fun with that 

But what makes you think Amazing Day is a knockout track? I was laughing rather and being moved. 

Noticed that around the VLV tour, quite a few fangirls at the concerts. Was fully evident when I went to the MX tour gig . I wouldn't go near a Coldplay gig now. It's such a bizzare path Coldplay have taken, have any other band gone on this route from decent soft rock into pop blandness?

That's it - they're new material is just bland. Not only does it not do anything for me, but there's no uniqueness to it. It all sounds very generic and boring and like everything else out there today. Maybe people said the same thing about Oasis in the 90s? 

You're drunk aren't you?!

:-)

He's gettin' drunk n' high, so high, so hiiiighhhhh 

This album isn't very good. Prequels level quality folks.

What. The. Fuck.

Is that Maroon 5? What in the world is Chris Martin wearing? Holy hell.