Detractors of Coldplay like to point out that the band has always exuded a pretty serious edge. Well, if that is true, Mylo Xyloto may be their most carefree and spontaneous record since the band debuted with Parachutes in 2001.
After the anthemic and experimental (at least for these guys) Viva la Vida, the band seems to have gone back into the studio and taken all the best parts from their previous album (shoegaze guitars, electronic percussion, Brian Eno) and applied them to Mylo Xyloto to create a record with less cerebral songwriting and stronger crossover appeal.
Mylo Xyloto certainly sounds like a Coldplay record (even if you don’t like these guys, you have to admit that every new incarnation of the band still maintains their original sound, whatever that may be), but this album seems indebted to a more mainstream R&B influence, with hip-hop synths and memorable choruses found on tracks like “Paradise” and “Hurts Like Heaven.”
But for fans who remember when the band dressed like high school geography teachers and told us that everything was truly yellow, the ridiculousness of their arena rock lyrical content is still there with songs like “Every Teardrop is a Waterfall” and “Princess of China.”
For fans of the group, Mylo Xyloto offers a refreshing change for the British balladeers. It’s certainly not the best Coldplay album to come out in awhile, but it’s definitely not the worst either. Just throw X&Y out of your collection and think of this as their fourth album.
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