Lukewarm: Coldplay’s “A Head Full of Dreams” review
Coldplay's latest -- and potentially last -- album, "A Head Full of Dreams," is another forgettably pleasant record
Now in their seventh album, Coldplay’s dreamily dreary A Head Full of Dreams (
) is easy listening — and easy to forget. If rumors are to be believed about this being their swansong, it’s a fitting goodbye.
Now that it’s clear the band have little to lose, “Adventure of a Lifetime” appears to signal the obligatory disco moment. As eager to please as this band always are, on this song they rely on its novelty, coasting on a breezy altitude, rarely working up the muster to truly soar — and given the list of add-ons this album has (Noel Gallagher, an American president, a Swedish singer who co-wrote Hilary Duff’s latest hit single “Sparks,” a Destiny’s Child, and Katy Perry producer Stargate), one could imagine that giving Kathy Sledge or Martha Wash a call wouldn’t have been too much to ask for. What it does feature is a predictable “whoa-oh-oh-oh” section — or should that be euphoric Coldplay trademark?
Never ones to be accused of not branching out, the “hilarious” video is an animated clip featuring monkeys getting on down to the Chris Martin groove. If that doesn’t sound convincing it’s because it isn’t.
Similarly fuelled, “Birds” leans heavier on the disorientated, psychedelic discord. If one is unlikely to bang their feet in LA Suite to this, the mild rhythm shuffling creates a polite grace that would at least bring U2’s Bono out in a cold sweat.
Staying put at the disco, “A Head Full of Dreams” creates a lush, comforting sound that’s almost at the expense of a distinctive anthem, of which is obviously being strived for. Along with the dazzling sonics, the stargazing sense of wide-eyed wonder is everything to be expected of Coldplay.
Giving the tireless epic humility a rest for a moment, “Hymn for the Weekend” enlists R&B’s reigning queen Beyonce and casually turns out the album’s understated highlight. If sick beats were a bit beyond the band’s repertoire, hand clapping is the not-as-embarrassing-as-it-sounds solution. Beginning with a Bey acapella (harmonising with herself, god love her), it’s a false alarm, as by and large she is more in the background than Michelle Williams. More’s the pity she didn’t get to keep it for that long-overdue second Shakira duet.
Opening with the educational line “Well they say people come, they say people go”, “Everglow” is likely to be the album’s conscious uncoupling ballad (if you manage to not fall asleep, you will hear a fairly innocuous vocal from none other than Gwyneth herself). In spite of itself, it somehow comforts with wisdom and maturity that the sentimental lyrics ultimately betray.
On the post-divorce rock ballad “Fun” (featuring Tove Lo), Martin whoa-ooh-oohs himself back to life. Lo doesn’t offer much special occasion to proceedings, but the scientifically precise and uplifting melody makes it sound like an obvious future single.
“Army of One” supports a fuller sound, utilizing elegiac guitar lines to lovely effect. Softly undercutting the grandiosity elsewhere, it’s an anthem in disguise, with an affirming melody that dances and haunts. “X Marks the Spot” is an attempt at sparse, atmospheric R&B (“you make my heart boo-boo-boo-boo-boom”), but quickly opts for a fade out as if all concerned were too embarrassed to keep going.
One thing Coldplay isn’t is emotionally vague. The scaled-back “Amazing Day” is a welcome revocation of their earlier material, cutting to the same bone found on tracks such as “Yellow” and “The Scientist”.
Noel Gallagher snatches his paycheck, providing guitar on album closer “Up & Up.” It’s the song Martin claims the band has “waited fifteen years to write” — and at seven minutes long, seemed initially to this humble writer that it would last another fifteen. It’s sentimental enough to serve as a credits roll on a band that has made “nice” a grand speciality. It’s a solid, if unspectacular, curtain call.
The soft rock torpor of A Head Full of Dreams is certainly not a head full of original ideas, and ultimately serves to spread the final product thin. If Coldplay is to be missed, it won’t be for this album.
A Head Full of Dreams is available now to download and on CD.
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