Mylo Xyloto

About

Coldplay had the wind in its sails as the band arrived at its fifth record. 2008’s <i>Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends</i> had made for an exhilarating course correction after the uncertainty of 2005’s <i>X&Y</i> and here they seemed emboldened by the momentum their fourth record had generated. <i>Mylo Xyloto</i> is the sound of Coldplay fully embracing their status as one of the world’s biggest band, a record that introduced a sense of spectacular into the mix where everything—the Day-Glo artwork and style, the luminous sonic, the silly title—feels pushed to the utmost degree. It’s Coldplay at their most bombastic. It could have headed in the opposite direction, though. The original plan was to make a stripped-down album that would hark back to the stark introspection and acoustic guitars of the early work. But big tunes that deserved big production kept arriving and Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman, and Will Champion found themselves writing two records that differed in sound and vibe. It was working on a raw, accordion-led version of “Charlie Brown” that put an end to that notion when Berryman suggested it was madness not to do it as a panoramic rock-pop sing-along. The acoustic record was shelved and, in its wake, came <i>Mylo Xyloto</i>. The finished version of “Charlie Brown” featured no accordion. Instead, it sounded like <i>Achtung Baby</i>-era U2 being launched into space. A concept album set on the fictional planet of Silencia and telling the tale of a war against sound and color—can you tell that Coldplay was embracing the spirit of theatricality here?—<i>Mylo Xyloto</i> saw the quartet brighten their sonic palette with the kaleidoscopic sound of modern pop, where their trademark shimmering guitar lines and muscular rhythms are elevated by strobing synth, R&B beat, and layered soundscape. The dynamic production would count for nothing without rapturous hooks to hang everything on, though, and Coldplay had them in spade. The swirling melodrama of “Paradise” was their best pop moment, yet that was given a run for its money by the Rihanna-featuring electro-pop euphoria of “Princess Of China,” while the cosmic rave thrust of “Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall” showed they could still do yearning on such a grand canva. .

via Apple Music

The Clerk says

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