This post was updated Oct. 8 at 8:36 p.m.
Coldplay’s newest album aimed for the moon but fell far short of being out of this world.
The British rock band’s 10th studio album “Moon Music” was released Friday and features 10 songs across 44 minutes of music. The LP comes as a sequel to the band’s previous record, 2021’s “Music of the Spheres,” which was nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys and featured the number-one hit “My Universe” with BTS. Much of “Moon Music” was recorded amid Coldplay’s ongoing $1 billion behemoth “Music of the Spheres World Tour.” The band’s distraction is evident in the new album’s subpar execution, since this project is creatively underdeveloped compared to the Grammy-winning group’s past discography.
The album’s release was preceded by two of its tracks, with the middling lead single “feelslikeimfallinginlove” arriving in June. Although the bouncy synths and buoyant pop rock production are fairly enjoyable, the song’s generic lyrical content deprives it of any meaningful personality or emotional credibility. Co-written by Apple Martin – daughter of frontman Chris Martin and Gwyneth Paltrow – “feelslikeimfallinginlove” limps by with a disjointed chorus, where all of the pauses and emphases land on melodically disruptive syllables. Martin apathetically sings the excruciatingly grating non-rhyming couplet, “Maybe for the first time / Baby, it’s my mind you blow,” creating a track with no replay value that is exacerbated by a bizarre extended outro of shouting.
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“WE PRAY” followed as the project’s second single in August and packs featured appearances by four other international artists – Little Simz, Burna Boy, Elyanna and TINI – into an overstuffed track that is less than four minutes long. Martin’s repeated calls of “And so we pray” over a hip hop-adjacent beat are not as anthemic or passionate as they were probably intended to be, especially when each featured artist easily upstages him with their fast-paced verses. Little Simz emerges as the star of the track, but unfortunately there is not enough breathing room in such a compact timeframe for her wordplay to shine to its fullest.
By comparison, the first half of the Ayra Starr collaboration “GOOD FEELiNGS” is probably the strongest moment of the album, with a legitimately catchy pairing between Martin and Starr over a disco-infused beat. Even the simplicity of the lyrics cannot be faulted thanks to the effervescence and welcome jolt of energy this track provides for the album’s otherwise subdued midsection. Unfortunately, the moment is too good to be true, as the song descends into sounds resembling a children’s choir in its conclusion, yanking listeners from the track’s escapist aura.
Outside of these slightly more memorable songs that actively replicate or borrow from mainstream sonic trends, the majority of the album is marked by extended instrumental intros or outros that are almost reminiscent of scores for science fiction films. While a prolonged instrumental segment of a song can often immerse listeners deeper into the beat or groove, the quieter moments of “Moon Music” are fairly monotonous in both sound and structure. The opening title track is one example, with listeners having to wait almost two minutes for piano keys to begin and nearly three minutes before Martin’s melancholy vocals appear.
Of course, not all music needs to be accompanied by extensive or intricate lyrics to soar. Albums that merely focus on the instrumentation and production of their songs can be equally valuable as albums that come with introspective lyrics. Likewise, there is nothing disruptive or unpleasant about the vast instrumental stretches of “Moon Music,” which incorporate ample elements of relaxing ambient music.
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However, the sonic simplicity of “Moon Music” leaves listeners with the impression that Coldplay has very little to say in 2024, which is a critical error in purpose for one of the world’s most successful modern rock bands. Unlike the 21st century rock classics that were their first two albums, “Parachutes” and “A Rush of Blood to the Head,” “Moon Music” does not have the forceful instrumentation or heartfelt lyrics necessary to yield any major emotional impact. Simultaneously, the new LP lacks the political edge or rousing sonic experimentation that gave 2008’s “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends” persisting vitality and relevance.
Fortunately for Coldplay, the dabbled mixture of genres found on “Moon Music” are sure to provide a compelling sonic backdrop for the band’s upcoming tour performances. Thanks to the collaborators Coldplay tapped for this album, they can now thread some much-needed energy into their work with Afrobeats and rap. That said, “Moon Music” on its own still falls egregiously short of expectations for such an anticipated release. As an independent listening experience unaccompanied by the maximalist set design and lighting of a Coldplay concert, “Moon Music” falls into the forgettable territory of being background music and nothing more.
Without offering more impactful lyricism and production, “Moon Music” casts doubts over whether Coldplay is deserving of its enduring star power.
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