Coldplay

Coldplay has a new song out. It’s called “Hypnotised,” and is about as exciting as anything you could think of from Coldplay. I’ll give a few kinda-kudos. It sounds like Coldplay because, over the years, they have established a certain style. You don’t need someone telling you this is the new song by the group.
But that’s where it ends. The song doesn’t challenge anything in particular–there seems to be no particular purpose for it other than to have Coldplay with a new single. On the surface, it’s a song that moves along well enough, but it’s nothing new from them. The lyrics are nebulous–it’s dark, but now there’s a sunrise? I suppose leaving things open for suggestion lets people fill in blanks that fit themselves.
Chris Martin still sings. I know no other band member. Gone are those days when bands who played instruments were easily known by name.
I doubt there will be many posts about how great the new Coldplay single is.
However, they will sell out the Rose Bowl. Parking will be 40 bucks and tickets will be much much much more than that. You will be in Pasadena, watching Chris Martin and the other guys in Coldplay. But you will see them on the Jumbotron, because you only paid 100 bucks for a seat, which further distances you from any emotional connection to the music.
Coldplay is the number one band in the world. If you judge a band (ones that play instruments) based on record sales and concert ticket sales, they are number one. It’s not anyone else. Their number one because they’re safe, they’re easy to recognize on the radio, and you know that Chris Martin married Gwyneth Paltrow. There are no b*&((*&(Qs killing anyone’s vibe here–just music to park your car to, music to listen to while you pour half-and-half into your morning coffee.
And there’s the rub. If this is what resonates with people, then people have become too comfortable. AH, the metaphor. We ARE the guy pouring half-and-half into our coffee, but if we miss and it spills onto our granite countertops, we take a paper towel we bought in bulk at Costco and wipe it up. Because we have become comfortable, we don’t care about what music we listen to in our cars when we drive to work.
Dude, Chris Martin, you named your kid APPLE! That’s a bold move, man. How about making a similar statement with your music? Oh, and while you’re at it, my students have an argumentative paper due tomorrow. So, um, can you write some edgier songs so all their papers don’t sound like your new single? If not, we’ll see your band again at the Super Bowl, I’m sure, surrounded by other artists that shift our focus.
Shifting focus to others is not what I try to teach when it comes to writing. There’s a big stack of papers–how does your paper stand out?
Sometimes you read entire essays because they are so good. Sometimes you scan the body because you know the path. The same goes with songs. Submitted for your approval.