I’ve been a Coldplay fan most of my life. When I first heard the opening violins in their 2008 hit “Viva la Vida,” I knew this was what music was supposed to be—an experience that takes you to a place beyond yourself, both awe-inspiring and quintessentially human. There is no denying Coldplay has made amazing albums: Parachutes (2000) is a raw, acoustic rock classic, Viva la Vida (2008) and A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002) are political, piano-driven masterpieces, and the more pop-leaning Mylo Xyloto (2011) and A Head Full of Dreams (2015) have some innovative, danceable hits. Yet somehow, their tenth and latest studio album, Moon Music (2024), had none of the positive characteristics of their previous work. Its tired pop beats and artificially sweet lyrics will have you wondering, “what happened to Coldplay?”
The second album in Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres (2021) project picks up where Vol. I left off, centering around themes of finding yourself, fostering a love for humankind, and navigating our universe. The album, like the former release from the same project, is infused with galactic sound bytes, creating a soundscape that gives the audience the feeling that they are traveling through a twinkling universe of bright lights and colors. With far-reaching themes and otherworldly sound elements, Moon Music reaches for the stars—but unfortunately falls flat.
Their brief dip into electronica with “AETERNA” comes closest to hitting the mark with these broad themes, with lyrics about the love of humankind and innovative sounds. With a hypnotic bassline, pulsating electronic grooves, and blissful lyrics, the eighth song on the album shows promise as a danceable hit. Martin’s lyrics delve into themes of universality and community as he sings, “You feel it flow / And we’re all together now, oh / This must be bliss.” The surging, nearly psychedelic trip through dance music is unusual for a piano-rock-focused band like Coldplay, but it works remarkably well. The shimmering array of electronic elements mixed with Martin’s free-floating falsetto sends the song into orbit, with Guy Berryman’s deep, grounded bassline ensuring that the song doesn’t get lost in the depths of outer space, giving the song a unique balance between extremes that the rest of the album lacks. “AETERNA,” translated from Latin to mean “eternal” or “immortal,” is ultimately an innovative song about the perpetuity of the human spirit that provides a sonically pleasing escapist experience into the world of EDM.
Their first single from the album, “feelslikeimfallinginlove,” is another standout. The grandiose orchestration gives the audience the sense that they are floating through space and the main melody is sufficiently catchy. Yes, the lyrics may be simple and somewhat uninspired (basically the gist is that the singer is falling in love—there are no other specific details, just a couple of “lalalalas”), but I wouldn’t turn the dial if I heard it on the radio. The song has a sense of real joy and optimism; from the majestic melodies to the hopeful lyrics, it has all the hallmarks of a Coldplay pop hit.
In the same realm as “feelslikeimfallinginlove,” “GOOD FEELiNGS” is another carefree track that would fit perfectly in the summertime. There’s nothing too deep about it, but it’s not trying to be deep. Ayra Starr’s and Chris Martin’s vocals complement each other flawlessly, cementing Starr as the clear standout feature on the album. “GOOD FEELiNGS” is light-hearted and easy-going with outstanding featured vocals: overall, it’s just fun. Whether it is cohesive with the moody piano rock of the rest of the album is debatable, but I’ll give it a pass because it’s so much better than the rest of the songs.
Unfortunately, any semblance of praise for this album immediately withers away upon hearing the titular track. Opening the album, “MOON MUSiC” is a reflection of Martin’s struggle with finding community and a sense of true belonging. The track offers a fragment of wonder-filled, grand symphony produced by longtime Coldplay collaborator Jon Hopkins. “Wow, what a great start to the album! Surely the rest of it will be as original and awe-inspiring!” is what you would think if I hadn’t spoiled the ending. Then, at one minute and 50 seconds, the plinky piano comes in, and the illusion is shattered. The melody goes nowhere— just down and up, over and over, making the rest of the song exhausting to finish. The theme for the rest of the album seems to be “great message but painfully weak execution.”
“JUPiTER” serves almost as a response to the title track, encouraging the audience to accept their true selves and be proud of their differences. Like “MOON MUSiC,” “JUPiTER” has an important, necessary theme, but the execution falls flat. The painstakingly simplistic and relentlessly saccharine melody of “JUPiTER” causes the song to come off as artificial, not empowering. This continues to be Coldplay’s main problem in this album: a sense of artifice. Whether it be the sappy piano ballad of “ALL MY LOVE,” the shallow, pseudo-inspirational rambling of “iAAM,” or the stagnant, repetitive finale of “ONE WORLD,” Moon Music lacks the groundedness and reality of previous Coldplay albums.
Similarly, the first half of “🌈” lacks a sense of direction. Martin’s phrases hang, the orchestration stays stagnant, and as one becomes lost in space, this song becomes lost in the listener’s mind. Although the end of the song, which features an audio clip from Maya Angelou about the hope that lies in rainbows, is touching and inspirational, it’s not enough to save the wandering, directionless, six minute song.
Saving the worst for last, “We Pray” is simply not good. I don’t fault the song’s message—it encourages everyone to place hope in the goodness of themselves and others—but everything else is painful. The jarring, over-mechanized percussion, nonsensical features, and out-of-place strings all contribute to the song’s disjointedness and chaos. The song might work on a different album, but on Moon Music, it is messy and wholly out of place.
To conclude the album, Coldplay included a 25-second video for Apple Music users entitled “afilmforthefuture,” which consisted of a hopeful, vibrant compilation of clips of fireworks, rainbows, schools of fish, spray-painting, religious rituals, concerts, and other patchwork scenes of the human experience. The short video ties the album together on a positive note, reinforcing the main theme of the Music of the Spheres project: finding beauty in the human experience and the natural world. It’s a fitting ending, but considering the colossal mess it succeeds, the 25-second clip ultimately cannot save the album from crashing and burning.
Moon Music had lofty hopes. It reached for great heights with its attempts to convey universal themes of belonging, journeying, and love through a cosmic soundscape. However, the album falls short of these hopes of greatness, with the main fault lying in its lack of authentic feeling and growth. A sense of deceit infiltrates the listening experience, turning the songs sickly sweet and mainly unenjoyable. Did I enjoy this album? No. Will I still love Coldplay until the end of time? Undoubtedly. The members of Coldplay are truly artists, and while not every release can be a hit, I can only hope that their next, and penultimate, album will have a little more rocket fuel.
Voice’s Choices: “AETERNA,” “feelslikeimfallinginlove,” “GOOD FEELiNGS”
