Without fail, one question every interviewer asks Coldplay frontman Chris Martin regarding the band's fifth album is, "What does the title mean?". As it turns out, Mylo Xyloto is proving elusive in this regard. In an Oct. 13 interview with the New York Times, Martin alluded to the album's mystifying title, suggesting it was no more than the result of wacky artistic musing: "So we came up with the idea of, What if you had musical digits, like xylo-toes?" Other speculations center on the content of the album, a quasi-rock opera about two people in love whose names are Mylo and Xyloto. Regardless of the title's elusive meaning, each track on Mylo Xyloto offers something different and innovative, and the record marks a refreshingly upbeat transition for the massively popular band.
Coldplay professes to have written Mylo Xyloto as an experimental, happier album, a departure from its past repertoire of sober, introspective love songs. In this regard, the record is an incredible success, taking listeners on an emotional musical journey through its 14 tracks. The album begins with "Hurts Like Heaven," a poppy, cheerful track with playful synthesizer undertones. The album then moves into its second single, "Paradise," a track that is reminiscent of the sweeping, epic tones of "Viva La Vida." Despite more somber moments like those of "U.F.O.," the journey on which the band takes its listeners is uplifting. The radio-friendly "Princess of China," for example, features fellow Grammy winner Rihanna, a very unlikely partner to the vocals of Martin. Her contribution offers a female presence, giving tangibility to the album's idea of two lovers. Stylistically, it is almost a dance track and even features a techno-laced background.
The public got a taste of what was to come in the album when "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall," the first single off the album, was released this past June. At track seven, the song is at both the literal and figurative center of the record. "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall" is underscored by staccato piano chords which, like "Paradise," echo "Viva La Vida." It speaks to a love of music, and of course - this being Coldplay - to love itself. The album is clearly a love story: The early tracks are about the conception and subsequent growth of love. The listener sees trouble on the horizon with the haunting, mechanical "Major Minus." Much of the latter part of the album is devoted to the disintegration of love, but Mylo Xyloto ends happily with the touching and positive "Up With the Birds."
Featuring everything from sweeping romantic songs typical of the band to the electronic interlude "A Hopeful Transmission," the album is not quite musically cohesive, but is a success nevertheless. There is a point in an artist's career when change and experimentation is necessary for the continued growth of the band. Perhaps Mylo Xyloto will prove to be a turning point for Coldplay; regardless, Mylo Xyloto holds its own as a record that produces track after track of genuinely enjoyable music.
Read More
The best albums of 2014
By Noah Zeidman | December 4, 2014Across genres, it has been a pretty great year in music.
Top 10 movies of 2014
December 4, 2014This has been an excellent year for film, offering everything from gripping blockbusters to innovative personal films.
Iggy Azalea is “Reclassified”
December 4, 2014It has become common practice among music artists to repackage their albums in an effort to simultaneously boost single sales and dish out new content by slightly renaming the album or slapping “Deluxe” onto the title.
