One record at a time: 62. Coldplay - A Head Full of Dreams

Having quite enjoyed "Ghost Stories" I was left susceptible to the relentless promotion for the follow up album "A Head Full of Dreams" a year later.  As a result, I purchased this double, coloured, limited edition vinyl when it was released in 2015.

The title track is the opening cut and it is the usual high quality, uplifting anthem we have come to expect from Coldplay. They must have written this and sat back knowing they had an instant hit. "Birds" always sounds like its about to segue into "Don't Get Me Wrong" by The Pretenders and unfortunately I'm not a fan of either song. Beyoncé guests on the catchy "Hymn for the Weekend" which closes the first side of the record.

"Everglow" is one of those reflective and maudlin songs that doesn't have enough to interest me despite some electronic drums. Chris's ex-wife features on backing vocals for this track leading me to understand why some people criticise Coldplay as "bringing baggage" that distracts from the music.

Things kick up a gear with "Adventure of a Lifetime" which feels like a track where producers StarGate finally got to flex their muscles. "Fun" is an interesting track but I have no idea what "Kaleidoscope" is meant to be. "Army of One" sounds like StarGate were left alone with ProTools whilst the band went down to the pub - and that isn't necessarily a bad thing. The only other track of note is "Up&Up" which supposedly features Noel Gallagher on guitar. What Noel was able to contribute that Jon or a session musician couldn't muster I'm not sure. The annoying guitar solo at the end certainly sounds as irritating as Oasis, so maybe it was that. Three good songs do not an album make. 2/5