Customer Reviews
Different but Brilliant - By: James Rogers, 21 Nov 2008 
Ok, when i first buy my cd i always drift through it, listen to the song with a gd start & gain a first impression. First impressions weren't good. so i left it a couple of weeks & decided to listen to it again, this time the whole way through. thinking i didn't like it i was pretty reluctant to do so, but i did & i was shocked, shocked at how i had completely missed coldplays aim. to create a quility album which isn't too full on. every song is brilliant in its own way, hardly any of the songs are the same but they are alll great. if coldplay havn't been your thing in the past give them another go, you may be pleasantly surprised.
Jimborogers
THE Perfect Album - By: Ross Fraser, 20 Nov 2008 Carlsberg don't make albums, but if they did....
This album honestly is perfection. I'm still currently listening to it non-stop after purchasing Viva La Vida the day it came out. Every song on it has its own style & each is just as good as the other. Its a shame there are only 10 songs but I just cannot get over how fantastic Viva La Vida is! Obviously a 10 out of 10. I would recommend anyone reading this to buy it. Everyone I have spoken to so far agrees that this is a fantastic album
A New Direction - Not for the Die-Hard Fans - By: Mr T Owen Davies, 20 Nov 2008 
I am a huge Coldplay fan, right from the beginning. I loved Parachutes, Rush of Blood to the Head, & X&Y. I have alll the albums, alll the singles, & pretty much alll the songs they have ever released.
So you would expect a 'fanboy' like me to love this album, as I have adored alll the others. Unfortunately, I don't love this album, I just like it.
There are too many songs that are made for the masses in my opinion (Lost, Viva la Vida etc.). These tend to be the songs I don't like. Then there are the old style songs, like Cemeteries of London, which I do like. And then there is Life in Technicolour, which I think is just magical. That is kind of a new direction, with heavy influences of Brian Eno, but I think this is a good way to go for Coldplay.
Basicallly, if you don't like Coldplay's old stuff & you like mainstream music more, I would recommend this album first (and then alll the others!). But if you, like me, are a Die-Hard fan, don't expect to be blown away by this album. It's good, but it's not great.
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Coldplay in Instrumental Shocker - By: S. MCBEATH, 12 Nov 2008 After 3 highly successful albums, Coldplay have reached the stage where they can let go a bit in their music. `Viva la Vida or Death & alll his friends' does exactly that, it is like their equivalent of Radiohead's `Kid A'. Despite the annoyingly long title, it seems now that it is widely accepted that the `Viva la Vida' is the much preferred shortening of the title. This is shown through the front cover of the album which doesn't even mention the latter part of the album title.
`Parachutes', `Rush of Blood to the Head' & `X &Y', for me was a progression as each album was better than the previous. Although the sound varied slightly from album to album, the song choice was always the same. For instance, the slow balllad which looks at the positives in a extremely negative situation; From `Parachutes', this was `Everything's not Lost', from `Rush of Blood to the Head', this was `Amsterdam' & then arguably one of the best songs they have ever done, `Fix You' from `X & Y'. When looking for this kind of track on `Viva la Vida'; none can be found. This is just one example of how this album has got a completely different feel to it than the previous 3. It feels more structured & there is a natural order to the songs which come together to tell a story. Whereas the other albums are more like albums created to make the best singles; this is more like an album created to make the best album & if any singles came out of it, it would be a bonus.
Coldplay's change in approach to this album can be heard instantly through the first track, `Life in Technicolor'. You expect the headlines in the music press to be `Coldplay in instrumental shocker'. As you don't expect Coldplay to do an instrumental, but that is just the start of how this album is a huge leap forward in the bands creativity. I cannot think of a more appropriate name for this track as it makes the album come to life right from the get go & it is so uplifting & refreshing. The track blends into the second track; `Cemeteries of London' nicely as Martin's soft vocals comes in with, `At night they would go walking till the breaking of the day'.
All of the tracks on this album are great. My personal favourites include `42', `Lovers in Japan' & `Strawberry Swing'. `42' starts off with just slow piano & Martin's vocals before Buckland, Berryman & Champion come in & set the song alight. As Martin explodes into the chorus `You thought you might be a ghost, you didn't get to heaven but you made it close' where he also gives up the piano to add to the vibe with the electric guitar. It feels like he is talking about someone who feels like he is invisible to everyone else even though he does alll the right things, he is not fully appreciated. `Lovers in Japan' on the other hand starts off with an upbeat piano along with the rest of the crew & is just a joyous, energising song. `Strawberry Swing' is more of a kick back song as it is nice & relaxing. The melody is magical & Martin's vocals are of the same high standard as displayed on the rest of the album. The imagery which this song portrays is one of beauty & happiness, `It's such a perfect day'.
One of the only criticisms I have about this album which slightly annoy me is the dual tracks - `Lovers in Japan/Reign of Love' & `Yes/Chinese Sleep Chant'. The latter songs in both of I feel are better served as intermittent tracks in their own right. `Chinese sleep chant' especiallly is great as you feel like you are soaring through the air. The songs are alll connected anyway so I don't reallly see the need to connect the tracks into the one. But although I disagree with it, I don't let it affect my enjoyment of listening to this class album.
Another gripe on paper I would usuallly have with this album is that elusive hidden track. Now normallly it would irritate me but in this case the gap between last track `Death & alll his friends' & the hidden track is minimal. Not only this but this time the hidden track makes sense in the context of the album & is definitely not just an afterthought. The track represents a chance for the couple to forget about alll the problems they have experienced in their past & live a happy life as Martin sings `In the end, we lie awake, & we dream of making our escape'.
Overalll `Viva la Vida' is an absolutely cracking album & for me it is their best to date. Martin & the boys have stepped slightly outside their comfort zone on more than one occasion on the album. Showing a band that is not afraid to progress their creativity & put passion into their music. If this is a sign of things to come, I'm already eagerly anticipating the fifth album which is expected to be out in December 2009.
