This album is a quick follow-up to Coldplay’s quieter and more subdued 2014 release Ghost Stories. It adds even more electronic elements while maintaining the band’s earlier arena pop-rock sound. Using samples from Beyonce, parts of a Rumi poem, and even Obama singing “Amazing Grace,” Coldplay embraces the postmodern kaleidoscope of narratives.
Moving away from melancholy emotions, this album is a bright and colorful celebration of life. Upbeat songs like “Army of One” and “Hymn for the Weekend” express the euphoria found in love and the joy of being alive. The title track concludes, “I think I landed/Where there are miracles at work/When you got me open-handed/When you got me lost for words . . . Into life I’ve just been woken/With a head full, a head full of dreams.”
The album is not without Coldplay’s distinctive piano ballads. “Everglow” reflects on the goodness that remains even when things are broken; sadness and pain do not have the final say.
There is nothing quiet about A Head Full of Dreams; it’s meant to be played loud so you can dance along and join the celebration. (Atlantic)