Author: MarcyB0y

I seem to have a lot to say for myself so here I am.

Coldplay – A Head Full of Dreams Album Review

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

AHFOD1000

In an astonishing twenty year career, Coldplay have exceeded all expectations to become one of the UK’s most successful exports. They’ve won eight Brit Awards, five MTV Video Awards, seven Grammy’s and sold over eighty million records worldwide, cementing their place as one of the world’s most successful acts. Once a quirky alternative-rock outfit unafraid of existing outside of the commercial market, Coldplay’s sound has grown with their popularity, becoming increasingly commercialised over the past five years. Fans first feared for the worst back in 2011 upon the release of ‘Mylo Xyloto‘, a concept album which was drenched in electro-elements and met with a mixed reception. Still, fans needn’t have worried for another four years.

‘A Head Full of Dreams‘ is the epitome of Pop music; a lively affair, full of catchy up-tempo tracks mawkishly coated in over-production. Whilst long-term collaborator Rik Sampson is still present, he has been demoted from production duties on this album, passing the baton to Norwegian Pop/R&B production duo Stargate, known for their work with Rihanna and Ne-Yo. Understandably, the result is an exuberant yet somewhat confused album on which Coldplay seemingly attempt to ditch their Rock-roots and transition into a Pop band. It’s the exact antithesis to previous album, the melancholic and ambient-influenced ‘Ghost Stories‘ and arguably, the entire foundation on which Coldplay built their career on.

Diversity is a likely focus on ‘A Head Full of Dreams‘, on which Coldplay attempt to branch out into various genres and sounds. Camp disco-stomper ‘Adventure of a Lifetime’ with its broken vocal samples and squeaky guitar riffs remains one of Coldplay’s best whilst the substantial, Hip-Hop heavy ‘Hymn for The Weekend’ – a duet with Beyonce – is comprised of tinkling piano riffs, hip hop beats and shiny brass instruments. These clever production elements all work nicely until ‘Army of One’, a ballad so bland, even clever production cannot reinvigorate it. Likewise, the track’s hidden feature ‘X Marks The Spot’ is an abortive Hip-Hop jam, best left to Martin’s close friends Jay-Z & Beyonce.

Despite its Pop approach, however, ‘A Head Full of Dreams‘ is still very much a typical Coldplay album. The signature Coldplay elements are still present; the anthemic Chorus’, wailing guitars, sweeping piano arpeggios and Martin’s pining vocals. The opening title track isn’t too far removed from the material on ‘Mylo Xyloto‘ albeit with a disco-funk groove. It’s a catchy opener abundant with the band’s trademark wailing guitars and is classic Coldplay, just with an extra sprinkle of Pop. Likewise ‘Fun’, a pleasant duet with Pop princess Tove Lo is more or less loyal to the band’s sound with distant guitar riffs, acoustic strums and Martin’s vocals warbling between his lowest and highest vocal range. The album’s finale and one of its highlights, ‘Up&Up’ is the band’s ‘Champagne Supernova’, just two minutes shorter. No surprise, then, that Noel Gallagher is guest guitarist on the track.

The hazy and tranquil interlude bridges between tracks – as present on the band’s previous two albums – also remain prevalent, the most enthralling being ‘Kaleidoscope’ which samples an Obama speech and clip of the president singing ‘Amazing Grace’. Furthermore, the dainty piano ballads are ever-enduring. ‘Everglow’ is gentle ballad on which ghost of Christmas past, Martin’s ex-wife Gwyneth Paltrow provides vocals on. ‘Amazing Day’ is one far superior, however and is one of the album’s highlights, built from elegant piano arpeggios and soaring melodies.

Whilst it’s far from their best work, ‘A Head Full of Dreams‘ is a compelling and enjoyable album; a reminder of Coldplay’s sustained presence in the music industry.

  • Rating: 4/5.
  • Album Highlights: ‘Hymn For The Weekend’, ‘Adventure of a Lifetime’, ‘Kaleidoscope’, ‘Amazing Day’, ‘Up&Up’.

‘A Head Full of Dreams’ is available now on Parlophone records.

Music Monday – Volume Eighty Four

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

1) Rationale – Something for Nothing

Soulful R&B track featuring fluttering synthesisers, jittering guitars, broken samples and funky bass lines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Q79owpLDjo

2) Beachbaby – Sleeperhead

Energetic guitar-driven indie track from four-pieced band Beachbaby. It’s a moody but powerful track, integrating other genres such as shoegazing, Pop and post-punk.

3) Field Music – Disappointed

Low-key indie rock track from Sunderland band Field Music.

4) Walk The Moon – Avalanche

Energetic, catchy Pop-py track from US pop-rock band Walk The Moon. Indie-guitar riffs, synthpop synths and a driving beat makes it particularly reminiscent of the ’80’s and it works beautifully.

5) Travis Mills – Don’t Need Much

Dirty house track featuring little more than club beats, a funky bass lines and Mills’ rap. Incessantly catchy.

6) Craig David & Big Nastie – When The BassLine Drops

Craig David returns to his roots with this huge Garage track, aided by grime artist Big Nastie. It’s reminiscent of his 1999 début ‘Re-Rewind’ and is a welcome return for David after six years away from the music industry.

7) Selena Gomez – Hands to Myself

Saucy, steamy and sultry dance-pop track, reportedly inspired by Prince’s signature sound. Gomez whispers over minimalistic instrumentation comprised of little more than bouncy percussion, hand clips and tribal-pop elements.

8) Reba McEntire – Just Like Them Horses

Sweet piano-led Country ballad by American country music singer Reba McEntire from her twenty seventh album ‘Love Somebody’.

9) Nate Reuss – Take It Back

Gentle waltz-like ballad by Fun. frontman Nate Reuss. Dreamy, reserved with a delicate sprinkle of Reuss’ quirky, idiosyncratic vocals.

10) Walk off The Earth – Hold On (The Break)

Uplifting, inspiring and catchy Pop track from Canadian rock band Walk off the Earth. Ascending bass lines, clinking percussion and gorgeous layered harmonies result in an epic arena anthem.

January Mixtape

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

After adapting Music Monday to make it strictly about current and new music, we realised that there was no way to draw focus to older music on this blog. So we have decided to publish a mixtape (or Spotify Playlist) of 20 songs on the first day of every month.

This makes January’s rather late but with no further ado, here’s the Music Box’s January Mixtape:

Music Monday – Volume Eighty Three

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

1) Sia – Reaper

Australian songstress/hit songwriter Sia delivers a hot new Pop track co-written with none other but Mr Kanye West. Relatively jovial and laid back compared to Sia’s other works, this is a catchy chilled-out track with bizzarely, hospital-like beeping, rich harmonies and a seriously funky bass line.

2) Raleigh Ritchie & Stormzy – Keep it Simple

Raleigh Ritchie delivers another hit, this time aided with a rap from Stormzy. Warm synthesisers, Ritchie’s rich vocals and catchy dance beats carry this utterly brilliant R&B track.

3) Chairlift – Crying in Public

Cool, chilled-out synthpop track from American duo Chairlift. The care-free, minimalistic production and Caroline Polachek’s syrupy sweet vocals are perfect.

4) Birdy – Keeping Your Head Up

‘Keeping Your Head Up’ marks a significant musical departure for Birdy, best known for her haunting, heartfelt piano ballads. Channelling Foxes, ‘Keeping Your Head Up’ is a catchy dance-pop track full of hand claps, catchy piano riffs and an irresistibly catchy hook.

5) Frances – Borrowed Time

Co-written with Howard from Disclosure, this chilled-out house track mirrors 70’s Pop with lushly layered harmonies, rich gospel-like vocals and squeaky synthesisers. It’s a different side to Frances but one which works beautifully.

6) Dua Lipa – Be The One (Club Edit Remix)

Hot, idiosyncratic club record featuring a reggae-like bounce, clinking synths and a devilishly catchy chorus.

7) Prince – Baltimore

The King of Cool, Prince released ‘HitNRun Phase 2’ in December. This is its funky opening track featuring polished brass elements, raw acoustic guitar strums and a dirty rhythm, it’s Prince at his best.

8) Laura Mvula ft Nile Rodgers – Overcome

Chic legend Nile Rodgers lends his production to funky jazz/R&B fusion. Mvula’s pure, soulful vocals are perfect as always and lushly layered into a glorious wall of sound over Rodgers’ funky guitar riffs.

9) The 1975 – The Sound

The second single from The 1975’s upcoming second album ‘I Like it When You Sleep For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It’, ‘The Sound’ is a huge tropical-house influenced Pop track. Incessantly catchy with a brilliantly buoyant Chorus, it’s one of the funkiest and catchiest Pop tracks in a long time.

10) Allie X – Never Enough

Sultry electropop track with an insanely huge Chorus. Clearly influenced by 80’s Pop, it’s cool, brilliantly layered and an overall huge song.

Troye Sivan – Blue Neighbourhood Album Review

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

Cover_TALKMED_300RGB

Every so often, an album springs from nowhere to challenge the public’s preconceptions of Pop music. Back in 2014, Taylor Swift’s ‘1989’ obliterated existing Pop music and marked the arrival of 80’s influenced electropop with Carly Rae Jepsen successfully following a similar formula a year later. Troye Sivan’s ‘Blue Neighbourhood’ is the latest album to do just that.

Whilst still unfamiliar to many, to those he is known by, Troye Sivan is adored. He is certainly a man of many talents. As an actor, he played young James Howlett in X-Men Origins: Wolverine in addition to starring in the Spud film trilogy. He is also a popular YouTuber with over 3.6 million subscribers. He has now turned his attention to singing and songwriting to become the latest music sensation.

‘Blue Neighbourhood’ is a fierce album abundant with squeaky synthesisers, delicate piano chords, intoxicating drops and spectral electro samples. Lyrically, it’s an album of adolescence, heartbreak and affirmation with an emphasis on sexuality.

Lead single ‘Wild’ is a bold album opener with an irresistibly catchy hook performed by a children’s choir. It’s a dramatic dream-pop influenced track which documents infatuation perfectly. The rest of the album follows in similar fashion: eerie vocal clips reverberating infinitely, Sivan’s vulnerable vocals and jittery percussion all forming a perfect electronic sound-scape well-balanced in both heartache and fun.

It’s often an album of contradictions: the solemn lyrical content the antithesis of the fuzzy electro tracks, Sivan’s pensive lyrics at odds with his age and lyrics such as ‘I’m just a lost boy, not ready to be found’ on ‘Lost Boy’. This forms part of the album’s success, however. It’s compelling from start to finish, with the right levels of rise and fall.

Many of its tracks are deceptive in nature, opening as tender piano ballads before evolving into jittery synthpop tracks. ‘Fools’ is a prime example, on which Sivan’s bruised vocals smother gentle piano chords before an electronic hook launches in. ‘Talk Me Down’ also begins softly before transforming into a reverberating and eerie ballad on which the lyrics address homophobia.

‘DKLA’ (Don’t Keep Love Around) opens with stunning eerie strings but evolves into a dark R&B/Trap-influenced track on which Sivan pines that he no longer ‘keeps love around’. It’s far more mature than the rest of the album and one of the highlights on ‘Blue Neighbourbood’.

‘For Him.’ is a more care-free, light-hearted addition to the album featuring staccato piano chords, kicking drum machines and funky guitar riffs. It breaks up the album nicely. Likewise, ‘Cool’ is a buoyant affair with dreamy 80’s-influenced synths, and a catchy, chilled-out Chorus.

One of the album’s stand out moments is ‘Youth’, a bouncy track, which at times is reminiscent of Lorde, with an electrifying hook formed of broken pitch-increased vocal samples. “My youth is yours”, Sivan offers, once again conforming to the naivety present in the rest of the album.

‘Suburbia’ is a fitting finale to the album, a symphonic and fluttery conclusion which, similarly to the album title, addresses compact neighbourhoods and adolescence.

Never has an album captured contemporary Pop so perfectly. It’s emotive and enthralling throughout; a perfect pop album.

  • Rating: 5/5.
  • Album Highlights: Wild, Fools, Ease, DKLA, Heaven, Youth.

‘Blue Neighbourhood’ is available now on EMI/Capitol records.

Liebster Award Nomination

MarcyB0y2 Comments

Wehey, we’ve been nominated for something!

I try and keep The Music Box as professional as possible and generally avoid placing the focus on me but I felt honoured enough to have got one of these, I thought I’d give it a go!

I have to be honest and say I’d never heard of a Liebster Award before receiving one but after researching it, I thought it seemed like a very cool idea!

It’s basically blog chain-mail, but a good type (well I perceive it that way anyway!) You get nominated by somebody who likes what you do and it all goes from there.

I was nominated by the lovely Tammy, who blogs at https://alittlebitalt.wordpress.com/ . It’s a blog I really love anyway and Tammy consistently interacts with this blog which I am incredibly grateful for! It’s brilliant to know people actually read my posts and enjoy what I do, so thank you!

liebster-award-rules

11 Facts About Me

  1. My name is Marc, which I spell with a ‘C’ which seems to throw some people…
  2. My music taste is far more eclectic than most are aware of – a little bit of everything, some credible and others not so much. I hope that comes across in this blog!
  3. I write my own songs and it’s my dream for them to lead me somewhere someday.
  4. I’m a huge bookworm.
  5. I love writing – songs, blogs, poems – I just really love being create with words.
  6. My favourite bands are Take That & The 1975.
  7. I have lots of favourite movies but my all time favourite movie is ‘Brokeback Mountain’ (‘Perks’, The Shawshank Redemption’, ‘Bridget Jones’ Diary’, ‘The Green Mile’ & ‘Rent’ follow closely…)
  8. I have lots of favourite songs but my all time favourites are probably Chocolate by The 1975, Higher than Higher by Take That & Edge of Desire by John Mayer.
  9. I have lots of favourite books but my two all time favourites are The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky,  One Day by David Nicholls and Tell The Wolves I’m Home by Carol Rifka Brunt.
  10. I don’t publicise it much anymore but Michael Jackson is one of my idols.
  11.  I’m a big foodie – there isn’t much I won’t eat! 🙂

And to answer Tammy’s questions:

1) What’s your Hogwarts house?   I am a Gryffindor 🙂

2) Favorite David Bowie song? ‘Where Are We Now’. I do love ‘Heroes’, ‘Under Pressure’ & ‘Let’s Dance’ too though… basically the more commercial stuff!

3) Which fictional couple do you ship?  Dexter & Emma in ‘One Day’.

4) Current favourite music artist? Lots of obsessions at the moment! The main one has been one of my favourites – John Mayer.  Also been listening a lot to some of my other favourites: The 1975, Take That & Troye Sivan.

5) Where do you see yourself in the next five years? This is tricky, I can’t really imagine it! Scary… I think I’ll be back home in Northampton, I’ll have moved out though & probably in a steady job, still single haha!

6) You hit shuffle on your laptop or iPod or phone, what are the first three songs to come up?

  1. The 1975 – What Makes You Beautiful (One Direction Cover in the Radio 1 Live Lounge)
  2. Justin Bieber – Company
  3. Gary Barlow – Jump

7) What book did you read last? I’m currently reading ‘Hector and the search for Happiness’ by Francois Lelord. The last book I finished was the brilliant ‘Let it Snow’ by Maureen Johnson, John Green and Lauren Myracle.

8) Favourite social media platform? Twitter.

9) What is your favourite type of YouTube video? Live music performances.

10) Who inspires you? Various people in different ways! My Dad, Gary Barlow & John Mayer are probably the main ones.

11) Favourite TV show? I don’t watch a lot of TV anymore. ‘Miranda’ when it was on and I do love a bit of Strictly Come Dancing too!

My questions for my nominees are:

  1. Favourite book?
  2. Favourite movie?
  3. Favourite band/artist
  4. Biggest achievement?
  5. Best concert you have ever been to? (If not a concert, maybe a festival or something?)
  6. What’s your dream job?
  7. Do you like musicals? What’s your favourite?
  8. Favourite season?
  9. Favourite place to visit?
  10. Any hobbies/interests?
  11. Do you prefer staying in or going out?

My nominees are:

Music Monday – Volume Eighty Two

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

1) Busted – Meet you There (Abbey Road Session)

Busted perform a beautiful rendition of fan-favourite ‘Meet You There’, a track originally from their ‘A Present for Everyone’ album. Strong vocals and perfect harmonies blend perfectly with minimal instrumentation provided solely by an acoustic guitar and piano.

2) Raleigh Ritchie – Bloodsport

Dramatic and emotive alternative R&B track from up-and-coming artist Raleigh Ritchie. Ritchie’s deep vocals soar over sweeping strings as he contemplates the many trials of love.

3) James Bay – If You Ever Want To Be In Love

Blues and Soul music are both at the core of this catchy indie rock track by James Bay. Rich harmonies, funky piano riffs and Bay’s powerful vocals all result in a perfect love song.

4) Chris Brown – Back To Sleep

Drawing upon 80’s pop & smooth 90’s R&B, ‘Back To Sleep’ is the third single from Brown’s latest album ‘Royalty’. Sleek and sexy.

5) Chris Brown – Make Love

One of Brown’s biggest successes in his music has always been his ability to mimic 90’s R&B slow jams. This is no exception; a gentle and chilled-out love song and a long-awaited return to R&B by Chris Brown.

6) David Bowie – Lazarus

Made all the more poignant by the unexpected and hugely saddening news of David Bowie’s passing, it’s likely this gentle jazz-influenced track will become Bowie’s epitaph.

 

7) Coldplay – Amazing Day

Gorgeous piano-led ballad from Coldplay’s latest album ‘A Head Full of Dreams’. Wailing guitars and pretty piano arpeggios form the songs primary instrumentation is a similar vein to previous song ‘Us Against The World’ but also sounding bizarrely similar to Grease’s ‘Beauty School Drop-Out’ in places. It’s Coldplay at their best, however, full of power and emotion.

8) Coldplay – Up&Up

Aided by Noel Gallagher on guitar, this epic feel-good rock anthem is the perfect conclusion to the band’s ‘A Head Full of Dreams’ album.

9) Troye Sivan – Youth

Troye Sivan encapsulates both the naivety and fun of teen love in this jittery R&B track. Broken pitch-moderated vocal samples are the basis of one of the catchiest hooks in Pop music ever.

10) Troye Sivan – DKLA

Perfect dark R&B-inspired track from Troye’s incredible début album ‘Blue Neighbourhood’. Squeaky synths, trap-influenced beats and clinking keys provide the instrumentation whilst Sivan declares “I don’t keep love around”. It’s the perfect anti-love song.

Feel-Good Friday

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

Every Friday, we are adding three tracks to our Feel-Good Friday Spotify playlist. The aim? To create a definitive playlist featuring the best uplifting, feel-good tracks in the world!

Check here every Friday to check any additions!

FOLLOW the Music Box to never miss an update again.

Music Monday – Volume Eighty One

MarcyB0yLeave a comment

Music Monday is our weekly feature which showcases the hottest tracks in the world right now.

1) Wretch 32 ft Anne Marie and PRGRSHN – Alright With Me

Wretch 32’s commercial crossover is a triumph. Anne-Marie showcases her powerful vocals on an impossibly catchy hook whilst Wretch 32’s rap is refreshingly clear.

2) Babyface – We’ve Got Love

Whilst Babyface is an artist in his own right, he is also the songwriter behind many huge hits by the likes of Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Bobby Brown and Beyonce. ‘We’ve Got Love’ is his latest single, a catchy & uplifting R&B track with elements of new-jack swing. It’s a song which is bound to fall beyond the radar commercially but it’s one of the best R&B tracks in years.

3) NAO – Bad Blood

Slick and soulful vocals coat an eerie electro track with reverberating vocal samples. Nao is an up and coming British singer-songwriter from East London with a sound best described as ‘neo-soul with electronic’.

4) Grace Feat. G-Eazy – You Don’t Own Me

Whilst it’s still not a patch on the original by Lesley Gore back in 1963 , Grace & G-Eazy’s modernised interpretation is enjoyable. Produced by legend Quincy Jones (best known for his work on Michael Jackson’s ‘Off The Wall’, ‘Thriller’ and ‘Bad’ albums), G-Eazy’s rap and hip-hop beats bring the track into the 21st century.

5) Liss – Try

Danish band Liss perform a perfect spin on Pop music on the incessantly catchy ‘Try’. Abundant with broken vocal samples and tropical house-influenced synths, it’s a fun throwback to 80’s synthpop.

6) The 1975 – Ugh!

The 1975 perform their best Prince initiation on this R&B-Rock jam. Featuring heavily auto-tuned vocals, tinny guitars, luscious layered harmonies and rubbery bass-lines, it’s absolutely brilliant & fuses 80’s & 90’s music together perfectly.

7) Fleur East – Sax

Energetic and bouncy dance-pop track with funky guitar riffs and brilliant use of brass instruments. Whilst it’s been on the radio airwaves for weeks now, it’s still as hot as it was on its première.

8) WSTRN – In2

‘In2’ is West-London trio WSTRN’s début single; an R&B/Hip hop track with moody guitar riffs and an irresistibly catchy hook.

9) 99 Souls – The Girl Is Mine

99 Souls cleverly fuse two huge R&B tracks, Brandy & Monica’s ‘The Boy Is Mine’ and Destiny’s Child’s ‘Girl’ into a funky house track which is bound to become a huge club hit.

10) The Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Choir – A Bridge Over You

A strange inclusion on this edition, perhaps but in a chart so dominated by over-produced music, it’s refreshing to hear music in its simplistic form. Unaltered vocals accompanied only by a piano result in a gorgeous mash-up of Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ and Coldplay’s ‘Fix You’. And of course it’s for a brilliant cause.