Coldplay’s blockbuster records and balloon-filled stadium shows suggest a band beyond the artistic indulgence of an EP; but early short-form releases Blue Room and Safety remain the backbone of their career. Beyond tepid country ballad Hypnotised and a remix of their hit with Chainsmokers, Something Just Like This, their latest release draws from the multicoloured dreamscapes of 2015’s A Head Full of Dreams. Alien, co-written with Brian Eno, is a frenetic shuffle, All I Can Think About Is You has a Talk Talk-like start which descends into a big bang-sized cacophony of feeling, and Miracles is a disco guitar-led track featuring rapper Big Sean. In spite of Jay-Z’s declaration that Chris Martin is a “modern-day Shakespeare,” there are rhymes that will make literature professors wince (“My father said never give up son / Just look what Amelia and Joan done.”) This EP is nothing but on-brand, however; euphoric emotion, an earnest, universal message and a coating of tacky charm.
