Once upon a time, these 2 bands were the biggest and brightest shining lights of the “post britpop” scene, following in the footsteps of The Bends Radiohead with soaring anthemic guitar rock. Of course, Thom Yorke fell in love with Warp Records, specifically Aphex Twin and Autechre and with the exception of “Hail to the Thief” (which was mediocre at best), they have focused more on electronic type music. So Coldplay along with Muse and other bands like Keane, Travis, Embrace, and even Starsailor became the proud flag bearers of “post britpop” but both Coldplay and Muse sound different now compared to their earlier records - Coldplay has always strived to be the next U2 in terms of arena rock and Muse has used some elements of prog rock and has tried hard to distance themselves from the never-ending Radiohead comparisons. So who do you prefer more - Coldplay or Muse?
I gravitate more towards guitar riff driven music, so I generally prefer Muse to Coldplay. But to be fair I haven't really listened to either of their discographies post-2010 lol. I'll also say Matt Bellamy is a super talented performer. Saw Muse at Toyota Center and his stage presence, singing, and guitar playing were awesome. Witnessing Plug in Baby and Stockholm Syndrome in person will stick with me forever.
i remember when coldplay came out and i had friends whose musical opinions i valued that kept trying to get me into coldplay and i wasnt having it. i think before i heard the music i saw a quote from that dude saying "we are the best looking band in the world" and also basically admitting to ripping off other bands like radiohead and U2. then that dude named his kid f***ing "apple" which i just found really annoying. they have always come off as inauthentic to me. they started off basically ripping off two radiohead songs (fake plastic trees and high and dry) then got eno as their producer and started trying to sound like U2. then after arcade fire blew up they started dressing like arcade fire and using choir-style vocals in their songs. i cant name a single muse song, but i remember seeing them at ACL fest like 15 years ago and enjoying the set. there is a radiohead influence in there, but theres much more. they rocked out and at times reminded me of bowie. just for some reason i never listened to their music. what album would be a good one to check out???
I admit that I have not listened to Muse as often as I have Coldplay (I have every Coldplay studio CD and I am still working on getting every Muse studio CD) and although I would be the first person to tell you that probably the last decent Coldplay album was Mylo Xyloto, I am going to go with Chris Martin and company anyway due to familiarity. I will say in 2003 I saw The Cure in Nashville as part of “The Curiosa Festival” along with Interpol, Mogwai, and The Rapture. Muse was also there but performing on a side stage and unfortunately I did not get a chance to see them as it would have meant that I would miss Interpol. Several people told me later that I really missed something special by not watching Muse that day. I have always regretted not seeing them that day. So yes I do know how good Bellamy and company are live since I had a chance to see them and I blew it - shame on me.
Probably either Absolution or Black Holes and Revelations as the first Muse album to get but I would like to know which album a diehard Muse fan would recommend.
Muse puts on a great live show -- their albums have some tedious songs definitely a band you want to hear the best stuff and skip the rest.
Have songs from both of them in my playlist. I'm predicting that Muse will win this poll, but I will give a slight edge to CP.
Coldplay just doesn't have anything in their bag like this, but it's just personal preference. They're both good bands -- the Coldplay hate can be a bit over the top.
I liked Coldplay for a few months in college after they first came out, but that was about it. I never got into Muse. My favorite second-wave Britpop bands are Elbow and The Doves. Both were/are quite popular in the UK but never too well known in the US. Spoiler
How do peeps feel about Coldplay's later music. Stuff in the last few years (2019 and after). Good, diluted, or fell off?
Man I love Elbow! I just got Flying Dream 1 and it was okay, but I loved the albums, "The Seldom Seen Kid" and "Build a Rocket Boys!". The song "Lippy Kids" is so awe-inspiring that getting to know Elbow is worth it just for that song. I just finally got around to getting the Doves' 3rd studio album today and will be listening to it soon. Incredibly, I am listening to Keane's last album, "Cause and Effect", and I can honestly say that this is a VERY good album! Really pleasantly surprised at how good it is.
I really liked the collaboration they did with The Chainsmokers in the song, "Something Just Like This" but unfortunately they didn't put that song on any of their recent albums. To me, their debut is the most "indie" and most "brit pop" album they ever did in Parachutes and that is still my favorite one by them. The second album, "A Rush of Blood..." is solid but an obvious attempt to become mainstream. "X&Y" is underrated and "Viva La Vida" is overrated. A lot of gems on "X&Y" but "Viva La Vida" with the exception of a couple of tracks seemed too messy and done so on purpose. "Mylo Xyloto" is a personal favorite and probably the really last Coldplay album where I liked the majority of the tracks. So that leaves their last 4 albums: Ghost Stories (2014) - okay but a letdown from Mylo Xyloto A Head Full of Dreams (2015) - insanely quick follow-up to Ghost Stories, never could get it into it Everyday Life (2019) - I have listened to this album once, maybe twice - didn't really strike me as a solid album but I need to give it another shot Music of the Spheres (2021) - not bad but hardly an album that I would say is essential Coldplay, IMO, has actually done an honorable job of trying to challenge themselves and not put out the same album every time they release an album. I thought I remember reading that Chris Martin said they were going to quit after releasing 8 studio albums but then we got another album in Music of the Spheres. I clearly favor their earlier stuff but I would not say that their latest stuff is horrible. But I have pretty high expectations and I judge the artists I listen to somewhat harshly. I am sure that there are people out there that will disagree with me and say that A Head Full of Dreams is the greatest Coldplay album ever (it's doubtful but hey, you never know)!
