The Singles Jukebox

“Within a week we killed my parents and hit the road.”

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[3.00]

Iain Mew: I’m a Coldplay fan, so let’s do this. The delayed electric guitar pings and the beat both sound like “In My Place.” The way the piano and acoustic guitar lock into step is “The Scientist.” The cracking of the singer’s falsetto on “hi-igh hopes” is “Trouble.” The wandering piano bit after the first chorus is “Everything’s Not Lost.” The suddenly powered up solo is “Fix You,” to a hilarious extent. The drawn out acoustic ending is “Yellow.” The bit most indicative of the overall effect, though, is at the end of the chorus, “the world keeps… spinning” which sounds like Embrace’s “Gravity”. A Coldplay cast-off.
[3]

Alfred Soto: Dunno about the audience — One Direction can record ballads on beaches, while the thirtysomethings already press Coldplay against their bodices. Speaking of, if I were their no-name guitarist I’d sue the shit out of Kodeine or whatever these people call themselves for not bothering to disguise the 2:50 solo’s resemblance to the “Yellow” riff.
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Patrick St. Michel: Did you guys know the world doesn’t end when you die? “High Hopes” wants to remind you of this idea, but via the most boring balladry possible.
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Scott Mildenhall: The New Rock Revival continues apace with an uncompromising jackhammer of a record that fearlessly treads the high wire between Travis and Athlete, and in dangerously moderate winds, resulting in sounds that can only be described as “pleasant.” You get the idea. Perhaps surprisingly, it’s a risk that’s paid off, because people seem to quite like it, at least more than they ever liked Vagabond. Probably not since the heady days of One Night Only have a new band offering such competent, earnest, radio-friendly pop-rock been so slightly well received by the record-buying public. An interesting thought experiment: would it have been so likable had it been released in 2007? Maybe not. But it sounds quite nice at the moment.
[6]

Brad Shoup: Like one of those early-’70s cuts from a new act already tired of the road, “High Hopes” looks backwards before the band’s really come into view. Kodaline gets trad and touchy-feely, with a chord progression to slay the coffee shop and a choir to break my eyes.
[3]

Daniel Montesinos-Donaghy: It’s usually a lazy comparison to compare English indie-leaning bands to Coldplay because of the use of a grand piano or an electric guitar with hints of reverb, but after listening to Kodaline’s “High Hopes”, I believe that that the comparison is merited for once. The level at which you will enjoy this depends on your taste for Xeroxed versions of thirteen year-old songs. Once you know where you stand, your enjoyment will depend on whether you like your Xeroxes suffused with real emotive energy or maudlin blubber. The choice is yours, Listener, and my choice is in the score:
[3]

Jonathan Bogart: I sincerely hope it finds the people who need it. For the rest of us, there’s:
[3]

Alex Ostroff: Reader, I, too, once found solace in Travis. I own and still have feelings about A Rush of Blood to the Head. But Six Feet Under has been over for a while, and The O.C. happened, and television soundtracks have moved on. Yes, even Grey’s Anatomy.
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