The Best Coldplay Album of All Time

2025-07-17

Alternative rock band Coldplay.

In honor of Chris Martin and Coldplay, Audio Ink Radio is breaking down the best Coldplay album of all time and why it makes the cut. – Author: Scarlett Hunter, Photo from Coldplay by Anna Lee Media

Coldplay concerts don’t usually get too crazy. While some call Coldplay a rock band, it’s a stretch to even say that they’re rock, so they’re more in the alternative pop genre. Because of that, their concerts and music are usually very tame, but that doesn’t mean they’re not a great band.

Coldplay have built a huge career out of making delicate, melodic alternative pop anthems that relate to a lot of people. Right now, the band is on a worldwide tour and selling our arenas and stadiums, so it just shows the superpower that is Coldplay. This band has also teamed up with some of the biggest names in music, including Jay-Z, Kanye West, Beyonce, Rihanna and the Chainsmokers, to name some.

It’s obvious that to be so popular, the members of Coldplay have made some incredible albums. Looking at their comprehensive discography, it’s difficult to pick the best, but there’s one record that does stand out. In honor of Chris Martin and this longstanding band, Audio Ink Radio is breaking down the best Coldplay album of all time and why it makes the cut.

The Greatest Coldplay Album Ever

The honor for the best Coldplay album ever goes to 2008’s “Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends.” There have always been comparisons between Coldplay and U2, and that’s apparent for the band’s entire career, but you can really hear it on this album. For this release, Coldplay teamed up with Brian Eno, an art rock mastermind, and that collaboration makes sense, because he has worked with U2. But, even knowing that Coldplay and Eno were going to create something special, nobody could really predict that this would be a such a magial record.

Spin also named “Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends” their No. 1 Coldplay album, stating, “Veering between extremes such as the ominous anti-war screed ‘Violet Hill’ sequenced next to the joyous contentment of ‘Strawberry Swing,’ Viva la Vida feels like the distinctive work of a band no longer merely following in footsteps of their influences.”

In a Rolling Stone review at the time, the publication stated, “But befitting their brand, the record isn’t that much of a departure: It’s still about stadium-scale melodies and singalong choruses. And while the experimentation makes this their most musically interesting album to date, its political messages are too vague to be heard amid its outsize hooks.”

In a review from the Guardian when the album came out, they noted that it’s more of the same from Coldplay. But, why mess with what works? “One might argue that Viva la Vida’s mild tinkering with the formula represents a failure of imagination: perhaps it’s hard to think outside the box when the box is the size of the Las Vegas MGM Grand Garden Arena,” they note. The Guardian adds, “Equally, however, there’s a genuine conviction about its contents, a huge advance both on its predecessor and their legion of imitators.”

So, “Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends” are crowned the best of the band’s rich discography. Find our feature on the most iconic U2 album of all time here.

Scarlett Hunter
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Posted by Scarlett Hunter | Alternative, Features, Music

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