A Rush Of Blood To The Head

[coalescent]

I don't get the frenzy over this album. The NME says "its closest relative is Radiohead's The Bends", and that it is "an album of outstanding natural beauty...the songs are adventurous, the concept honest and brave". news.bbc reckons Coldplay "have conjured up a near-flawless second album." Q's take is that the album "...is pretty much the apotheosis of post-Radiohead guitar rock, a collection of vastly music songs that will render stadiums as intimate as bedrooms." dotmusic thinks the album is "a stellar triumph".

I could go on for several more paragraphs. I don't think I've read a single review of this album that is anything less than rapturous. Comparisons with U2 and Radiohead crop up half the time, too. And I'm sorry, but, um, no. Look, I like Coldplay. Having listened to 'A Rush Of Blood To The Head' several times (streamed off the web last week, bought the CD this morning), I can say that I think it's a good album - possibly even a very good album. Certainly a step up from 'Parachutes', which was OK with a few very good tracks. There are a few songs that I would say are genuinely great, notably 'God Put A Smile Upon Your Face', 'Clocks' and 'A Whisper'. Most of the rest are at least good. I'll probably listen to it a great deal.

But it's just nowhere near as defining as 'The Bends' or 'The Joshua Tree', as far as I can see. It's not an album I would say everyone should own; it's an album for people who already like this kind of thing. Hell, it's not even the best album of its kind this year - that has to go to 'The Last Broadcast', I think. So why all the fuss? Is it just because it's august and there's nothing else to talk about? Or am I missing something?

Comments

Re: Coldplay

[malenfant.livejournal.com]

It depends what you want out of your music, really. No, Coldplay and Travis aren't ambitious or complex in the way that Radiohead are - not even close. But sometimes, I quite like simple; I like songs that I can just listen to, sing along to, without really thinking about.

I think ARoBttH moves Coldplay past Travis, though; there's definitely some development and some exploration compared with 'Parachutes', whereas Travis' last album mostly repeated 'The Man Who' without adding anything.