324. Coldplay, "A Rush of Blood to the Head"

 


A safe respite for Volvo SUV dads who think Foo Fighters is "hard rock," this album sounds like if you put a mediocre Radiohead album into one of those rock tumblers to smooth off all the edges and get a shiny, flat, featureless stone.  

Sometimes you need that though!  I mean, there are some moments on here.  "Clocks" has that instantly recognizable din-dun-dun din-dun-dun piano riff that repeats and builds and I guess it has an emotional center that can pull you in.  "In My Place" was a monster hit, again built on a memorable riff, this time on guitar, but it really sounds like that song on a movie soundtrack when the couple has broken up and the girl is looking through a rain-streaked window and the guy is out with his friends but pauses and looks meaningfully into middle distance because HE'S THINKING ABOUT HER.

A lot of the songs sound very similar.  To some, that's a "cohesive sound."  To others, that's "a lot of these songs are hard to tell apart."  YMMV, I guess.  Maybe it's the production?  There are a few breakout moments (I like the swirliness and atmospherics of "Daylight"), but it's all a little soupy.  

Does this album deserve to be in the Top 500? No.

Comments

  1. GGJuly 20, 2021 at 1:16 PM

    One of my closest friends married a guy who is smart, interesting, generous, a great dad, and has many other terrific qualities, but his favorite band is Coldplay and every time I remember that it’s like a record scratch in my brain because of (1) the cognitive dissonance and (2) the fact that I am always consciously trying to forget this information

    ReplyDelete
  2. StephenJuly 21, 2021 at 10:40 AM

    I really like the first two Coldplay records! Not enough to listen to them today, but, you know, there was a time I'd put them on along with whatever credible music I was listening to.

    ReplyDelete

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