I Ran Away

I'd be remiss to say I liked Coldplay from the very beginning, but it's not far from the truth. We'd all like to say we were there at the beginning when our favorite band was playing at the smallest clubs, with a dedicated crowd on the strength of an EP, but in my case, it was their first single, "Yellow" and their first album Parachutes that drew me in. Phenomenally popular, "Yellow" is the prototypical Coldplay song. Soaring guitars, falsetto chorus, roaring crescendos, it has the majesty and emotion you'll find in most of their biggest hits. There's a small beauty in Christ Martin's lyrics and vocals I can't directly describe, so hopefully I can convey what it is through experience.

I like to think of growing into the band, because that's what it was, as a time in my life when I went through a particularly difficult period of separation. Practically one-sided, I started with Parachutes, with an almost superficial enjoyment. It's pretty, it has tons of great songs about love, frustration, human nature, and honesty. Basically a lot of topics I tend to think about often, write about, draw about, things I thought were common to my own interests. It captured me amazingly with every song, "Shiver" being a favorite. Who couldn't love a song about complete devotion? The title track itself is a short, but simply beautiful song that really ties up the themes present, but to say such a thing downplays the complicated emotions that fill each song.

Their second album and the one that launched worldwide infamy for the band, A Rush of Blood to the Head, is where I truly lost it. What was quaint before became moving. Songs like "Clocks" and "Politik" moved them away from early Radiohead and Travis comparisons and into the lofty heights of an individual canon. Songs nowadays can be termed as "Coldplayish" based on this album alone. Personally, my experience with Rush began with "In My Place," a song about being lost in a hopeless love. Is there a trend here? Half of the album seems to be about falling out of love and finding new love as well.

The one song though, that's not on either album, but makes a brief appearance on their live album is "Moses." A song written for Mr. Martin's new wife, it's a wonderful little song summing up these feelings of giving in to something you cannot overcome. It's not a sacrifice, nor is it something you abhor, but natural progression and a willing submittal to something you cannot control. What could be more pleasant, but than to find something so powerful than that within a song.

Maybe that's why I've come to think they can do no wrong. X&Y is the make or break album for most people. Does Coldplay really take itself too seriously and try to make an "important" record, or is it going to be more of the same? Well, the answer is a little of both. There's a maturity here that grows out of the last album. There are questions asked that seem more important, but at the same time, I don't think the band takes itself so seriously as to stamp a label of "most important song ever" without the wink of an eye. The stand out tracks to me are "Low," "Fix You," and "Speed of Sound" of course. Emotions reach greater heights in each, and although their first single has shades of "Clocks" thrown all over it, there's a thematic cohesiveness unachieved by Rush that X&Y retains.

Coldplay isn't exactly my one and only favorite band, but they're pretty high up there. IF they can continue to deliver quality on a regular basis, I don't see them falling off my list of bands any time soon. But that's probably best saved for another time...