Coldplay - "X & Y"
(EMI, 2005) * * 1/2
I've never been a big Coldplay fan, I'll admit that from the start. But it is hard to say the band completely lacks talent. They've just blown far beyond the proportions that can sustain a band of their caliber.
On X&Y, they've gone from successful indie band to full-blown stadium rockers, and the change doesn't fit them. Chris Martin is no Bono; these overblown studio arrangments drown in pretension; he's dragged down by the bombast. While songs like "Speed of Sound" succeed moderately at delivering a hook radio listeners can enjoy, the rest of the album is an exercise in dullness, as the songs never grab the listener's attention.
Perhaps Coldplay could benefit from a more stripped sound, as the album's closer ("Til Kingdom Come") suggests. "Steal my heart and hold my tongue," Martin sings. "I feel my time, my time has come. Let me in, unlock the door, I never felt this way before. The wheels just keep on turning ... I don't know which way I'm going, I don't know which way I've come." As he sings, the backdrop is created by a simple guitar and piano melody, reminescent of "The Man Comes Around" by Johnny Cash. But just as soon as the enjoyment begins, the song is done, and knowing that it's the only bright light on a dismal disc makes the end of a listen even more depressing.
X&Y will surely sell millions, just as its predecessors have done. Coldplay will rise (perhaps temporarily) to stadium rock glory, so maybe it doesn't matter too much what we lowly critics have to say. But all but the most strident fans are bound to be disappointed by the lack of a creative leap forward, and I suspect the band will need to reconsider its direction if a fourth album is in order. Their third simply misses the mark.
I've never been a big Coldplay fan, I'll admit that from the start. But it is hard to say the band completely lacks talent. They've just blown far beyond the proportions that can sustain a band of their caliber.
On X&Y, they've gone from successful indie band to full-blown stadium rockers, and the change doesn't fit them. Chris Martin is no Bono; these overblown studio arrangments drown in pretension; he's dragged down by the bombast. While songs like "Speed of Sound" succeed moderately at delivering a hook radio listeners can enjoy, the rest of the album is an exercise in dullness, as the songs never grab the listener's attention.
Perhaps Coldplay could benefit from a more stripped sound, as the album's closer ("Til Kingdom Come") suggests. "Steal my heart and hold my tongue," Martin sings. "I feel my time, my time has come. Let me in, unlock the door, I never felt this way before. The wheels just keep on turning ... I don't know which way I'm going, I don't know which way I've come." As he sings, the backdrop is created by a simple guitar and piano melody, reminescent of "The Man Comes Around" by Johnny Cash. But just as soon as the enjoyment begins, the song is done, and knowing that it's the only bright light on a dismal disc makes the end of a listen even more depressing.
X&Y will surely sell millions, just as its predecessors have done. Coldplay will rise (perhaps temporarily) to stadium rock glory, so maybe it doesn't matter too much what we lowly critics have to say. But all but the most strident fans are bound to be disappointed by the lack of a creative leap forward, and I suspect the band will need to reconsider its direction if a fourth album is in order. Their third simply misses the mark.
posted by Jonathan Sanders @ 2:08 PM
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