Originally written by Matthew Willson · 30 January 2012
Lana Del Rey
Born to Die
Label: Polydor Release Date: 30/01/2012
It seems the small venue couldn't meet the huge demand for tickets to
Coldplay's album launch instore at the Oxford Circus HMV. The band and staff
seemed genuinely surprised at the massive turnout, as fans were being
turned away at the doors. Perhaps this shows how quickly Coldplay have
risen from being just another small indie band, to a single Yellow at
number 4, and their album Parachutes looking set to climb the charts rapidly
after it's launch this monday. The band had a very genuine, friendly air
on the night, playing an old single demanded by fans and staying behind
to sign albums long after the gig. They appeared pleasantly surprised
at their recent success.
So musically, is all the hype justified? I went with the slight
misconception
that Coldplay would turn out to be another Travis, peddling watered-down
samey minor-chord whinings to a surprisingly large army of teenybopper
fans. While they did acknoledge the comparison, their material drifted
into this territory only rarely. Overall I think they had a raw power
and unpretentious honesty in their songs which transcends the bland
offerings
of the likes of Travis. They weren't afraid to rock out on occasion, and
live the songs had an extra edge to them. Singer Chris manages a raw
emotional
vocal sound without decending into angsty miserablism, demonstrated
perfectly
in the whistful summery sound of single Yellow. I would say they have
a lot of potential, providing they hold onto the raw edge of their
songwriting,
and don't allow success to draw them into the same dead end travis have
reached with "the man who".
• 6 Matthew Willson's Score