Average Rating: 
Rating:  - More than Radiohead-lite
"Parachutes" is a really astonishing debut album from the British band Coldplay. "Parachutes" is best described as a mood piece--mellow, melodic, acoustic guitar, mopey at times but ultimately convinced that "Everything's Not Lost."Coldplay's sound is a mixture of shimmering guitars, keyboards, and Chris Martin's incredible voice. His voice is probably the cause of the many Thom Yorke, Fran Healy and Jeff Buckley comparisons--like those three singers, he makes very effective use of his falsetto. His voice just crackles with real emotion. They have a great tendency to pair rhythm acoustic and lead electric guitars, which produces a very specificly textured and meshed sound. All the tracks on the album are worth a listen. Highlights include the sublime "Shiver" (truly swoon-worthy), "Yellow" (simply romantic), "Trouble," and the last track, "Everything's Not Lost." Highly recommended to fans of Travis's "The Man Who" and Radiohead's "The Bends." Coldplay shares a general musical aesthetic with those two bands, but they also have their own sound and musical project. Listen to the sound clips, and you'll see how Coldplay is both familiar and unique. You won't be wasting your money if you pick this album up.
Rating:  - stellar debut
Parachutes is a nearly perfect debut album. I have realized over the years that no album is perfect (just like no person is perfect) so all my prior reviews with 5 stars are invalid. But Parachutes does come very close. And the fact that this is Coldplay's first album says a lot. I don't think it is fair to compare them to Radiohead or anyone else for that matter. They have their own sound and they do a good job of keeping the same sound throughout the cd. What I love most about Coldplay is their positive outlook that is obvious in the opening "Don't Panic" and the closing "Everything's Not Lost" (my favorite). There's just something about Chris Martin's voice that makes you want to believe him when he says "we live in a beautiful world." So many of his honest lyrics are stuck in my head all the time, especially "I wanna live life and always be true." Lyrically, the scope of Parachutes is so universal because of the simplicity and relatability (did I just make that word up?). Anyway, this album is much more than a hit song (Yellow). It is a great series of songs that work well together. A Rush of Blood to the Head is even better. I might give that one 5 stars because it's even closer to perfection. At this rate, Coldplay seriously has the capability of being the biggest band out there. The question is do they want to? I hope so.
Rating: - A truly beautiful record
For those of us who were fans of the late and brilliant Jeff Buckley...there was a noticeable void left in the music world when he drowned tragically back in '97. Who could provide moving meaninful songs, with wonderful melodies, honest lyrics and deliver it with truly beautiful vocal ability?.....Enter Coldplay....I happened to catch a snippet of the single Yellow on CNN's worldbeat and I remember thinking"this may be something for me"..Then it seemed for the next few weeks, I kept hearing about Coldplay.So, finally, after a few weeks, I capitulated and went and got the damn cd, lol..And..from the first song on, I was struck by the warmth, honesty, and overall touching beauty of the album. I put it in and listened to the whole thing straight without skipping or even WANTING to skip one song. Just like with Buckley, it was love at first listen for me. This album isnt for everybody......but if u like some brit pop as I do ( i.e The Sundays, the first Cranberries record, Radiohead, The Verve)..you will LOVE this record.And for Buckley fans, while there will never EVER be another Jeff Buckley, Coldplay's lead singer does have his own lilting falsetto that he uses to good effect on the album, all the while never sounding gimmicky with it. I think the theme of the album, for me, is the sincereity of the music...when you listen to it, you get that nice warm feeling inside..I dunno...maybe thats just me, lol..but this album totally takes me back to my college dorm days when as often as not you'd hear a Sundays album blasting from my room while I lay on the bed in a romantic reverie........
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