The Rock Reviews: X & Y by Coldplay

Here it is...the final review of The Rock Reviews series. At first, I thought I wouldn't finish this series. This review would have gone in the pile of "promised" posts that never happened. Fortunately, I rethought that.

When I first listened to X & Y, I was unimpressed. You mean to tell me after all that time, all they could come up with was this? I really liked A Rush Of Blood To The Head and I was disappointed by X & Y initially. The CD sat unlistened for a while after that. Other albums took precedence over a repeated listening of X & Y, even with all the hype that surrounded its release.

Eventually, after I listened to The Go! Team's album again, I decided to give X & Y another listen, for the heck of it. I don't know if it was because all the hype surrounding this album has disappeared or what, but upon this recent listen, I actually enjoyed a lot of what I heard.

Although I enjoyed "Speed Of Sound" upon release, other songs on this album grew on me. "Square One" is a wonderful, powerful way to start the album. Chris Martin's vocals are particularly appealing on the chorus of "What If?" and with songs like "White Shadows" and "Talk," the group really establishes themselves as something more than a ripoff of old-school Radiohead.

Normally, I have a knee-jerk reaction to music. If I like something, I like it the moment I hear it. There is no greater feeling for me than listening to some very good music for the first time. Sometimes, I think this leads me to writing reviews that are a little too positive (or negative). However, X & Y is one of the rare examples of an album that really had to grow on me in order for me to like it. I'm not sure if this album is really better than A Rush Of Blood To The Head, but in the end, it's definitely a very good follow-up.