Coldplay
Parachutes (2000)

review by: Stephan Finch
Date: 2/16/01

What you first hear when you listen to Coldplay is a strong Radiohead influence. Indeed, if you were disappointed in Kid A (as I was), you might pick this up as salve on the wound.

Ah, but then you'd dig in a little deeper, wouldn't you? Yes, soon you'd find track two. And track two is influenced by something far more powerful than Radiohead...

You'd almost miss it at first. Then you'd listen more closely to those haunting vocals. The song is called "Shiver," a title that seems to have nothing to do with the basic thrust of the song, and yet somehow it makes sense.

Why? Because Jeff Buckley is singing to us from the grave.

Coldplay singer Chris Martin may not even be conscious of it, but I've been listening and I'm convinced this is the case. If the song weren't so good, I'd call it a Buckley rip-off. But Martin's performance is damned good, almost too good.... eerily reminiscent of Jeff's singing.

Of course, it breaks my heart to be reminded of Buckley's death. I fell hopelessly in love in the summer of 1996, and Buckley provided the soundtrack to that romance. (Two years later, that romance became a happy marriage.)

On a very cold night in the late autumn of 1996, I was walking along 9th Street in the East Village with my friend (and fellow Armchair Reviews scribe) Webb M., and we happened to run into Buckley, who immediately recognized Webb, who worked with Jeff when he was at Sony. They greeted each other warmly. "Jeff, this is my friend Stephane," Webb said. And because we all had hats on and our damned coats up so high around our ears, I had no idea whom I was shaking hands with. On a warmer night, we might have sat and talked for a while. But Jesus, it was cold. So off we went into the cold night, with me only realizing that I'd been talking with Jeff after it was too late.

Now, I hear what I guess is Buckley's influence on Coldplay's Chris Martin, and I think back to how I might have enjoyed that talk if it had only lasted longer. If only he'd stuck around, I think. And Jesus, I think of the music and it just makes me want to cry. If only he hadn't been taken from us so soon.

My next encounter with Jeff? The memorial service at St. Mark's Church a couple of days after he drowned. I was sad, though God knows I wasn't in as much pain as Buckley's friends were. A few people were hysterical, raving. The service ended with a strange recording being played. A disc jockey from some local indie radio station had recorded Jeff singing an old song (now I'm forgetting which one). But the recording was made with Jeff singing over the phone! His accompanist was in the studio. It was a strange, haunting sound, and for a moment, you'd have thought we were hearing him phone in one more tune from the other side.

Now I hear Coldplay's song, Shiver, and I hear something like that sound again. Check it out if you can. And say a little prayer for Jeff Buckley, wherever he is.

I haven't been to the record store in a long time. But I'm sure there is a new section there, somewhere between "rock" and "pop", titled "bands-that-people-think-sound-like-Radiohead".

I know I'm late on the Coldplay bandwagon, but in the event that there are any readers out there that hang on every written, music-review word, of Michael W., I'd like to publicly endorse this CD.

Forget all the Radiohead bullshit. Forget the "Jeff Buckley Reincarnated" banter. This is Coldplay. A band that has a sound of there own and is not trying to emulate what is currently hot. If you want to blame someone, blame the record companies. The record companies are just putting out bands that have "that" sound. And Coldplay has "that" sound.

But I believe that Coldplay is…dare I say it? For real? Only time will tell I guess.

All I know is, I've been listening to this CD for close to a month now, and I don't think I've heard anything like it. There's a real sincerity to this music. An auditory journey, from start to finish. A lot of it has to do with the vocals. The lead singer's voice is captivating. But the music is also compelling, because it fails to follow any kind of standard song structure as it strings you along happily, than takes a right turn. If you're use to new music where by the third verse you're singing along, forget it here. You will have to listen to "Shiver" or "Yellow" or "High Speed" a dozen times before you get it right.

With all the controversial coverage of Radiohead's latest exploits, it's unfair to blindly lump Coldplay into the "sounds-like Radiohead" bin. So I will confidently claim that if you hate or have no opinion about or have never heard Radiohead, then you will love Coldplay's Parachutes. One of my top 3 purchases of 2001.

I have to admit that I was skeptical after reading all of the glowing reviews above - especially since I sometimes disagree with many of the regular posters at this site (I, for example, unlike most of the people here, ADORE Radiohead's KID A and Amnesiac). But I heard the track 'Yellow' about fifteen minutes before walking into a used record store yesterday, and so when I found a copy of the album for four bucks, I thought I should give it a try. Now that I've heard it, I realize it's worth paying full price for.

This album is stunning. It is so gentle, so intimate and warm. I was totally blown away. The three or four best songs on it I have never heard on the radio, and other than on this website, I have never heard any hype about this band at all. What happend? Is our country so hypnotized by the omnipresence of kiddie-pop that this album went so unnoticed? U2 walks away with a grammy they barely deserve when this band isn't even mentioned... On the other hand... why am I surprised?

But every song chills me. My 2 cents concludes that this album is 100% worth it and that everyone above, for once, is completely correct.

And yes, as noted it fills the gap left by Jeff Buckley's death. Which in and of itself is sort of haunting...