Coldplay parachuted to stardom with this album!

I remember when I first heard of Coldplay. I was flicking through the 4 TV channels back in Hong Kong and caught the video for one of Coldplay's hit singles, Don't Panic from the album, Parachutes. When I heard them, I thought, "wow, why have I never heard of this band before?" I was amazed by the beauty of this song and it was solely for this reason that I decided to purchase the album, Parachutes. And boy, was I glad to purchase this album!

The band consists of 4 members: Chris Martin, the lead singer and pianist for the band, Guy Berryman, the bassist, Jon Buckland, the lead guitarist and Will Champion, the drummer. What these 4 are able to do together is simply amazing. With most of their songs, they are able to create music that is wholesome and music that creates such an atmosphere that all you can do is sit down in awe and listen to the album.

This is shown from the first track, which ironically is Don't Panic. From the beautiful guitar strumming at the beginning to the serene keyboard solo halfway through the song to Chris Martin singing "we live in a beautiful world" throughout the chorus, the band charms the listener into the song. The instrumentation is frugal and this is also what makes the song such a beautiful song. The bass and drums keep it quiet in the background, while the guitar's wailing in the chorus adds that touch of beauty. The song's title is supposed to tell us that we should not panic, because as Martin sings throughout the song, "we live in a beautiful world". This song is probably the happiest song you'll find in the world of music right now and the pleasant nature of the song is contagious.

The next track, Shiver, starts off mellow with a simple 3 note guitar lick, but it soon explodes with the guitar and drums driving the song's intro while a complex bass line plays in the background of these two instruments. The song returns to its mellow roots during the verses where Chris Martin sings about lost love and how he is willing to change to get his love back. The song is mellow when Martin sings, but once he finishes, it returns to the pulsating guitar riff and drum line that started the song off. Martin's voice is at its best here again and as a listener, you can feel the melancholy nature of his voice, which is also portrayed by the instruments during the verses. The loud riff represents the explosion of emotions that you want to express as a result of lost love.

Spies, the third track of this album, starts off with eerie keyboard noises in the background before a lone acoustic guitar starts strumming chords to begin the song before Martin's voice enters the song. This song is basically about fugitives running away from spies and Martin's voice has an air of uncertainty to it, which perfectly suits the song, since it portrays the feeling of the fugitive Martin is trying to be. Martin, who also is the keyboardist for the band, plays with a series of effective keyboard noises, which create the song's overall eerieness. I also really like the way the drums move inconspicuously from soft, high-hat/cymbal tapping in the verse to a full drum beat in the chorus. I feel that the subtle change from soft to loud represents how the "spies come out of the water" as described in the song and this change is perfect for the song. Also, the bass comes in and out as smoothly as the drums do, which is also most suitable for this song. The guitar riff in the chorus is haunting but at the same time, it grabs the listener's attention. A great song and I think this is definitely one of Coldplay's most underrated songs.

Although Sparks is not one of my top Coldplay songs, it is still a good song. After some soft strumming from the guitar to start the song, a very pleasant, descending, walking bass line and simple drum line comes in to set the song on its way. The word "sparks" is supposed to describe the feeling that one experiences when falling in love and Martin's soothing, full voice carries this song, particularly his cries to reach out to his loved one in the chorus, which is resonated by some wonderful sounds from a lone xylophone. The guitar solo towards the end of the song is simple, but it captures the mood of the song perfectly.

The next song, Yellow, is probably one of Coldplay's more popular songs, receiving a lot of radio airplay and rightly so. The lone acoustic guitar at the beginning is quickly joined by the big, full sound of a distorted electric guitar riff, which is backed up wonderfully by some powerful drumming and simple yet pulsating bass work. This song basically describes the word "yellow" both figuratively and literally. Martin's voice is clear and beautiful. There is never a moment in the song when his voice strains from reaching the high notes he reaches in the song. The wonderful harmonies of "aahs" in the background during the chorus add to the overall effect of the song. Again, kudos to the band for their excellent transitions in dynamics throughout the song.

The piano intro from Martin in Trouble is very pleasant, but the nature of the song is far from that. The bass slides up and down the fretboard while the drums keep a solid beat before Martin enters with his vocals and both the beat and the sliding bass line are used throughout the song. This song is about the feelings one experiences when in trouble. In this case, Martin portrays this song with sadness, which one feels when in trouble. The line "so I turned to run" perfectly describes what goes through a person's mind when in trouble. I find it interesting that the guitar is used to a minimum, only being used prominently at the end with a nice sliding guitar solo.

The next song is the title song, Parachutes. Although I am still befuddled as to why this song was chosen as the title song, it still is a decent song. The song is a nice and short acoustic ballad that is looped throughout the 45 seconds of the song, while Martin sings a quick one about expressing love, even in a "stormy haze".

But basically, Parachutes is used to set up the next song, High Speed. The song is set up nicely by a quiet guitar intro which is backed up by a very nice sliding bass solo before the main guitar riff comes in with the drums. The song is very atmospheric with the complicated bass line creating a very pleasing feel to the song. The guitar ocassionally comes in during the verses, while the drums keep a solid beat. Martin's voice, as usual, is clear and powerful. The song is about being too wrapped up in oneself and the term "high speed" is used to describe the speed at which confidence grows and the craving for more of it as it grows. However, the scratching noises in the end left me scratching my head. In my opinion, the song should be listened to because of the excellent bass line.

We Never Change is a song about how everyone wants to live life happily and how this desire for happiness never changes. The song starts off with an acoustic guitar with bass support in the background and this combination of acoustic guitar and bass is the backbone to this song with the simple riff of an electric guitar, quick chords and drums come in during the chorus. Martin's voice has the sound of reflectiveness to it and you can really feel his voice in your head, because everyone in the world feels this urge to reach for happiness as portrayed in this song. The instrumentation of this song is very, very frugal, which lifts up Martin's voice even more. This is another underrated song and I feel that this song is one of the best on the album.

The next song of this album, Everything's Not Lost, starts off differently to the rest of the songs on the album. Martin's voice starts the song off with piano chords being struck in the background. The piano drives the song through the verse and Martin's lone voice reaches out to its listeners. The song is about overcoming personal demons and about having hope to eradicate these demons and moving on, which is something that everyone feels all the time, which makes the song very personal. After a minute of Martin's voice, the guitar comes in with a simple riff, while a complex bass line and solid drum line enter shortly after the guitar does. The guitar echoes its melody, while the bass acts as a counter melody to the simple guitar riff. This song may be very personal and sound depressing, but it is not depressing. You can feel the message of hope portrayed in the song and this feeling is felt throughout the song.

However, about half a minute after the previous track has ended, there is a hidden track, which is titled Life is For Living, which is another hopeful song and the song which ends the album. This song is about living life without regrets. The song is kept as simple as possible with some piano in the background and with the acoustic guitar taking a prominent role in this song. Martin's voice is wonderful to listen to and this song is no different from the rest of the tracks on the album. His voice still is wonderful to hear and you want to listen to more of it after the song has ended. This song of hope is a great way to end this album.

To anyone who has not listened to Coldplay, you should find yourself a copy of this album and purchase it. The lyrics are deep, the instrumentation is sound and the vocals are top-notch. This album already has everything going for it. Honestly.

Thanks for reading the review.