Review Summary: X & Y is like a puzzle in that it's complex and requires patience to put the pieces together.
Coldplay are never quick when recording an album, which means they wait until inspiration strikes or frequently experience writer’s block. X & Y was released in June of 2005, after many delays and abandoned recording sessions. They fired their original producer Ken Nelson and went with Danton Supple. Originally titled "Zero Theory," “X & Y” is even more of a transitional record than their previous effort. The problem with this record is the band sounds confused, and this is most likely due to second guessing in terms of what songs should have been on the album. At over 60 minutes, it could have worked better as a 45 minute record. One interesting thing to note is that Chris Martin starts writing in second person, with the word I being replaced with you.
"Square One" was the song that put Coldplay back on track during the recording sessions. Immediately there's a change in sound, with synthesizers taking over the piano sound. It feels like the band is playing from outer space, but it grabs the listener by the chorus ("From the top of the first page, to the end of the last day.") Martin sounds confused about the band's direction and tells the listener to choose their own path. (You're in control is there anywhere you wanna go?")
"What If" is a great piano ballad and one of their first songs to feature strings. The song is truly heartbreaking but uplifting in the end ("You know that darkness always turns into light"). During the final instrumental section, the band uses chromatic chords, almost imitating "A Day in the Life" by the Beatles.
"White Shadows" sounds like something that could have been on the album "Zooropa" by U2. Organ is used instead of piano again and has a dance beat to it. While it has a nice groove at over 5 minutes in length, the party gets too predictable. Even worse is "Talk" which was influenced by the band "Kraftwerk." Martin uses first person here to try and get a hold of his brother to talk about struggles in life. "X&Y" is just as bad as there really aren't any hooks and comes off sounding like an inferior version of "Fix You", with the vocals starting off the song. Both of these songs don't really change dynamic wise, they just kind of muddle through without change.
"Fix You" was in remembrance of Gwyneth's dad. Martin's falsetto is at its best and organ opens the song instead of piano. This is effective because it sounds like something you would hear in church. Most of the chords are I, IV, V, which make the song hymn-like in structure. By the bridge the band turns the volume up a notch and the whole band sings together, ("I promise you I will learn from my mistakes") and it's almost like listening an exhilarating Beethoven symphony. Hands down, this is the best cut on the record.
"Speed of Sound" gets things back on track, even if it does sound like a rewrite of "Clocks." Using a three chord intro, the band gives us an outer space feel that lifts the soul. It's almost a feeling of spinning around in a circle but never getting dizzy, just enjoying a cool breeze. The chorus finds Martin in his high falsetto and by the end the song just kind of dies out. Martin despises this song for some reason and doesn't like the recording of it. I think that’s ridiculous, but what I will say is that the bridge is weak. The bridge has the same progression as the chorus and that makes it sound too repetitious.
"A Message" is beautiful in that it's a love song written to someone anonymous ("My song is love unknown") and features strings in it, as do many cuts on this album. The result is breathtaking and by the end you picture Martin standing on a platform pleading to this woman ("That I'm nothing on my own, and I love you please come home.") Martin sings with conviction and this is what makes the song special. His acoustic strumming ends the song and then we switch gears with "Low." "Low" is filled with despair and the band hammers us with a fiery guitar intro. The verses sound similar to "Indian Summer Sky" by U2 and Martin tries to tell the audience that each person has a purpose in life ("You see no meaning to your life, you should try.") By the end, the song is out of control and Martin is wailing out in his falsetto voice, (at one point he hits a faint G5 note if you listen closely enough) ("Cause I feel low, oh no.") before the song ends like debris falling from a crashed plane.
"The Hardest Part" is one of the better cuts on the album, even if it has a predictable melody. Piano is featured again and it’s a rare treat. Martin explains why it took so long to write new songs, and he apologizes to the audience (“And I tried to sing, but I couldn't think of anything"). Finally, he lets it all out by the end of the song. ("Everything I know is wrong, everything I do, it just comes undone.") I have never heard Chris this pessimistic before and while some would be turned off, I am moved by his honesty.
The rest of the record isn't really memorable. "Swallowed in the Sea" is a tender ballad but nothing to write home about. "Twisted Logic" is by far the worst song on the record, really going nowhere and leading the listener to a dead end (At least the intro sounds like "I Believe by Stevie Wonder).”Kingdom Come was inspired by Johnny Cash, who unfortunately died before they could collaborate on it. Martin uses a low guitar tuning paired up with an accordion. It’s a nice song, but stays on the same tonic chord for too long.
In the end, what you're left with is Coldplay going through another transitional stage. At first, I despised this record, and some people won't get it on their first listen. My recommendation is give it time and you'll see that at least half the songs are classics ("Square One," "What If," "Fix You," "Speed of Sound," "A Message," "Low," and "The Hardest Part"). "X & Y" is a maze that can be enjoyable, but has too many twists and turns along the way.
Grade: C- ***
