Coldplay - "Parachutes" (2000)

Coldplay's debut record, Parachutes, turns 20 today (well the day I started writing this), and is an album dear to my heart despite the general consensus that it is fairly derivative of the likes of Radiohead and U2 and not even the most 'definitive' Coldplay record. There's just something I find so entrancing by the tone and atmosphere of the record, and the songwriting on here is top notch even if it is entirely straightforward and conventional.

Parachutes is one of those records that seems to work in almost any context for me. It's moody and emotional, yet its also joyous and hopeful. Its gentle and deep, but also light and summery. It works equally well on long summer evening as a cold, damp winter night. I can put it on to relax to, be uplifted by, or contemplate with. Each of the ten tracks have a darkness to them, yet they all are spun in such a way that there's always a point of hope in them. It's so incredibly cathartic and versatile. I also find the straightforwardness of the record one of its biggest strengths, maintaining this moody yet warm acoustic rock throughout with only a slight ebb and flow of more energetic electric moments. It is also a trim 41 minutes with absolutely no filler.

The record opens with the incredibly moody and existential Don't Panic. The track is just over 2 minutes and features pretty apocalyptic lyrics which I have always took to be about climate change, but like the majority of Chris Martin's lyrics (especially in the early days of Coldplay) they are general but emotive enough that they don't have to be. It gives Don't Panic, and the rest of the songs on Parachutes, so much more strength than some of the other emotional soft rock bands from the 2000's. The track, also like a lot on here, spins itself on its head in the last verse; in this case Martin sings about how everybody has someone to lean on and we can make it through together.

Following this is Shiver, which is my favourite Coldplay song across their entire discography. The track starts off very reserved and gentle, before exploding into the first chorus. Martin's lyrics about an unrequited love are so apologetically earnest yet pure and wholesome. There's no tragic angst or self loathing like in something like Radiohead's Creep, and the way the electric guitar wails at the end alongside Martin's howls that he will wait for this person, and wait for them to notice him, just really hits the mark for me. It's just one of those songs.

It is also as about as heavy as the album gets, after this point settling back into the acoustic groove with the electric guitars only really used sparingly for texture more than melody. Spies is just as paranoid as Don't Panic, although it is a more drawn out song which allows you to fall into its eery nature. It also flips itself over and picks its self up towards the end. Sparks is such a gentle piano led track, where Martin refers to 'seeing sparks' as a real special connection with the person this song is written about. He addresses past mistakes that have hurt this person, and how he wants to make things better because of how special this connection is. I remember putting it on a few years ago, as it was snowing at night outside my window. It has that warm gentle atmosphere.

There are two other piano led songs on the record, Trouble, and the closer, Everything's Not Lost. Trouble is perhaps the most downtrodden song on the record, as it lacks the positive spin that the rest of the tracks have in their closing moments. The simple piano riff sets the darker tone as Martin alludes to being caught in traps and spider's webs that he can't get out of, and that he didn't mean to cause anyone else trouble. Apparently the song is just an apology to the rest of the band about his sometimes controlling nature in the studio, but it feels much darker and more serious than that. It anchors the album in a way, showing that sometimes you can't just say "things will get better" to every problem you face. Everything's Not Lost is the opposite, and sets the blueprint for the big optimistic climax moment in most future Coldplay albums. Unlike some of those future efforts it remains very sweet and genuine with the focus remaining on Martin's vocals and the uplifting piano notes. None of the overblown production and multi-tracked choral vocals that make something like Up&Up feel pretty tacky. There is a hidden song titled Life Is For Living at the end of Everything's Not Lost and it is a nice little ditty which feels like an appropriate coda for the track and the record as a whole.

In between Trouble and Everything's Not Lost, the record becomes its most mellow and malaise like. The Title track is 45 seconds of acoustic summery bliss, and High Speed feels like speeding along in a convertible on a hot summers day. The distant atmospheric swells of electric guitar gives the song a more driving pace, despite the song being one of the most carefree on the record. This is followed p by We Never Change, a super slow and reserved song where Martin details his desire for a simple life living with his friends, free of life's troubles, but acknowledges that some things will never change, and there will always be new challenges to face.

The only song I have yet to mention is the band's breakout, global smash single, Yellow. That's because you've definitely already heard it 1000 times. Yes it is overplayed, and yes if you think about the lyrics too much it starts to feel like nonsense. But you can really feel the emotion in Martin's voice and can't help but be moved by it, and it feels far more genuine and less calculated than some of the band's future emotional singalong anthems.

Parachutes is just one of those records for me. I acknowledge that it doesn't do anything all that interesting or unique from the grand objective view of the history of rock, and that the band's follow up, A Rush Of Blood To The Head, has a more unique identity. However every single moment on the album just works for me, I can enjoy every single second of it when I'm in a variety of moods.

Top Tracks: Don't Panic, Shiver, Spies, Sparks, Yellow, Trouble, Parachutes, High Speed, We Never Change, Everything's Not Lost

10/10

Joy Division - "Unknown Pleasures" (1979)

I intended this blog to be more about new music I am discovering, but here's another anniversary so I've been tempted to talk about this amazing record. Unknown Pleasures turned 40 over the weekend and is widely considered to be one of the most influential records of the post-punk scene in the late 70s / early 80s.

The band and producer, Martin Hannett, crafted a truly unique sound on this record. It is characterised by this very intense but spacious atmosphere, giving you this feeling of being smothered and suffocated. The incredibly sharp production on the drums and percussion makes them stab right through the oppressive atmosphere, creating a sense of uncomfort and urgency which drives the album along. Ian Curtis' dark and intense lyrics layer on top of this, detailing disconnect, loss of control, and the creeping feeling of impending doom. I find this album to be Curtis' vocal peak; there's a sense of angst and passion to his approach here which shifted to complete depression and desolation by the time of Closer.

Disorder opens the record with a driving bass and chiming guitar, with Curtis' vocals fast and very rhythmic vocals meshing in. This turns into more of a chant in the back end of the track as these spacey, sci-fi noises are introduced into the mix. Following this is the much Slower and more tense The Day of the Lords. The production on the guitar here is incredible. It sounds like its almost about to explode into complete noise but then retains it's restraint and winds down, over and over throughout the whole song. This creates a knife-edge tension that isn't released at all in the song, leaving it feeling strange and unresolved. Insight is backed by these very alien beeps and bops, reminding me of another isolating, atmospheric masterpiece turning 40 this year, Ridley Scott's Alien. The drums on She's Lost Control pierce right through the mix, keeping the song tense and uncomfortable. More beeps enter this song on the drum hits and gradually increase in volume until the end where they completely overpower the song and remind me of the beeps of a cardiogram you might find in a hospital. This give the song a very sinister feeling, as if the titular character has lost control to the point that they're in mortal danger. Shadowplay has an incredibly simplistic and catchy guitar solo. The driving bass riff propels the song forward. It's dark and sinister, detailing dark city streets and assassins. The album's tension comes to head in Interzone, where the guitar is finally allowed to go as wild as possible, sounding brutal after so much absence. With all the tension gone, the closer I Remember Nothing sounds like a glimpse of their much more gothic sound on Closer.

It honestly astounds me that nothing really sounded like this before, because you can trace elements of so many band's sounds back to this album. It is also really interesting to me that this sound is almost entirely down to Hannett and Curtis, with the rest of the band (particularly Peter Hook) not really understanding its appeal and initially not even really liking it. Honestly this album is fantastic and also really benefits from decent speakers/headphones. My laptop speaker really doesn't do justice to the atmosphere and space the album creates and it sounds so much better when I'm playing it through my speaker.

Top Tracks: Disorder, Day of  the Lords, Candidate, Insight, New Dawn Fades, She's Lost Control, Shadowplay, Wilderness, Interzone, I Remember Nothing

10/10

The Cure - "Disintegration" (1989)

This masterpiece turned 30 this week. On the eve of his 29th birthday, Robert Smith was musing about how all his idols had produced their masterpieces before they reached 30 and then in his eyes declined in quality since, and that The Cure had yet to create their magnum opus. So he began writing what is now considered it. This feeling of the bands impending demise combined with tensions within the group over Lol Tolhurst's (the only other remaining founding member besides Smith) growing alcohol problem and inability to work to create one of the bands darkest and most isolating releases. It is long, slow, dense but also spacious and sonically rich and it just commands you to sink into the apocalyptic world it creates for you.

The album opens with Plainsong, a track which could be the closer for any other album. The shimmering synths and heavy reverb have an open finality to them, and Smith's allusions to the end of the world sound like there has been this huge world ending event before the album has even started. That really sets the tone for the next 72 minutes, the world has already fallen apart and Smith is just living in the aftermath. The next song, Pictures Of You, is beautifully nostalgic about past good times and incredibly melancholic about the fact they are over. Despite its seven and a half minute run-time, I reckon it is one of the most accessible on the record. It has such a universal topic that everyone can relate to.

Despite its oppressive atmosphere, the record actually has a couple of really big hits on it. Lovesong and Lullaby are incredibly catchy pop songs at their core, they are just dressed up and the melancholia which floods the rest of the album. Both songs have some of the most catchy bass lines the band have ever recorded. Lovesong has the same universality as Pictures Of You, detailing just pure, unabashed devotion to someone. Lullaby is weirder, as the bass bounces along Smith sings about a creepy nightmare creature in a soft ASMR-style voice. Following Lullaby is Fascination Street, which sounds like some kind of nihilistic apocalypse anthem. "Move to the music like you know that it's over" Smith shouts during the chorus.

On the second half of the album, the songs get longer, denser and darker. Prayers For Rain feels like it is completely smothering you with its rich atmosphere. It legitimately feels like the song is taking place in a thunderstorm. In fact, the transition between it and Same Deep Water As You is the sound of a thunderstorm. Where Prayers For Rain feels like you are being forced down by its audio thunderstorm, Same Deep Water As You feels like letting yourself get washed away by the ensuing flood. The title track is perhaps the most intense of all of them, opening with the sound of a glass smashing and slowly builds over 8 minutes as Smith works himself into a self destructive meltdown. It feels like every emotion is pouring out of him to the point of exhaustion. Following this is Homesick, which feels perfectly placed after Disintegration. Smith determinedly sings "I'll never go home", which I can't help but feel is related to the previous track. Smith just wants to run away from everything that went down on the previous track. The closer, Untitled, leaves the album in much the same way Plainsong opened it, open and empty. But it does this to an even greater extent. There isn't much of a sense of completion to the track, it just leaves the listener in a frail, depressed state, hoping things might get better.

This album is near enough flawless, and completely transcends age. It sounds as fresh and unique as any album today. If you have an hour and twelve minutes to spare, just plug your headphones in and let it absorb you. You will bound to find something that you can relate to. Smith got his magnum opus, and if I'm going to be honest he predicted his downfall as well. The band have never been quite this good since.

Top Tracks: Plainsong, Pictures Of You, Closedown, Lovesong, Last Dance, Lullaby, Fascination Street, Prayers For Rain, Same Deep Water As You, Disintegration, Homesick, Untitled

10/10