Coldplay's Quiet Storm

"I remember an amazing article about Radiohead when I was first getting into them," says Martin. "Jonny Greenwood said that every song on OK Computer was an attempt to do someone else's song. And that's how it happens sometimes for us." In that tradition, "Talk" wouldn't have been possible without Kraftwerk, and "The Hardest Part" is an ode to R.E.M. (Martin is careful to pay tribute to Michael Stipe: "I've lost all respect for fame, but I haven't lost all respect for respect. So the one great thing about being famous is that I get to meet people who I respect. Our relationship is akin to a dog and its master. I'll always look up to him.")

A highlight of Coldplay's show is "White Shadows," which was inspired by Tears for Fears' "Mad World." The title "White Shadows" was lifted from a Seventies TV series produced by Martin's late father-in-law, Bruce Paltrow. Even though Martin never met the man, X&Y is dedicated to him -- the CD sleeve reads, "For BWP." "It's meant to be subtle," says Martin. "It just has a way of making sense of death."

What you won't find in X&Y's album sleeve are any of Martin's lyrics, a bit odd for someone whose visions of abandonment, apprehension, fragility and love have resonated with so many fans. "Because I'm not a great lyricist," says Martin with a laugh. "When you hear someone like Ian McCulloch or Bob Dylan...those are lyrics that should be printed. Mine are just a bunch of feelings." He writes constantly, though, to hone his craft. "That's my only way of making sense of the world," he says. Still, he says he's better at writing silly rhymes in birthday cards to his friends.

X&Y debuted at Number One in more than twenty countries. "When the numbers started rolling in, it was brilliant," says Champion. In the U.S., where it's the year's fastest-selling rock record, it notched more than 737,000 sales its first week, and in England it posted the second-highest sales figure in U.K. history, behind Oasis' Be Here Now. The success of X&Y has wiped the bad taste of negative reviews out of Martin's mouth. He has come to a realization -- after admittedly being bummed out for a couple of weeks -- that the polarity of opinion about Coldplay is totally healthy. "I find that exciting," he says. "Some people are into bondage, and some people are into cross-dressing, and some people are into Coldplay -- I don't mind being a fetish. I don't mind not being cool. I've never been cool in my whole life. Being voted the world's sexiest vegetarian is about as cool as it gets."

[Excerpt From Issue 981 — August 25, 2005]