A Rush Of Blood To The Head
by Coldplay
  • Record Label: Capitol
  • Release Date: Aug 27, 2002
Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 25
  3. Negative: 2 out of 25
  1. Entertainment Weekly
    100
    Displaying a cohesion rarely heard in albums these days, ''A Rush of Blood'' bobs from one majestic little high to another.
  2. Playlouder
    100
    Fierce and noble and fragile and genuinely moving, 'A Rush Of Blood To The Head' is a lovely furnace of searing goodness made by some wonderful contradictory bastards.
  3. E! Online
    100
    There's nothing quite like the sound of a band at the top of its game.
  5. Uncut
    100
    May well come to be regarded as the best British rock album since OK Computer. [Sep 2002, p.118]
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  6. Launch.com
    90
    A very tastefully crafted, tuneful, and affecting piece of work with a band that is still just beginning to tap its enormous potential.
  7. Dot Music
    90
    The key to 'A Rush Of Blood To The Head' is to be found not in Martin's presence, but in the intensity, dynamism, verve and style that Coldplay have now nailed, when comparisons to Radiohead, Echo and The Bunnymen and, perhaps most pertinently, U2's 'Unforgettable Fire', manifest themselves in a series of killer strides.
  8. Neumu.net
    90
    It recalls U2's The Joshua Tree, and not just for its stunning guitar work but for its wild passion and spiraling tension-and-release dynamics.
  9. PopMatters
    90
    Parachutes was impressive, but Coldplay's new album, A Rush of Blood to the Head, is stunning, the amount of growth from Album One to Album Two equally so.
  10. New Musical Express (NME)
    90
    It's an album of outstanding natural beauty, an organic, wholesome work.
  11. Billboard
    90
    A stronger, more distinctive album than its predecessor in nearly every respect.
  12. Blender
    80
    The sound is simultaneously terse and expansive--moody and powerful, shot through with singer Chris Martin's grainy delivery. [#9, p.145]
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  13. Rolling Stone
    80
    With A Rush of Blood, Coldplay do more than fulfill the promise of "Yellow" -- they surpass everything they've done up to this point, making first-rate guitar rock with some real emotional protein on its bones.
  14. AllMusic
    80
    A Rush of Blood to the Head might not instantly grab listeners, but it's not tailored that way. It pushes you to look beyond dreamy vocals for a musical inner core.
  15. The A.V. Club
    80
    Dressed up in subtle strings and pianos, and given time to slowly breathe and develop beyond simple pop, A Rush Of Blood's 11 graceful tracks sparkle and swirl, occasionally escalating into a booming crescendo before dissolving back into delicacy.
  16. Q Magazine
    80
    A collection of vastly moving songs that will render stadiums as intimate as bedrooms. U2, Radiohead... Coldplay? It would seem so. [Sep 2002, p.98]
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  17. Trouser Press
    80
    The sound is fuller, the arrangements more complex; most importantly, the songs are just a whole lot better [than Parachutes'].
  18. Austin Chronicle
    78
    If you're presently in love, A Rush of Blood ... will make you want to frolic like Lily Tomlin with the cartoon animals in 9 to 5. Otherwise, it'll probably make you want to puke.
  19. Village Voice
    70
    Coldplay's new record is a little edgier, trancier, and more conversational than their last. It is called A Rush of Blood to the Head, and in waves and swells of major tunes and frisky then looping time signatures, that's just about the effect it has.
  20. Spin
    70
    A guitar record equally suitable for a lost weekend or a good cry. [Sep 2002, p.125]
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  21. Alternative Press
    70
    A patchwork quilt of wispy Britpop ballads soaring majestically in an effort to overcome their own blandness. [Oct 2002, p.78]
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Awards & Rankings

48
#48 Best Album of 2002
3
#3 Most Discussed Album of 2002
6
#6 Most Shared Album of 2002

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.9

Universal acclaim- based on 590 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 544 out of 590
  2. Mixed: 25 out of 590
  3. Negative: 21 out of 590
  1. manurock
    Aug 6, 2011
    10
    For me, the greatest Coldplay album and one of the best of the decade. Possibly the coldplay album with the most piano. Songs like "GreenFor me, the greatest Coldplay album and one of the best of the decade. Possibly the coldplay album with the most piano. Songs like "Green eyes", "clocks", "a rush of blood to the head", "the scientist" or "politik" are top class melodic rock. I would only delete the song "god put a smile up on your face". Here they don't sound like first era Radiohead at all as they did on their fantastic first album.… Full Review »
  2. theahsanhaseeb
    Oct 2, 2012
    10
    I don't even know hot describe how much I love this record. This album is the sole reason I started listening to Coldplay as a seriousI don't even know hot describe how much I love this record. This album is the sole reason I started listening to Coldplay as a serious listener and even considering them as one of my favourite bands. Chris Martin's vocals and Jonny Buckland's electric guitar are terrific. Whenever I listen to the title track of the album, I always feel like I'm climbing a hill and it's so cold and I need to make some decisions. Believe me, but I actually used to be a Coldplay hater but that's before I listened to songs like "In My Place", "Politik", "A Rush of Blood to the Head", "Green Eyes" and "Warning Sign". I can easily call it my most favourite Coldplay album.… Full Review »
  3. sudheervemuru
    Apr 22, 2012
    9
    Lyrically, "A Rush of Blood..." isn't too far ahead of "Parachutes," but its composition is nearly flawless. With marvelous guitar riffs andLyrically, "A Rush of Blood..." isn't too far ahead of "Parachutes," but its composition is nearly flawless. With marvelous guitar riffs and great piano melodies, there is a depth to this album that isn't present in any of their other studio records. This is the closest a Brit album from the 2000s ever came to comparing to the epic rock motifs of Britain in the 1990s, namely Oasis, Blur, and early Radiohead, though in the end it does fall well short of those bands' works. Solid album however.… Full Review »
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