Metascore
80 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 25
  2. Negative: 2 out of 25
  1. 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.
  2. It's an album of outstanding natural beauty, an organic, wholesome work.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. Displaying a cohesion rarely heard in albums these days, ''A Rush of Blood'' bobs from one majestic little high to another.
  6. 100
    There's nothing quite like the sound of a band at the top of its game.
  7. A stronger, more distinctive album than its predecessor in nearly every respect.
  8. 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.
  9. A very tastefully crafted, tuneful, and affecting piece of work with a band that is still just beginning to tap its enormous potential.
  10. 100
    May well come to be regarded as the best British rock album since OK Computer. [Sep 2002, p.118]
User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 257 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Negative: 12 out of 144
  1. For 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. A simply amazing album filled with tons of great songs. It's songs have variety, the lyrics are emotional, and all the songs are well balanced. This is an album that nearly anyone can enjoy and that I always enjoy singing along with. I would highly recommend it! Full Review »
  3. Not completely flawless but definitely Coldplay's finest album to date. Some of Coldplay's classics such as "Clocks" are in here amongst other tracks that are meaningful and sound great. Rush of Blood to the Head also finishes the album off wonderfully with the conclusive "Amsterdam". Full Review »