The Coral biography

The breadth of the influences under which they were operating was dizzying - the album makes a nod to the West Coast of America (Doors, Zappa, Captain Beefheart) as much as the West Coast of England from whence they hail, but the jaunty, fun attitude and poppy feel of 'Dreaming of You' was arguably classically Merseybeat as well. Chuck in a bit of ska, some skiffle, the odd Cossack middle-eight breakdown, and a bit of early Pink Floyd (think Syd Barrett after a couple of decent tabs) and you're getting somewhere near the noxious brew they had assembled for this first effort.

The critics loved it, and not just because the sea-shanty stuff made for some easy copy, given that the band were from a 'seaside' location (albeit a deep-water port rather than a Blackpool style pleasure beach). The main thing was - it was interesting. And yet, it wasn't a demanding listen. The musicality on display was very impressive, just as much as the range of influences they had drawn from, and under the production of Ian Broudie of the Lightning Seeds they'd laid down a mightily impressive opening effort.

The Mercury prize nomination followed, and in what history should surely deem a travesty of justice, they lost out to Ms Dynamite. Sigh. Still, singles 'Goodbye' and 'Dreaming of You' fared well in the UK charts, reaching number 21 and number 13 respectively, and on the hard and heavy touring the band embarked upon they were very well received.

Follow-up 'Magic and Medicine' (2003), again produced by Broudie, capitalised on this hugely positive reputation, hitting the number one sales spot and spawning four UK top forty singles- 'Don't Think You're the First', 'Pass It On', 'Secret Kiss' and Bill McCai'. Whilst the group seemed to have lost none of their verve and enthusiasm for this second album, the number of identifiable influences to whom they were tipping a nod seemed to have been pared down somewhat - here, the emphasis was much more on creating some rocking songs, which they achieved admirably.

They followed this just six months later with 'Nightfreak and the Sons of Becker' (2004), which was also released as a limited edition EP in a double-disc set with 'Magic and Medicine' in the United States. Although not regarded by most people as a 'full' album as such (even though it contains eleven songs, which is more than enough for most artists!), and despite having no singles released from it, 'Nightfreak...' went to number 5 in the album charts, and was more than a stop-gap for its successor. It was becoming clear that the quantity of the band's output was something they could match in terms of quality, and they just didn't seem to have it in them to release any fluff or filler.

The dark tone of 'Nightfreak...' was pursued further with their 2005 release 'The Invisible Invasion', featuring a more stripped down sound and a moodier feel thanks to production by Geoff Barrow and Adrian Utley (of Portishead). They reached new emotional levels with songs such as 'Far From Crowd', a gorgeously harmonied number composed by avid reader James Kelly in reference to Thomas Hardy. Furthermore, they scored a huge success in the singles chart with 'In the Morning' (reaching number 6, their best showing to date), at once melancholy and insanely catchy. They were keeping up the work-rate, and still churning out quality, tuneful pop music.

However, the relentless pace was starting to tell somewhat. A prodigious weed-smoking habit wouldn't have helped band unity particularly, but equally, the non-stop touring and recording since they had first started it all was a major source of exhaustion and ennui. It wasn't as if the band were starting to fall out or have massive arguments, in fact quite the opposite, as each would start to retreat into their own personal space. However, keyboardist Nick Power readily acknowledged that this was actually part of the problem, as the lads who had known each other and been together for so long simply weren't enjoying it as much any more: "No one argued with anyone for about two years, and that was one of the worst points...Everyone had become individuals. We got off the roller-coaster in the end. Then we could start making an effort to get it back together again, like a band. It's an attitude. It's something you can all tap into instead of on your own."

Part of 'getting off the rollercoaster' meant a temporary leave of absence for their guitarist Bill Ryder-Jones, to tend to his own personal problems. His replacement David McDonnell, despite being an accomplished player, was never viewed as a complete substitute, as James Kelly states: 'McDonnell's an amazing guitarist but he'll tell you himself it can never be the same, because the Coral is about a friendship and about tapping into that thing'. If anything, their guitarist's sabbatical must have given the boys cause to take a brief breath in for the first time in four years, to reflect on their successes and to actually take some of it in. They gained a useful perspective, and with renewed vigour and hunger they set about recording their next set of songs.

They were helped in no small part by Noel Gallagher, a fan of the group (and who had had them open for Oasis on tour before), who deigned to help them with their next album by offering to let them record it for free at his Wheeler End studio facility. This had helped them out of a logistical pickle, in that they needed to use a variety of vintage equipment, which was not available at any Liverpool studio facility, although getting seven band-members around the country was going to cost too much. In the words of singer Skelly, Noel's intervention couldn't have proved more useful: 'He's got all the best gear there...Oasis were off on tour and he was like, 'What's the point of me having all that stuff if it's not getting used?' He's sound'.

They sought to go back to something a bit more upbeat and less sombre, as their keyboardist and songwriter Nick Power explained: 'We wanted to go in opposite directions to the last two albums, which ended up being quite dark. We didn't feel the need to depress anyone.'

In fact, the only way The Coral could really depress anyone would be to remind them that they are still in their early twenties for the most part, and yet they have already released more quality albums than most bands manage in a lifetime. If they can retain their hunger, and their symbiotic relationship that has come about simply as a product of having known each other, then hopefully they can avoid imploding any tie soon.

• The Coral Discography