The Coral: reviews, highlights, and where to start

The Coral

Musical Group

Forlisteners into uk indie rock with strong 60s/psychedelic roots, and readers who enjoy comparisons, influences, and track-by-track commentary.
13 Reviews 1 Definitions 1 Charts

The Profile

The Coral are an English indie rock band from Hoylake, Merseyside, known for '60s-leaning psychedelic/beat pop filtered through eclectic influences.

Publicly known as a band formed in Hoylake (Wirral), Merseyside, active since the late 1990s. Reviews here repeatedly emphasize their '60s orientation and their status as a notable UK indie act of the 2000s, with later-career momentum returning on albums like Distance Inbetween and Move Through The Dawn.

Across 13 DeBaser reviews, The Coral are portrayed as a highly eclectic UK band drawing heavily from '60s psychedelia/beat while folding in blues, folk, country and pop. Early records are praised for whirlwind variety and youthful flair, while later albums are judged on how well they balance classic pop craft with surprise. Distance Inbetween and Move Through The Dawn are framed as a strong late-career resurgence ('phase two'), and Magic & Medicine and Butterfly House are repeatedly singled out as peaks.

Notable Quotes

❝ A joyful, whimsical, sunny, spring-like, bizarre, and eclectic album, well played and even better produced.

❝ In short, a mess. Actually, a beautiful mess.

❝ With this new work, The Coral decidedly return to levels more befitting their talent; great news, considering that at full capacity, they are a band fully capable of producing instant classics of absolute caliber.

❝ The Coral are one of the most interesting and creative bands to emerge in the UK in recent years, and so far, they have always demonstrated how one can make retro music while maintaining a freshness and a style all their own.