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Whether you love them or hate them, Coldplay possess an unstoppable momentum in their field and remain the UK's most popular musical import in the US since Bush. An impeccable history of No. 1 records and the ability to get thousands of people singing in unison are exactly the sort of qualities that make 50% of the population lovestruck, and the other half sick to the back teeth with them.

Specialising in both epic soaring melodies ('Clocks', 'Fix You', 'Yellow') and tender piano ballads ('The Scientist', 'Shiver', 'Trouble'), there's an unerring consistency to the London quartet's back catalogue that will surely swell stadiums for decades. Not that Coldplay are shy of throwing a few curve balls. Chris Martin's falsetto vocals on third album X&Y, and their Hispanic adventure on 2008's Viva La Vida, show that for a band often panned as 'boring', they're no one-trick pony.

And then there's Chris Martin, surely one of the least rock 'n' roll frontmen around. With fair trade principles running through his vegetarian veins and yoga in his soul, he's a sitting duck for ill-tempered hacks. Add that he's married to Oscar-blubbing actress Gywneth Paltrow and chose to name his first born after a piece of fruit, and you begin to wonder how the group ever emerged from the industry jungle. But, wait, isn't he actually really cool? After all, he has appeared on Extras with Ricky Gervais and has worked with Kanye West and Jay-Z... The jury remains out.

Interestingly, although Martin will always be the band's figurehead, it's not a job that pays. Following the lead of U2 and REM before them, the alt-rock quartet split all their earnings four ways. Now that's fair trade...