I consider their music palatable for quasi-alternative, mainstream rock (If this sounds slightly oxymoronish, it's intentional). I have no desire to see them live, and I own none of their music, but I won't necessarily turn the dial when I hear them. It's better than average songwriting, and in a pop landscape dominated by the likes of Britney Spears and Fifty Cent (to use two different examples), that counts for something.

You must have heard the song "Clocks" from a couple years back. It has a repetitive piano line that I couldn't put down at first--that is, until it got horribly overplayed--and I rarely even listen to commercial radio. Blasted! It's in my head now! I defy you to download it off of Itunes and ssay you've never heard it. Everyone has, whether they realize it or not.