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Week 36:
Coheed and Cambria
Artist Introduction
Coheed and Cambria is such a unique band. Hailing locally from Nyack, NY, this progressive rock act truly loves making music without worrying about the zeitgeist of the music industry. Ready for this one!? The band’s name derives from the protagonists of lead singer, Claudio Sanchez‘s sci-fi comic book series, The Armory Wars, and almost all of the band’s music serves as a soundtrack to the series. Over the last 25 years they have steadily released 11 studio albums that weave sci-fi and fantasy writing about cosmic rebellion, villains, and prophetic messiahs along with real-life heartbreak, personal struggles. All that being said, you’ll go crazy trying to figure out what the hell he is singing about in some of these songs. I prefer to focus more on the music while letting the vocals act as another instrument adding to the epic tracks that this band produces. As per usual I spent a lot of time tinkering with this list and although the band has such a large catalogue of music most of my selection comes from just two incredible albums. Although this list is just a small fraction of their music I think it gives a great variety of what this band has to offer. So let’s get into it with what might be the single best rock song of this millenia, Welcome Home!
Vin Cascella
Most Popular
Welcome Home
Welcome Home: Like many others this is the track that got me into Coheed and Cambria. Featured on the Rock Band video game this song had an absolute stranglehold on teenage me and still does to this day. Just an incredible rock epic from beginning to end. Last year when seeing Coheed play at MSG, good friend of the Cascella Music Club, John Entrieri mentioned one of my favorite things about this band. It was something along the lines of: How could a band that is so bad, make the greatest rock song of all time!?” While I disagree on the bad part, I do agree that this song is a masterpiece and can stand up to so many of the great modern rock songs. The intro guitar riff before it fully kicks in is wild, the epic verses and choruses are great too. But when the pace picks up during the bridge and leads into that dueling guitar solo… that section is truly unmatched. The Whooaaa-Ohhh outro along with the strings is the cherry on top. No critiques, a near perfect song. One more compliment! It’s even better live! They’ve really perfected it and it's an absolute spectacle. Here is one of my favorite examples: See Below
A Favor House Atlantic
I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that Claudio Sanchez’s voice is quite unique. Some people hate it, some people love it, I fall into the latter. I think it fits the group perfectly and this song is a great example of that. Interestingly enough he has a normal speaking voice. At first glance this song comes off as a pop song but when you really dig into it the musicality is absolutely insane. The drummer and basslines are wild and both Claudio and Travis Stever take turns ripping on guitar. Although barely over 3 minutes long this song continuously builds The instrumentals throughout and the hidden guitar solo in the last chorus are top notch. Two of their biggest hits and it already shows a pretty wide range for the group.
The Suffering
This and Blood Red Summer are probably the two songs that fit most into the pop culture of the time. It has that pop punk sound with that weird emo-esque vibe that was very popular at the time. Either of these songs would’ve crushed in the Twilight Saga. Although this is some of Coheed’s most approachable music, the song is still no slouch musically. Lots of fun drum fills, with good use of the ride in the verses and chorus. Coheed is definitely a headphones band, there is so much shit going on in this song. Pop song on the surface maybe but every instrument is dropping ridiculous fills throughout the song. It's as if a bunch of ultra talented session musicians had free reign to add as many fills and flair to a pop song. Sneaky talented.
Personal Favorites
In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3
And we’re back baby! Strap in for an eight minute epic about…well… I’m still not really sure., but damn is that guitar tone excellent. The intro and reprise of the intro in the back half of the song is probably some of my favorite music from this band, such a cool sound. Again I hope you’re listening with headphones on. Bassist Zach Cooper has so many awesome little riffs in this song. And while we are at it I might as well mention drummer Josh Eppard. While lead singer Claudio Sanchez is wild in his creative visions, he is a relatively low-key person. Josh on the other hand is a ball of energy, and it shows in his music. Some of his interviews are wildly entertaining as he jumps from idea to idea and that same concept can be seen in his drumming. Although he holds down these songs he is absolutely all over the place on the set. He uses fills so often it's difficult at times just to find the beat. Okay some more nerdy stuff about Coheed’s music and my selection process. This is shockingly the only song on my list with a long name. Some of the album titles and song names are wild and unlike other progressive bands they like to break up their long songs into individual parts. Instead of getting a single 20 minute track like 2112 you get songs like The Willing Well I, II, III, and IV which are each over 7 minutes long. So lucky for everyone I couldn’t stick you guys with a single thirty minute track this week! Now back to the song. Lots of stuff going on throughout but 6:30 onwards is equally epic, if not even more epic than Welcome Home. It’s one of my favorites. And again another track that is even better live! I’m going to link a live version of every song in this review because this is one of those bands that is great on their records but even better live. They play this song regularly and love adding a couple minutes of jamming that turn this 8 minute epic into something even greater!
Blood Red Summer
Quick song review incoming! It’s “The Suffering” but slightly less popular. Another song that got me hooked on Coheed when I was younger. Fun music video. Dope bass riffs throughout the entire song.
The Crowing
If Dave Attel is your favorite comedian’s favorite comedian then The Crowing is your favorite Coheed fan’s favorite song. The Coheed fandom LOVES this song as it continuously tops fan lists. The song is hugely significant to the lore of “The Amory Wars” as it directly addresses the prophecy and the awakening of the main protagonist. It’s the equivalent of John 3:16 to Coheed fans, and therefore it needs to be included on this list. Honestly I’m not even sure if it’s one of my favorites. It’s really dense. But god damn are they good at their instruments. The first half is pretty standard epic Coheed and Cambria stuff but right around the 3:00 minute mark… well strap the fuck in. A ridiculously heavy breakdown with some top notch fast guitar playing and pinch harmonics. Then the song chills out for a little until the rhythm and lead guitar builds into the song’s crescendo. They really love building to an epic finish. I hope I didn’t lose the audience on this one, because it is pretty dense. Great song though.
Unique Songs
A Disappearing Act
Claudio has hung up the guitar for the keyboard in this one, and added some vocal modulation (know dad’s going to hate that). I think this is a great song to add into the unique section. Although nothing like their other material I also think this is the closest they are to being a normal band. Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus, Outro. It’s crazy when a band’s unique music is the most normal sounding track on the list. And I actually like this song a lot, I think it’s a really fun pop rock song. I love the disco beat drums. Not all of their music needs to be doom and gloom epic space odysseys.
Wake Up
I have a few reasons why this fits well in the unique section. 1. It’s acoustic and stripped down. 2. The lyrics are actually sensical. The song was written by Claudio in a few minutes during a flight leaving California after saying goodbye to his then girlfriend (future wife). The lyrics lament on a classic tale of so many other rock acts: the pain of the band heading back on the road and not knowing when they would reunite with their family and loved ones. The song itself is still weird as hell and creepy sounding at times but this is some of the most grounded lyrics the band has. With the addition of some great guitar tone and a string section, Coheed has themselves another hit!
Mother Superior
And we close out with another wild song. Flipping the idea of Mother Superior as a maternal and nurturing force of a religious community, this song instead shows her as a confrontational force that confronts The Crowing for their cowardice, whining, and playing the victim (“Little Babybeee” sung in such a weird inflection). The song has some of the heaviest real-world lyrics. The track serves as a message to drummer Josh Eppard to grow up and be a man in regards to his struggle with drug abuse. Josh left the band from 2006-2011 and fortunately rejoined the band after getting himself clean. He’s noted many times that this song helped catalyze his recovery. Oddly enough the session drummer for the album was none other than Taylor Hawkins (RIP). Back to this Tim Burton-esque sounding track. Another epic building track that features both strings and piano. This song closes out my selection with another song full of little ear candies. It’s like every couple seconds another instrument is getting a mini solo. Another master class in song writing.
Conclusions
So that’s Coheed and Cambria. A band that is unapologetically themselves. Love them or hate them, I’m pretty sure the music world loves them because they tour with literally everyone. Feel free to look up all the bands from varying genres that they have toured with, it's ridiculous. Also, there was no reason for it to be in my nine songs but Coheed casually dropping “Jessie’s Girl 2” with Rick Springfield is still one of my favorite things that came out of the Covid Music era. They’re a really tight band who have consistently put out impressive music. Are they strange? Yes. Are their songs sometimes far too long and convoluted? Also yes. Are they willing to play what they want and not stay confined to any genre or music norms? Definitely yes and I think that's the best part of the band. I’ve already seen them once before at MSG but would love to see them again in a smaller venue. Maybe I’ll get to catch them rock in their hometown of Nyack someday, or re-record their first live album at the Starland Ballroom. Either way, great band!
8.3/10
Cascella Family Reviews
Live Video Links
Welcome Home: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1e5zfA5UvYo&list=RD1e5zfA5UvYo&start_radio=1
A Favor House Atlantic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7thx7CqO_k&list=RDD7thx7CqO_k&start_radio=1
The Suffering: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFE7I6HvDeY
In Keeping Secrets Of Silent Earth: 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HU9esM1C94k&list=RDHU9esM1C94k&start_radio=1
Blood Red Summer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_T6Y9P2K1E&list=RDJ_T6Y9P2K1E&start_radio=1
The Crowing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AApRjNmkT80&list=RDAApRjNmkT80&start_radio=1
A Disappearing Act: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8_TQPD15OQ&list=RDO8_TQPD15OQ&start_radio=1
Wake Up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcbsAR7lIN8&list=RDvcbsAR7lIN8&start_radio=1
Mother Superior:
Acoustic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gj-M4iU6ckU&list=RDGj-M4iU6ckU&start_radio=1
Normal Version: https://youtu.be/DQc742_fLok?list=RDDQc742_fLok&t=1272
Dad Cascella
Coheed and Cambria (C & C) is a band I only know about because of Vincent. What I recall from my previous listens is that they are a guitar-driven, hard rock/Progressive band that I find are somewhat similar sounding to Rush, with a little Zep thrown in. And I have to admit, for many, many years I thought the band's name derived from the two front men, obviously I was wrong. Let’s see what this band has to offer.
WELCOME HOME- I definitely know this rocker, I believe this was an original from the video game Rock Band. And it’s a monster. Guitar beginning, with heavy riffs, kind of Zep meets Tool meets Metallica. And the heavy drums throughout fill in tremendously. And the musical changes all thru the song really works for me. Great production throughout also. Vocals are Geddy’ish. Lyrics tell a harsh story. This isn’t a syruppy break-up song, this is a Die, Bitch, Die song “Now get in the grave”. Wow!! Everything that’s right in a rock and roll song are in this first selection. Watching live versions, with double-neck guitar leading the way, and female background vocalists adding to the power of the song really shows the strength of this band. Great opening
A FAVOR HOUSE ATLANTIC- An odd song title, but I also know this one. Fast paced, Rockish/Popish song with tribal drumming leading the music. After Welcome Home I find this one to be okay, maybe a tad generic in music. Shorter song with repeated lyrics mostly, but I have no idea what about. Doing some diving I saw that most of C & C music/lyrics center around a sci-fi storyline called The Amory Wars. But not knowing this storyline leaves me a bit out when dissecting lyrics. That’s o.k., because the lyrics were pretty good on their own. Live versions, better and definitely more rocking. And the bass player is a beast.
THE SUFFERING- Damn, I know this one too. Pretty decent song, but not their best. I’m noticing that so far C & C follows a familiar tone to their music. Power chords overlapping a higher pitched lead guitar overlapping an even higher vocal. I like it, but I’m hoping we get some different music also. Good, solid song. I liked the lyrics, though I wasn’t crazy about the “Hey, Hey”s. Actually liked the studio version better than live performances I watched.
IN KEEPING SECRETS OF SILENT EARTH: 3- Soft guitar work leading to a pretty cool opening to another power-chord rocker. Love the heavy bass (TOOL-like) throughout. Bass player takes over this one. I’m guessing the lyrics have something to do with an upcoming battle in that sci-fi storyline. “I’ll kill anything, cut the throats of babies for them”. Yikes!! Wait a minute, a complete change at the 4:30 mark. This song has so many parts, and it’s all really cool. I’m also guessing this song plays a big part in the story line? But again, I wish I knew what that storyline was. Btw, this band takes on a whole new life in live concerts, especially in this epic number.
BLOOD RED SUMMER Similar to the generic rock sound from a Favor House Atlantic. Good music with lead guitar overlaps, but it’s their same sound, with verse, chorus, verse, chorus, lead guitar between. I like the sound but it’s getting a little monotonous. I need something different. And this song is a classic example of live version being so much better than studio.
THE CROWING- Stunted guitar/bass/drums leading into a really good rock song, with different progressions and shifts. Musically has a Zep feel. The drums really stand out in this one, especially at the midpoint. But again, sorry to be repetative, but for a first time listener, not knowing the whole storyline takes away from the listen. It’s kind of like listening to 2112, the whole first side, for the first time. Really cool music but have no idea what the lyrics are about, other than “I will kill you all”. I want to know why this guy is so angry. Six songs in a row and there’s no mistaking who I’m listening to. I want different.
A DISAPPEARING ACT- Do you know the expression “Be careful what you wish for”? I wished for different, and got different in this song. But holy shit, C & C doing electronica? While this type of music is not my type, have to give kudo’s for being different. Hard to describe this big sounding production song. Very popish,almost danceable, but with the Coheed sound. Not a very good song.
WAKE UP- I can’t believe it!! A slow song, and a very good one at that. And with keyboards? Wow, is this C & C? Sing softly, as he’s leaving, we get the lyric “I’ll do anything for you, kill anyone for you”. Didn’t see that coming. Beautifully constructed song of leaving a loved one with hope of returning. And he sings it with heart. Maybe I’m getting soft in my old age, but this one is a hit with me. Very good soft guitar work, with great soft lyrics. And I loved that when done in concert, the whole audience is singing along.
MOTHER SUPERIOR- Soft opening to another song I know. And I really like this one, surprised it’s not one of their more popular songs. Big production, cool music, cool lyrics. And a solid structured song throughout, with softness and edginess intertwined. Yes, it’s definitely their same sound, but something about this one stands out to me. And btw, the acoustic version from 2007 NAMM show, is excellent, just talented guys playing a cool song.
So that’s Coheed and Cambria. This was a long listen for me, and a very deep dive. Very interesting story that most of this bands music, and its been over 25 years, revolves around their made-up sci-fi world. Maybe some day I’ll go deeper and read up of this sci-fi world, but like I said, it was a long listen, and I’m tired. To me, this is a solid rock and roll band, maybe a bit heavier than I first knew. They play loud, guitar driven rock in concert. I thought a bit of their music was repetitive, with several songs having the same sound. While guitars are the driving force, I have a new appreciation for their bass player and drummer, both of whom, I think, are especially talented and raise the level for this band. I really liked many of these selections, and was okay with the others (except that atrocious A Disappearing Act. I’ll go with a 7.7
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