Hello Apollo, where should I begin? With those words, the New York based band Coheed and Cambria launch the listener down a road of epic melodic proportion with their sophomore album, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth:3.
For those of you not familiar with Coheed and Cambria here is a little back story. Started in 2001, the band was formed by guitarist and singer Claudio Sanchez, guitarist Travis Stever, Josh Eppard on drums, and bassist Michael Todd. Their albums are written around a concept based on a story by Sanchez called "Armory Wars." In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3 is the second album the band put out, released in 2003, and it serves as a testimony to the truly unique sound the band has.
The album hits the listener hard from the beginning with the song In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3. I'm usually not a fan of title tracts; they feel rushed and they are rarely memorable, this song is not the case. In Keeping Secrets takes the listener down a slow melodic road with a low guitar and a light drum beat. The song quickly shifts into a hard hitting intro that trows the listener into a frenzy and doesn't stop until almost the end of the song, where the opening theme comes back and leads to a huge finale with a choir singing backup to Sanchez's vocals.
From there the album keeps the listener pumped up and wanting more. Songs of note include: Cuts Marked in the March of Men, Blood Red Summer, and A Flavor House Atlantic. These songs are the top songs in my opinion, though the entire disc is good and rarely has down points. If there are any they would be the screams that take away from the very melodic vocal lines. Sanchez's voice can come across as whinny at times, but the listener quickly discovers that it is his voice that brings the music together.
All in all this is album is a must have for anyone who likes progressive rock or for anyone who wants to listen to an amazing album. You should be warned that some of the songs will leave you scratching your head but you must remember; these songs are telling a part of a story that spans four albums.
With Coheed and Cambria you rarely can go wrong though. I saw them live at Warped Tour two years ago and they rocked the stage. Sanchez's vocals held up to the test and the band put on a top notch show
Coheed and Cambria are about to release a live dvd called, "The Neverender" which documents their performance of all four albums in order, telling the now complete story of "Armory Wars." This dvd is due in stores March 26.
So I'm going to label this album a must own. You should go out and get it, listen to it, and form your own opinion of this amazing album put out by an amazing band.
Till next time.
Always Listening
Nick
