minorthreat78's Full Review: The Second Stage Turbine Blade by Coheed & Cambria
My personal relationship with Coheed and Cambria is a short, yet somewhat storied one. When first I bought their second album, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, I was left somewhat surprised by the hype in the punk/emo community surrounding the band. I didn't find the album necessarily bad, just lacking; the songs were too long, and, at times, it seemed like the band was trying too hard.
While, over time, I grew to appreciate the album, initially, I didn't entirely like it. One thing that many people told me was that I should check out their first album, as it lacked many of the problems I had with Silent Earth. Thus, I review the band's first album, Second Stage Turbine Blade.
For those who do not know, Coheed and Cambria is a four-piece band from New Jersey who, for some odd reason, are particularly popular with emo and punk fans. I say this is odd, as the band really isn't a punk band, or even really an emo band. They are primarily a prog-metal band with a decided punk influence, but outside of some vaguely "emo"-ish themes in their songs, they aren't really a typical "punk" or "emo" band. I can't entirely account for this, but it is true.
Coheed and Cambria often are compared to Rush, which is either a fair or unfair comparison, depending on your perspective. Mostly, the comparison comes from lead singer Claudio Sanchez operating mostly in extremely high registers, much like Geddy Lee from Rush. Also, the fairly lengthy songs and the heavy utilization of synths may also be attributed to this comparison.
Oh yeah, and there is the science-fiction angle.
This is a difficult element of the band to explain, mostly because of the lyrical content being somewhat vague, and partly because the band hasn't really been too forthcoming with explication of their lyrics, but, essentially, the lyrics of their songs tell the story of Claudio and Cambria, two lovers in a world long, long ago and far, far away. Somehow or other, the two get wrapped up in a planetary conspiracy that leads their families into a world war carried out in retaliation for their death (said death occurs at the end of Second Stage Turbine Blade). This album (the band's first) is the second part of the four-part story, and the follow-up, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, is the third. Sometime in 2005, the fourth part, which has some ridiculously long title involving the duo's dog, Apollo (I swear I am not making this up), will be released. I have no idea where the first part is, so don't ask.
All of that aside, though, the plot is largely irrelevant. The songs are generally meaningful, even without the political sci-fi thrill overtones, and most of the album is quite tuneful.
Following the mostly meaningless titular intro track, the album moves into the bouncy, synth-laden "Time Consumer". The lyrics to the song are mostly impenetrable, but catchy, and the up-tempo pace starts the album out nicely, moving seamlessly to "Devil in Jersey City". Since the song is about running away and seeking refuge, the hard-driving pace of the song makes sense. This is also one of the more punk-influenced songs on the album, with little in the way of guitar solos or complex chord changes.
On the other end of the spectrum is the next song, "Everything Evil". Much more epic-sounding with frequent tempo shifts and multiple chord progressions, it a more metal-sounding song than "Jersey City".
Such is the oddity of this album, and both the good and bad aspect of it. Coheed and Cambria do a pretty good job of mixing together prog-metal and punk/emo, but it does tend to lead to the songs on this album having a somewhat halting progression, as the band noodles around through some nifty metal stuff, only to pop into a relatively conventional pop-punk chorus. On songs like the aforementioned "Everything Evil", it makes for a song with several memorable lyrics and guitar riffs; on songs like "Junesong Provision", it makes for a generally pleasant listen that is, nevertheless, not terribly easy to recall. Granted, memorability is hardly the sole test for quality, but I did notice this.
Overall, however, the album is quite good, and, at least in my mind, superior to their follow-up. The album does tend to lag toward the end, and the songs are a bit overlong (several are over 5:30), but, as a whole, the album is a quirky and intriguing album with several memorable tracks, and some unique ideas.
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