So
Coheed and Cambria manage to combine elements of
Pink Floyd,
Rush, and
Wagner without making a damn bit of sense lyrically. When will we learn that sci-fi concept albums are almost impossible to understand?
To whit, Coheed and Cambria are making a series of concept albums that tell a long, convoluted religious fable-cum-scifi epic. The third part of the series, the somewhat inaccurately titled
Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through The Eyes of Madness (mouthful!) came out today, and I've been considering reviewing it to try and get an in with the local papers. (Bear in mind my choices for new releases are Coheed,
Bon Jovi,
Earth Wind & Fire,
Disturbed, and
Barbra Streisand, so Coheed is looking kinda promising now.) To prepare for the album, I figured I'd try to review the storyline... only to find, even their hardcore fans
aren't sure what the storyline is. Is this part of the fun? Or is the concept behind the album cycle just too complex to be conveyed, even with the assistance of a comic book series (no, seriously)?
Let it be noted, I'm often heard complaining about problems on the other end of the spectrum with
The Wall. Insufficient clarity sucks, but when you need an eight-minute piece bordering on recitative that completely breaks the musical flow of the album to make sure your listeners realize they were listening to a story, you should probably go back a step and replan the ending of your album.
Luckily, unlike "
The Trial," Coheed & Cambria can stand on its own and still be entertaining. And actually, thinking about it,
In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3 is a step forward in terms of actually writing catchy post-hardcore punk/pop songs with flowing melodies and lyrics; the lyrical lines from
The Second Stage Turbine Blade get broken up in awkward ways fairly frequently, which even further complicates analysis of the storyline. But with luck, Good Apollo will be another step forward.
I've also been informed that the newly-titular character Apollo is a dog. Hooray!
Coheed and Cambria