YEAR OF THE BLACK RAINBOW

You've got to hand it to Coheed and Cambria for being the first "concept band" with all their albums (and associated comics) devoted to this one Sci-fi story. I can't even really begin to understand the details of the story, but that doesn't matter, the songs rock!

In some ways Coheed and Cambria are a perfect mix of Tool's foreboding high tension restraint and Mars Volta's everything including the kitchen sink post-Prog! I love how Coheed brings that certain heaviness to the table and also a bit of an alternative rock sensibility. Not your typical prog metal band by any stretch. I think they really hit the spot for Prog fans that want it hard, but don't want to hear the same old prog metal shredding, but still with some neo-prog fantasy metal that can kick ass.

I personally think each their first four studio albums get progressively better up to 2007's "Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume Two: No World for Tomorrow". A great album I'd give 5* . Each album shows growth, and changes in musical vision. "No World for Tomorrow" is when it all comes together, with the strongest, most immediate, and most commercial sounding songs to date.

Their latest, "Year of the Black Rainbow" serves as the first book or prequel to the five part series. Musically, its another step forward for the band. In fact, the most striking aspect of this album is how they've expanded their sonic pallet to create their most menacing sound to date. By and large the music is more ferocious, dark and less immediate than on the last album. This largely adds to the power of the music, as several songs are crammed with dense arrangements in an overall fierce package.

"Here We Are Juggernaut" is simply the best C&C song ever. There's a brutal momentum in this song ? without being hardcore thrash -- that packs a musical punch like I've seldom heard before. Which gets back to the overall point of their new sound, to be dark and foreboding, but not thrashy, or using the boring clichés overused in Prog-metal. In other words, this won't make your ears hurt.

Considering the power of their vision, it's a shame the producer didn't pull the plug on a couple of the songs. There's three songs that are not up to snuff, which would be fine if they put them at the end of the album, but unfortunately they're poorly placed tracks at #3, #6, and #10. But hey, that's what the skip button is for.

Another excellent C&C album!

'Year Of The Black Rainbow' - Coheed & Cambria (5/10)

Having bought this on the day it came out a few days ago, suffice to say I was pretty excited about this record coming out. Coheed & Cambria has said that this would be the final record in their multi-album concept piece, and be a prequel of sorts to the other albums. Now I would finally be able to listen to all five chapters in a row and still not have the slightest clue what the storyline is about!

In all seriousness however, my first listen left me in a very bad mood. While I was expecting something that was a natural progression from their last record 'No World For Tommorow' which is arguably their best, I instead get an album that has some of the most horrible factors Coheed has ever possessed, with their worst production ever to boot. The album before this sounded crystal clear; you could hear every instrument and detail in the mix, and the mixing sounded very three-dimensional. This sounds like listening to a typical Coheed & Cambria mix, except through an AM radio station or something. While I was never a big fan of the guy who produced Tool to begin with, this is much more horrible then anything I've ever heard him produce? It's almost like he was trying to sabotage what is otherwise one of the leading bands in modern prog.

To put it simply, after I first listened to 'Black Rainbow,' I was so dissapointed that I went as far as calling it the 2010 equivalent to Muse's 2009 disaster 'The Resistance.' And we all know how bad THAT was.

Onto the music and songwriting itself? It's a lot harder to appreciate when it sounds like the band is playing in a big seashell, but a lot of the songwriting itself is pretty solid. The melodies are solid, and some of the songs rank up there as being some of Coheed's best. A few songs however, really kill the album and its flow. The most obvious and pronounced of these, is the nightmare entitled 'Guns Of Summer.'

It's almost like Claudio Sanchez suddenly decided he wanted to be a noise-electronica artist and make a song that has now become the standard concept of 'being horrible' in the eyes of both myself and another friend who was excited to get the album, and ended up having virtually the same opinion as me.

This is a grower however. As you may have noticed, I gave this album three stars, which shows that it's not absolutely horrible. If I had been forced to rate this after my first listen, I would have given it a low two star rating, and filled this review even fuller of horrible things. Quite a few of the songs are really good, and while some minor edits could have taken place (IE: taking out 'Guns Of Summer' and putting it on a Japanese vinyl limited special edition where it belongs) it's really not that bad of an album.

While the songwriting is pretty good and some songs like the singles 'Here We Are Juggernaut,' and 'Broken,' the driving ballads 'Far' and 'Pearl Of The Stars,' and some other catchy rock songs have a lot of credibility to them besides the horrible production, 'Year Of The Black Rainbow' stands as certainly being the band's low point, even if Claudio says it's the 'best thing they have done so far.' Decent stuff for the most part, but they could have done so much better.

Ok, I bought this with some trepidation, since I wasn't the biggest fan of their previous outing, No World for Tomorrow. I was pleasantly surprised. This is easily one of Coheed's best albums. It's obvious they really focused on songwriting this time around. The radio ready tracks alone (the Broken, Here We are Juggernaut, Far, Made of Nothing) show real improvement as they are not nearly as grating as previous efforts and are bound to have a longer shelf life (Feathers, the Running Free, I'm looking at you). Coheed has cut back on the overblown, pretentious crap and put out an album full of what they do best; kick ass, original rock songs with undertones of pop sensibility. The drumming really shines on this album with the addition of Chris Pennie of Dillinger Escape Plan fame. He has breathed some much needed energy back into this band. There are really no weak tracks to be found, especially if you're already a fan. One of the standouts is Guns of Summer. For some reason this song has split the fan base but it's really one of the best Coheed songs I've heard in a long time. Great job guys. Put out another album like this and I'll start the Rush comparisons.

`Year of the Black Rainbow,' is a fine album indeed, maybe a little different than some may have been expecting but of undeniably high quality, in terms of superb songwriting, outstanding musicianship and a production job that feels almost like an instrument unto itself. I can imagine that the band may lose a few fair weather fans with this album, but those who remain will find a wholly enjoyable album that gets better with each listen.

Coheed and Cambria are not a band you could ever accuse of stagnation. Perhaps 'Departure,' is too strong, but this album is certainly different, the album seems to make a conscious effort not to sound too much like 2007's 'No World For Tomorrow,' album, eschewing the slick almost overproduced sound and bright tones for an almost industrial sound, with more electronics, flatter tones and an abundance of samples, electro drums, odd guitar tones and vocal effects.

Drummer Chris Pennie is a perfect fit for this band, and fits perfectly with the band's established drum style on songs like `World of Lines,' and `The Broken,' but adds a whole new flavor to the excellent almost drum solo quality `Guns of Summer,' and `In The Flame of Error,' which are at times unlike anything you've ever heard on a Coheed album before.

The songwriting also seems to be more in line with the band's work before Good Apollo than after, but all the new tones, sounds and Claudio's vocals stop this from sounding like a rehash of new ideas, but rather a new era of Coheed all together.

Lyrically, the album seems to be a lot more personal than the previous two albums and features barely any reference to place names, character names, or words like `Prise,' `Mon-Star,' or `Key Frame,' this may please some sections of the fans and upset others, but given the quality of the lyrics and vocal performance few will be disappointed in any serious way.

Highlights include the fast potential single `World Of Lines,' the drumming masterpiece `In The Flame of Error,' and the superb semi-ballad `Pearl of the Stars,' which features some brilliant unusual percussion, beautiful guitar work and possibly Claudio's finest vocal performance to date, switching between new low pitched vocals and his traditional style to great effect.

Overall this is a superb Coheed and Cambria album and rewards repeat listening; the new drummer, the very noticeable production and the new lyrical approach keep the album very fresh.

Now this is the first album released by Coheed since I have become a fan, so I was very pumped up to see this album come out! However, I will admit that I was a little disappointed at first. Coheed did seem to lose a little of their progginess in this album. I thought Chris Pennie would have added a lot to Coheed's new sound, and I was un-impressed with his work here. But as I continued to listen, the songs grew on me, Especially In the Flame or Error, and When Skeletons live. The best songs on the album is Far by far, no pun intended, but it is a very contemporary pop song. Since this is a prog website, this album is not essential, but I will give this album 4 stars. A pretty strong effort, but certainly not their best.

Coheed returns with the prequel to their Amory Wars concept angle and it's a step-up from 2007's No World For Tomorrow. Coheed really reasserts their unique style on this album after opting for a more neo-classic rock approach a few years ago. This is a positive. However, their approach is more formulaic and streamlined than it was in the past. There aren't any lengthy prog epics to be found here, and the only song that goes over six minutes is probably one of the weakest in their entire catalog. This is somewhat of a negative.

However, I am here to grade the album for what's actually there, not for what isn't there. And what's here is very good. Vocally, this is lead singer Claudio Sanchez's strongest album, with at least two really strong hooks in each track. That said, it's certainly their catchiest album, a testament to the band's strong pop sensibilities. Still, there is plenty here for the progressive music fan, with awesome musical showcases and a sense of grandosity that goes along with any prog album.

I would consider this a good addition to a prog collection. This is not as good or progressive as 2002's Second Stage Turbine Blade or From Fear Through The Eyes Of Madness from 2005, but it's light years ahead of most music being released today and can stand toe to toe with most of the progressive albums in my collection in terms of quality. This was obviously an inspired effort for the Coheed boys and there is plenty here to like.

HIGHLIGHTS:

The Broken - Coheed loves to open with an epic and this one manages to capture that in just under four minutes. The breakdown in the middle is as powerful as the band had gotten.

Guns Of Summer - best technical showcase on the album. Great contrast between the mind-bending verse and the soaring chorus.

Made Out Of Nothing (All That I Am) - maybe the poppiest thing on this album.... but I can't help but love when pop is done THIS well. This is my personal favorite on the album. Everything here just works perfectly, listen for yourself.

In The Flame Of Error - heavy, dark, powerful piece. Huge highlight near the end of the album. That riff in the verse is just awesome.

****/5

In terms of songwriting and 'making a catchy song' this is where ya go to, really taking the mature side of things with this album there is also a little less prog than the last two albums and slightly more pop but it doesnt matter when the songs are this good , it is the prequal to the infamous Amory Wars saga and one of the best (in my opinion, if i had to pick) i just think that the songs really came into full force, being even more amazing and catchyer than i could ever possibly imagine, again production and music involved is just unreal, its just a great album there all fantastic, and i highly reccomend them all, but if you had to start somewhere id say here cause you really get to the jist of what Coheed and Cambria want to be and are, and thats just a fantastic rock band; Standout tracks are FAR, MADE OUT OF NOTHING,the epic THE BLACK RAINBOW and THIS SHATTERED SYMPHONY

One - 9/10 The Broken - 9/10 Guns of Summer - 8/10 Here We Are Juggernaut - 9/20 Far - 10/10 This Shattered Symphony - 10/10 World of Lines - 10/10 Made Out of Nothing (All That I Am) - 10/10 Pearl of the Stars -10/10 In The Flame of Error - 10/10 When Skeletons Live - 9/10 The Black Rainbow - 10/10

My Conclusion? this should be the first album you go to for your first Coheed fix, a new era of Coheed and Cmabria?, let it begin!

I tried to be as fair as I could when reviewing this album. Coheed and Cambria have been my favourite band for a while, and being impartial was not going to be easy. In terms of pure musicianship and lyrical concept, this album would have easily scored a 5 from me, but I had to take it all into context.

Meet Coheed and Cambria. For those who don't know, they are a "Concept Band" if you will, all of the songs in their back catalogue corresponding to an important event in a series of comics, graphic novels and, with this one, hardcover novels called "The Amory Wars". This is their fifth album, and possibly the last in the Amory Wars concept. Fear not, however, frontman Claudio Sanchez stated that Co&Ca will continue afterwards, saying "The band always comes before the story."

Year of the Black Rainbow, then. This is a prequel story, which takes place before their debut, Second Stage Turbine Blade. Musically, they've evolved an enourmous deal, yet aren't afraid to take it back to their roots. I would say that this album in particular, blends in all 4 of their albums they had released previously, as well as Shabutie and Prize Fighter Inferno, the pre-band and Claudio Sanchez's side project respectively. It is a flurry of musicianship, much more so than anything they've ever done.

The album starts off with the ambient, creepy intro of "One". It's a gentle, piano led piece which Coheed fans will pick up that it has a little bit of the intro from their debut floating about. After that, it blends straight into a hard rocker, The Broken. This is a typical Coheed song, dual guitars pacing the way for strong basslines and emotion filled vocals. Chris Pennie also makes his debut in this album, and he absolutely murders those drums. The album is a display of some of the most blistering drum parts I have ever heard.

This drumming is carried onto "Guns of Summer", which Rock Band nerds should've bought already. It pounds its way furoiusly into your head and, if you thought anything less of Coheed, shows you their technical side.

Then comes the great single "Here We Are Juggernaut". I say great because, well, it's a great song. It's starts of metallic, and progressively gets more Coheed-like as it moves along. The next few songs also show a more technical and experimental side to Coheed. After that, comes "World of Lines". Any true fan of rock music should be able to respect this song. It just rocks, listen to it.

My personal two favourites are the heavy "In the Flame of Error", a magnificent display of true Coheed-ness and a love for heavy metal, shared by all of the members of Coheed and Cambria. My other one is "When Skeletons Live". This song is, plain and simple, awesome. From the keyboard led intro, to the brilliant chorus, this is one of my favourite Coheed songs of all time.

Now we come to the weaker parts. Although this is a great album, it lacks one thing that I've always loved about Coheed. The big, fat epics in the vein of "In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3" and any of the "Willing Wells". Also, the structure of this album is a bit more generic, more normal than I would expect of Coheed. But, as a wise man once said, is it the taste of a brownie or the shape of the brownie that makes it a brownie?

Overall, this is a fantastic album. Whilst it may not go down in history as a "prog masterpiece", it certainly will please the fans and bring new followers alike.

So far, all the written opinions of this year 2010 album have been limited to more or less glowing fan accolades. As an open-minded newcomer to the soundworld of Coheed and Cambria, I would be interested in reading more of the (sadly, rating only) one- and two-star reviews. Clearly, a contrary opinion from a more detached critical perspective is needed.

The immediate attraction here was exposure to a new group (new to me, at least), indirectly endorsed by Steve Wilson of PORCUPINE TREE. The two bands are currently touring together, but after hearing their latest-to-date album I would have to say these guys sound strictly like a supporting act: hence my scrupulous two-star, fans-only assessment.

The music itself is relentlessly commercial, with a boilerplate metallic edge apparently tailored to fit an audience demographic (instead of rising naturally from anything like an original style, in other words). At their best, the quartet resembles a mainstream reduction of THE MARS VOLTA, minus that group's uncompromising creativity and weirdness.

The lead vocals, by Claudio Sanchez, are in particular a trial, full of calculated heavy metal stridency and enough breathless, over-emotional posturing to make even a microphone ham like NEIL MORSE blush with embarrassment. The album's brief, instrumental opener ("One") raised my hopes for something unique, only to dash them when the singing started. The rest of the album follows the same pattern, in the end being entirely too song- oriented, but without a memorable hook within earshot.

The back-story behind the music is also, at least on this album, completely inscrutable (a synopsis of the companion sci-fi novel, likewise written by Sanchez and included in a separate box set, hardly clarifies the narrative). And as for their claim of being (quoting their bio here at Prog Archives) "the first and only concept band"...well, sorry boys, but CHRISTIAN VANDER and MAGMA beat you to that goal by a good thirty years!

This might not have been the best introduction to Coheed and Cambria. But on the other hand, there's nothing in any other review here to suggest otherwise. Maybe a deeper exploration into their back catalogue is necessary; stay tuned?

Have you ever heard about The Mars Volta? Have you ever listen to their music? Did you find it's interesting in places but too chaotic, complex, psychedelic, noisy, vocals are not what you can accept, etc.?

Great news for you! There are the sweet simplified TMV version - Coheed & Cambria! They can play some simple and accessible scratchy guitars, they have not very pleasant, but at least "more normal" vocals, they have so nice and pretty melodies, and - they are sooo accessible!

From now you can be cool without destroying of your minds and nerve system: the good decisions are always near you! Ok, sound is flat, songs sound more as parodies, than real ones, musicianship level is similar to your college band's. And what? Who told only complex and professional music could be named as prog?

I am too old-fashioned, so I hear too many funny things in C & C music, kind of street rebels with make up, playing Kiss-met-Green Day,etc. Anyway, don't think they have any relations to classic prog rock. Possibly they are "prog for the simple people" related. Why not - we have Kate Bush version adapted to that category (Tori Amos).

Whenever I am not a fan and no expert in such new-fashioned genres, the only thing I can tell to classic prog fans: avoid this album, no relation with classic prog at all!

"Year of the Black Rainbow" is yet another leg of Coheed and Cambria's progressive alternative metal journey and, like the previous five releases, this album is not easy to categorize. One thing is for sure though: the emo and power pop elements are all but gone, the metal influence seeming to have taken over over. This means that this album is the darkest release by the band so far (with the two "Good Apollo" albums being darker than the two first albums but not as dark as this one).

There are progressive and alternative elements in all tracks, but the metal is now dominant as heard in tracks like heavy rocker "The Broken", the almost industrial like "Guns of Summer", the upbeat "World of Lines", "In the Flame of Error" (once it gets started properly) and "Where Skeletons Live". Other tracks draw more on alternative rock (noise rock being the primary source of input from the world of alternative rock this time), while still containing several heavy metal elements, such as "Made Out Of Nothing (All That I Am)", "Here We Are Juggernaut" and the title track, which combines noise rock, progressive rock and alternative metal. "Far" and "Pearl of the Stars" do not qualify as metal songs, but they're quite interesting anyway.

"Year of the Black Rainbow" is an interesting alternative metal album which , I think, will be appreciated by fans of heavy metal, progressive metal, alternative metal, and alternative rock.

In order for bands to keep being interesting, they need change once in a while. Now Coheed have changed quite a bit in their 11 years of activity. From changes in line ups, to slight sound differences now and then, their fan base, and the music world have acclaimed them.

Now we all expected change from the band. After a 4 album concept string, the band decided to release a prequel. Now these guys could have easily made an easily accesible album, and it would have done good for them. But these guys obviously do care alot about their music, so progession is needed...and is shown in this album.

I think this is the album that really defines them as a "band", because it shows alot of maturity than the previous 4 albums, and shows a lot of progression, and defining their sound, which has changed quite a bit.

This album reminds me of the direction that Radiohead opted for. Coming from their most catchy album The Bends, Ok Computer was a more experimental album which showed off what the band could do.

I don' t want to sound corny or anything, but their really is a magical atmosphere to this album. Don't get me wrong, each song is accesible, but even when you get the bare bones of it, and listen really careflly, their is always something odd that you can pick out. Examples of this can be seen in the slower tempo ballad songs, where you have a really beautiful moment, yet in the background theirs industrial sounding beats (Far), use of synths to add deep textures, and even use of noise and soundscapes. This can also be seen in the more poppier songs, the darker songs and even the more proggier songs.

The instrumentation of the album is pretty interesting. The catchy guitar licks are gone, the noticable drum and bass lines are gone and the really really catchy vocal moments aren't as highlighted. Instead, the band act as a band, where the production is so good, that everything isn't as hughlighted as it used to be. it's just a very raw sounding album, where coming from the Neverender concerts, the band opted for a more live sounding sound. Even then, the Eno like soundscapes and sound trickery is in the background like a wandering ghost.

The post hardcore element which was nearly lost in the previous album is back, but more mature and easily tamed. All in all, the its Coheed still, but its still proves that these guys still have what it takes to keep us all interested. Their seems to be more artistic freedom on this album, where anything could be sung, any note could be played and anything could happen, and it wouldn't ruin it, it would only make it more interesting. I like to think of this album a bit like looking at a very minamilistic painting and comparing it a Van Gough painting, where yes the Van Gough painting is pretty and all that, but the toilet seat made out of chrome is way more interesting. It's just a very domestic album. Although, this album isn't that avante garde, so don't worry, its still Coheed, mixing prog with pop.

1. One - Quite post rock esque. Very atmopsheric and is incredibly effective for an intro. 9/10

2. The Broken - When I first heard this song, I was expecting alot more from Coheed, but when you listen to it more than once, you kind of understand it, and you really get to love it. A very dark song with hints of sarcasm. Very different and a completely different direction for the band. 10/10

3. Guns Of Summer - I love how this song progresses throughout. Amazing instrumentation and the chorus is great, and way more interesting that these guys have ever done before. 10/10

4. Here We Are Juggernaut - Even though this song is probabbly the most poppiest and accesible song on the album, its still quite dark underneath its skin. Quite catchy, and great arrangement. 10/10

5. Far - This is the example of a very beautiful song, yet their is something quite disturbing in it, especially with the use of industrial sounding beats. It's just a very tense moment on the album, yet its still beautiful. 10/10

6. This Shattered Symphony - Quite dark. Great vocals in the chorus, I love it when something is shouted so much, its sounds like someone is in pain. Great atmosphere. 9/10

7. World Of Lines - One of the best chorus' on the album. Quite punky and very upbeat. 10/10

8. Made Out Of Nothing (All That I Am) - I'm sick of my brother doing acoustic versions of this song haha. It's a beautiful song, yet theirs something still that makes the hairs on your back raise in fright. Great arrangement. 10/10

9. Pearl Of The Stars - Very Prize Fighter Inferno. It's interesting to hear Claudio experiment with his voice and sing in a lower octave. Beautiful song and great chorus. The lyrics are quite interesting too. 10/10

10. In The Flame Of Error - My brother thinks this is one of Coheed's best chorus', but I highly disagree. I think this is the weakest moment on the album, but its still a great and insteresting song, mainly because of its arrangement. 9/10

11. When Skeletons Live - Now this is one of Coheed's best chorus'. The post hardcore sound is heard, but its tamed really well. 10/10

12. The Black Rainbow - Beautiful intro. The jam like feeling really is pulled of well, and of course its reminiscent to The Final Cut. The ending is a bit odd, but I feel their's a purpose for it. 10/10

CONCLUSION: This album prooves that these guys will always be able to interest and keep their audience as interested as they first started. It also plainly shows that these guys still care about the music they make, and will always. Their next album should be an interesting moment.

When I first listened to this album back when it came out, I kinda glossed over it, seeing it as just another album in the release schedule and throwing it in the back of my music library. Having seen it there for all these years I decided to give it a couple of listens to actually get my actual opinion on this. After all, I listen to all of their previous releases on a near-regular basis, so why not this one? Turns out, there's some very good reasons why I threw it out.

For starters, it's not really very Coheedesque, and it suffers for that. Where the prominent and delicious guitar riffs would be, they replaced it with more drums, which are fine, but not really engaging at all. Where are the guitars now? Shoved in the back and doing less cool riffing and more mindless shredding and it too fails to engage at any level past "oh hey, that's kind of cool". All of this really just leads to an album that if you don't pay direct attention to, will make from 0:00 to 54:02 be entirely uneventful.

The production sounds really muddled, everything just kind of fuses into everything else with only Claudio popping up sometimes like in "The Broken" or "Far", but even he becomes a huge part of the blob. It takes a special kind of production to make the thing that your brain is built to focus on not be focused.

A lot of the songwriting here is a lot duller than your usual Coheed fare, too. There was never really a dull moment in any of the other albums, but now we have a couple of songs that have absolutely nothing going for them. One of the biggest offenders is Made Out of Nothing, which is just a couple of muttered verses and a chorus repeated ad nauseum like a dull 80's power ballad. The big supposed rocker "Here We Are Juggernaut" barely rocks too, suffering from the "throw the riffs under the bus syndrome" leaving the only bite to come out of Claudio's delivery of the chorus, and just can't hold it up alone.

The story is good in and of itself and if you're an Amory Wars fan or just a huge Coheed fan, you'll prolly enjoy it. If you're looking into Coheed and Cambria, go get In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth or Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV and steer clear from this. You'll be bored to tears otherwise.

After a string of great albums, particularly the excellent Good Apollo duology, it's honestly slightly amazing how much worse this album is compared to anything Coheed and Cambria has made before or since. The vocals aren't anywhere as good as normal, with Claudio sounding somewhat strained whenever trying to be dramatic, and the instrumentation is considerably weaker, with no moments that stand out to me, which is a hugs letdown after previous albums, even the fairly average 'Second Stage Turbine Blade' had many parts which sounded simply excellent. By far the biggest issue with this album is the production, which is horribly muddy and washed out, further reducing any impact that the instrumental sections have, along with just sounding outright bad all around.

The songs are also quite weak for the most part, with many of them sounding very similar to one another, with only a few songs that actually stand out in any way. The most notable example is an outlier in the band's entire career, the divisive 'Guns of Summer', which utilises a great deal of electronics sounding almost like breakcore in sections, being extremely energetic. While the instrumentation here is actually quite interesting, the vocals bring it down to some extent, making it a song I have quite mixed feelings about it, which is an issue since it's one of the better tracks here. Other than this, there are two songs on the album that are genuinely decent, 'Pearl of the Stars' and 'This Shattered Symphony'. 'Pearl of the Stars' is quite a nice, emotional ballad, that while not of the same quality as 'Mother Superior' or 'Once Upon Your Dead Body', is still fairly decent. 'This Shattered Symphony' is by far the best song here, with a dark, slightly oppressive atmosphere that actually sounds more suited to the muddier production, with the chorus being especially high quality, along with being the only song with some really great riffs.

The rest of the songs have very similar issues with them, with poor production and composing them in such a way to have them try and seem epic, but failing horribly. Along with this, I find myself often finding songs to drag slightly, despite only being around 5 minutes or less. The worst example of this is 'Far' which has the drums pushed forward in the mix, so you constantly get distracted by them, also bringing far too much attention to the simple beat. This causes the song to become dull very fast, as nothing else is of any interest either, making this 5 minutes feel more like 10.

Overall, this is the weakest Coheed and Cambria album by quite a large margin, with only two songs being of any major merit, with the majority being brought down by a combination of poor production and bad songwriting. I really can't recommend this album at all, as I can find very few good qualities in it besides the two high quality songs and the interesting experimentation in 'Guns of Summer'. Stay away from this album until you've heard some of Coheed's earlier work, or just stay away from it in general.

Best songs: This Shattered Symphony, Pearl of the Stars

Weakest Songs: Far, Made Out Of Nothing (All That I Am), In The Flame of Error, Here We Are Juggernaut, The Black Rainbow

Verdict: Really bad album by a generally high quality band. Listen to the best tracks, as they're quite good, but stay away from everything else or at least listen with low expectations.