I think it is easy enough to agree that Coheed and Cambria haven’t even come close to the masterpieces they created in The Second Stage Turbine Blade and In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3. Neither of the Good Apollo records or Year of the Black Rainbow can even come close to the staying power or overall brilliance of the first two records in the epic saga. That being said, which one of those first two records reigns supreme as the best album Coheed has produced? Let me start the conversation with these comparisons...
Songwriting: While SSTB has its flairs, it is for the most part a somewhat straightforward prog-rock record with a knack for great hooks and mind-bending guitar parts. We can definitely tell this is the earlier of the two records, mostly by the lack of time signature fluxing, simpler fretwork and a tendency for less technical drumming. This doesn’t make it necessarily worse though, as it definitely makes for a more inviting and more lasting experience at first listen. IKSSE:3 does show a tremendous amount of growth by not only expanding their writing palate in experimentation with song structures and length, but by upping the musicianship all the way around. Sure, we know they can all play their instruments quite well on SSTB (listen to the guitar riffing underneath the vocals on “Junesong Provision”), but they just don’t showcase it enough to be completely blown away. On top of that, IKSSE:3 just feels epic from start to finish (save a track or two), bringing the story of Coheed and Cambria to life in a perfect balance between storytelling and mystery with the ambitious, yet addicting musical backdrop of Claudio Sanchez and company.
Advantage: In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3
Musicianship: Even if they aren’t wrecking up and down their instruments, But while SSTB is not some random dudes chugging along to power chords and simple drum beats, it just doesn’t match up to the things you’ll hear during the hour-plus running time of IKSSE:3. Songs like the title track and “The Crowing” are proof enough to show both the nastiness of Sanchez and Travis Stever on guitars and the band’s ability to showcase said talents without sounding pretentious. Drummer Josh Eppard seems to take a huge step forward on IKSSE:3, as his trademark ‘left-hand open’ style takes flight with even more impressive drumming and less of a leniency on just tweaked backbeats. In honesty, Michael (or Mic as many have referred to him as) Todd is nasty on both records, and is seriously ridiculous to watch play the older tunes. Coheed does this while making interesting work of even simple time signatures to create often perplexing passages throughout the record.
Advantage: In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3
Accessibility: IKSSE3 spawned the single that would push Coheed in pseudo-stardom (“A Favor House Atlantic”), a track that is borderline pop-rock and almost out of place on this album. Still, I remember Sanchez introducing the song at Warped Tour 2004 by saying, “This is the song that made us famous.” Yet, while being experimental and quite ambitious in its nature, IKSSE3 doesn’t quite hit home as quickly as SSTB does. It feels strange saying any Coheed record is prone to singalongs, but SSTB gives you more than enough reason to sing along to Sanchez’s fabled voice. Pairing that with the catchier nature of SSTB, and you can’t help but be drawn in by the generally upbeat nature of songs like “Junesong Provision”, “Devil in Jersey City” and “God Send Conspirator”.
Advantage: The Second Stage Turbine Blade
Lyricism/Vocals: As soon as I started writing this piece, I dreaded trying to compare vocals on these two records. While I personally admire Sanchez’s voice on pretty much any record, I feel his generally higher register usage during SSTB fits that record better than if he were to try and be really versatile as he has been on anything after that. On the other hand, Sanchez does a little more with his voice during the tracks on IKSSE:3 (“Backend of Forever”, “Three Evils”), though the trademark croon is definitely still there, albeit with a crisper sound. Yet, this decision will come down to the portrayal of the story through lyrics and how said vocals help portray that story. Sanchez’s voice, though higher than most, is just a little bit raw on SSTB, creating a more interesting portal for the arguably less focused story on that record. Yes, there are still parts of the story blatantly obvious on SSTB, but IKSSE:3 has songs that really don’t translate themselves outside of the story. “In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3” just doesn’t mean anything to someone who doesn’t care or know about the Coheed story, where “Devil in Jersey City” can have some meaning outside of the story. Yet, both cause you to want to know more about the story behind what is going on, as it can be said SSTB’s story is buried a little deeper than the obvious passages of information found on IKSSE:3.
In the end, you’ll find that SSTB lends itself more to infectious lyricism, while IKSSE:3 does the same but on a smaller scaler with more of a focus on an increased range of vocals. Personally, I find myself more drawn to the vocals of SSTB, but only by a small amount, as IKSSE:3 is still a great display of vocal and storytelling prowess.
Advantage: The Second Stage Turbine Blade
Overall: Despite the accessibility and overall catchier nature of SSTB, IKSSE:3 is an album that grows over several listens into an epic experience, pulling you even further into the world of Coheed and Cambria – both literally and musically. You can’t really argue with the greatness of either album, but regardless of what Coheed and Cambria do in the future, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3 will be their defining record.
Winner: In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3
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Disagree with me? Agree with me? Leave a comment, because I’d like to hear your thoughts!
Next edition of Record Wars: Dance Gavin Dance: Downtown Battle Mountain vs. Self-titled (Deathstar)
2 comments:
I don't know if you know this, but Claudio originally wrote the entire album and only presented the acoustic versions to the rest of the band wherein they could then add what fit(SSTB). Where in IKSSE:3 they all wrote as one and had input as in their parts. Most noticeably (In My Opinion) in the bass as it's not just a overlap of the guitar part all the time.
I did not know that to be honest, but I feel like that makes sense considering the final output. I'd find it much harder to believe if it was the other way around.
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