Coheed And Cambria's "Year Of The Black Rainbow"

by Sean R.

Coheed And Cambria, a progressive rock band from New York, has always had a reputation for releasing epic storyline albums, filled with Claudio Sanchez' eccentric vocal style, incredible songwriting ability and wild guitar solos by both Sanchez and Coheed's guitarist Travis Stever. Their latest release, “Year Of The Black Rainbow”, is no different. Presenting a prequel to the story that all their previous albums laid out. Intense from the first song to the last, a listening experience that never has a dull moment. A few high points of the album that I'd like to list include Far, a modern power ballad that flows both musically and lyrically, and offers a depth that just grips at the listener and makes it hard to listen to it only once. Another I would like to point out is This Shattered Symphony, which follows directly after Far but is also one of the heaviest on the album, complete with creepy vocal tones from Claudio that open up into powerful screams when the chorus kicks in as the guitar riff drives the song further along. Then there's Pearl Of The Stars, almost a surprising listen the first time through, Claudio ditching his commonly used shrills for a deep gruff whisper that is almost hard to even recognize as him at first as he puts to music what may be his best written song to date, which of course wouldn't be complete without a guitar solo that kicks in before the track comes to an end. Another thing Coheed is known for is always ending their album's with a long, powerful track. This album is no exception although not as drawn out as the previous albums' final track, The Black Rainbow stretching out 7:35 and filled with an ever-present building intensity that you can feel drip from every note of the track before exploding and riding out the close of another great release from Coheed And Cambria. I rate “Year Of The Black Rainbow” as one of the year's must-have releases, especially if you have time to sit and analyze the depth each song provides, though even the casual listener could find a few things to like about it. Unless, of course, you just don't like this type of music.