Album Rating: 3.5

Candelaria has hacked Coheed.

https://twitter.com/Coheed/status/1555591966045286400

Album Rating: 3.5

Wish I felt more enthusiastic about this. I even remember losing my s**t over No World For Tomorrow when that first dropped, getting the keywork tattoo and everything, showing off all their tunes to my mates. I just can't get hyped the way I used to. Maybe it's just me getting old and boring lol

Album Rating: 3.5

It's okay, I don't get hyped for Coheed releases anymore but I used to be the same way. I scoured every inch of the internet for Ascension shit when it was being released. All the teasers were super cool and I remember when Josh came back but they hadn't announced it yet and everyone knew it was him based on how the robed figure played the piano in the woods. I used to be all in.

Now I mainly listen to the old stuff and catch them live when they're around since they put on a great show. I just need more deep cuts instead of the same ol' setlists.

Album Rating: 3.5

Oh man that brought back some memories! We all knew it was 100% Josh haha! I always remember hearing the acoustic versions of Sentry and Iron Fist like 2 years before Descension dropped, and being so hyped to hear what the album versions would turn out like! Those were the days.

Album Rating: 3.5

I'll still go back and watch the old stuff every once in a while. I love those creepy as fuck Good Apollo I videos with Wilhelm Ryan walking around in the real world and spooking people.

Album Rating: 4.0

It's going to be inevitable when it comes to a band with as storied a history as Coheed, but I always get kind of annoyed when I hear people say they wish they would put out another album similar to their first four albums. Those are classics, undeniably, but they haven't really ever been that proggy or emo or whatever since. They've been more or less a rock band that sprinkles some of that in on every release, but they have not been that band for well over half their career now. It's time to tinker those expectations.



That being said, that doesn't mean those expectations should be lessened. I think it rules so much that the band has never really rested on their laurels (Color Before the Sun excluded lol) and has continued to press themselves with different genres. If I may be a bit much for a moment, they are a bit like Led Zeppelin and The Beatles in terms of sheer breadth of sounds they tackle, but wrapped in a dorky, convoluted package. Since Year of the Black Rainbow, I typically go through levels of anti-hype with their albums as I think their singles don't typically function very well on their own. And yet, they've stuck the landing (nearly) every time.



Vaxis II was no different for me, the singles being good enough but not blowing me away. But I showed them to my friend who was really into them with me in high school when only their first four were out and he was all about them. Those singles brought him back aboard and now he's been jamming this album a ton. The quality really hasn't dipped, but the lifelong fans are gonna have the most to complain about if that makes sense.

Album Rating: 4.0

All this is to say, I don't think Coheed is immune from criticism. I certainly have a lot from being a fan for fifteen years. But, the moment I hit play with their stuff my brain ceases to function logically. The neurons are just firing off in all directions. I think that they objectively a pretty good band that has a lot to offer to almost anyone, but if you approach their material juuuust right they are practically impeachable. "Get clowned boy", the ho-down climax of the entire album, all of Love Murder One, these goofy aspects are features that to me read as both completely tongue-in-cheek and utterly sincere.



There is not as much to sink your teeth into these days on the periphery like the live action Wilhelm Ryan vids, but that's because the band is pretty damn old now and have families and whatnot. They'll do a lore dump when the albums drop, tour, then move on. I think it's kinda nice that their presentation has aged like I have, personally.



This is enough Coheed dickriding for one comment, but I'll end by saying once again that this thing fuckin rules and has captivated me more than most of their albums do lol

Album Rating: 3.5

I mean I want more like their first 4 albums because they were far more creative than everything other than Ascension since. I don't need them to make exactly what they did before, because their first 4 albums were all pretty different from one another - I just miss the creativity, not even just the prog, which I never felt like they were *that* proggy. I'm glad you and others can still love their music but I can guarantee you that if Vaxis I and II were their first two releases I'd have never gotten into this band. I'd have heard Shoulders and thought "yeah fuck all that."

Coheed makes some great songs now but they haven't made a great album in a decade. I don't need lore videos and all that jazz to be happy with what they do but verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus Coheed isn't nearly as cool as verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge 1-bridge 2-bridge 3-bridge 4-(maybe chorus) Coheed and they were putting out album after album of that.

The guys are in their mid 40s now though so I'm not expecting them to suddenly put out something as deep and layered as the original CoCa story albums were. I feel like they're just chilling making music they think is fun and playing to huge sellout crowds. I can't fault them for that.

Album Rating: 4.0

I'll agree that they've definitely settled a bit in the songwriting department, but I could absolutely make an album that matches the highs of the first few records out of the songs they've put out since. Happens to every band with staying power and longevity and a somewhat regular release schedule. Still, Coheed remains on the better range of outcomes for pretty much any band that has been around as long as they have

Album Rating: 3.5

"I could absolutely make an album that matches the highs of the first few records out of the songs they've put out since"



I agree with this. I think TCBTS is their only bad release. The others post Ascension are inconsistent but there are for sure enough songs to make another certified Coheed classic.

Album Rating: 3.0

My criticism is so heavy, I think, BECAUSE I love the story so much. In the old shit characters were noble, or relatable, or terrifying. But in the new shit heroes are powerful just because, and villains say stupid shit like "Ya got clown'd boy".



The music isn't as proggy or as post-hardcore as it used to be but I don't give a shit about that. For me the quality of the concept has dipped so much that you can't even follow it in the album. You have to buy their special packages or go to Comic Con.

I though Black Rainbow was kind of bad but I think it was because of how starkly different it was from their previous material. Admittedly haven’t gone back to it in ages.

Album Rating: 4.0

Black Rainbow has aged pretty well, I think. It kinda came out at a weird time for them and the expectations were skewed as a result but I like it quite a bit. It stands out as a cool experiment and is one of their more sonically cohesive efforts.



I've admittedly never really cared or explored the story, but to me this new saga makes about the same amount of sense from exclusively listening to the music

Album Rating: 3.0

All the YOTBR b-sides should have been included on the album.



@odal I've done a write up of Afterman-IKSSE:3 so if you give a shit check em. My Good Apollo one is about halfway done just didn't do much work over the summer.

Album Rating: 4.0

where they at?

Album Rating: 4.0

I think that the climax to this storyline could really provide a background to spark some real creativity. Ladders of Supremacy, Rise, Naianasha, and Window of the Waking Mind really go out with a bang, and it'd be cool to see them commit to that style for a whole record.

Album Rating: 4.0

I would absolutely love a record of nothing but their full-throated, prog-tinged anthems, as unlikely as that would be. Title Track is basically Coheed doing Dear Hunter lol Would love to hear them do more of the "musical" approach that Claudio said he did with that one

Album Rating: 3.0

I hate how exposition heavy the last track is. Like, there isn't a story for the first eight tracks or whatever besides "we're parents and we love our kid but he's comatose". Where are the Houses of the Star Supremacy. Where is the Liar's Club (seriously... that's the name of an adult group of assassins?)? We need more insights into these entities if we're going to fear them.

Album Rating: 3.0

Gonna drop this here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmMI6fEpxns

Album Rating: 4.5

"Finally heard this on proper speakers and I can say it's truly their best since Afterman Ascension. Even though this doesn't have a Domino the Destitute, it's more exciting and consistent -- hell, I might enjoy this even more."



Took eleven pages before I got to the correct opinion.