Coheed and Cambria – Vaxis II: A Window of the Waking Mind

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It’s understandable if you weren’t able to fully connect or get into Coheed and Cambria before. Their dense stories about space odysseys and prog-tinged rock may have been a bit intimidating for casual fans to fully immerse themselves in. Luckily for fans who’d be willing to give Coheed another shot, Vaxis II: A Window of the Waking Mind is easily their most accessible set of songs in the past decade, and would be a perfect re-launching point to dive back into the world that this band has created. And for the longtime fans who have been along for the ride since the beginning, there’s so much to enjoy on this new record that should reinvigorate interest in the space rockers for the foreseeable future. The new record was co-produced by guitarist, lead vocalist and band leader Claudio Sanchez, as well as Zakk Cervini (Blink-182, Simple Plan, Bring Me The Horizon) whose contribution helps Coheed and Cambria find the perfect balance between their trademark sound, paired with vibrant pop elements. While making an effort to expand upon the universe created in The Armory Wars story arc, Coheed have simultaneously made their best album in quite some time that demands your immediate attention.

The set launches off on the right foot with the introductory song “The Embers of Fire” that features some sweeping orchestra elements and pounding drumming from Josh Eppard. “Beautiful Losers” continues the vibe of the intro track with a driving bass line courtesy of Zach Cooper before Sanchez croons on the chorus, “Hey, Kid / There’s no shame / Or reason to doubt / For crying out loud / Run like they’re out for your blood / When life feels like zero / Beautiful Losers, you’re my hero / Never thought I’d be a hero.” Even if you’re not completely in tune with the story arc of The Armory Wars, I feel like anyone can enjoy songs like this one and realize that Coheed are on top of their game here.

The pace picks up brilliantly on “Comatose,” that reminds me of the best parts of Coheed and Cambria’s trademark sound, and features a great, anthemic chorus. The second verse outlines more of the story as Sanchez sings, “Oh, maybe this is a war / I’m so full of bad ideas / And trust me, you don’t want to hear them / Tell me everything / Now draw the line, now draw the line.” Other early songs like “Shoulders” showcase the improved guitar playing from Claudio and Travis Stever as they rock with each other over some metal-tinged riffs. The verses feature more of a heavy guitar tone sound whereas the chorus is pure power pop-rock bliss.

The band mixes in some electronic elements on “A Disappearing Act,” that sounds like a blend between what Coheed have cut their teeth to on their last few releases paired with the dancey electronica vibes found on Blaqk Audio’s records. It’s really a fun song that mixes up the sounds brought forth on the album, and remains one of my favorites in the set. “Love Murder One” rocks with more of a straight-forward purpose, and features some cool spiraling guitar riffing in the background that reward the listener through repeat spins.

Things take a turn towards the epic with “The Liars Club,” that begins with some synth-laden guitar parts and unfolds like a story that features several twists and turns. It was an obvious choice of a single, as the chorus of, “Oh, do you want me to lie? / ‘Cause I could do it, baby, I could do it / Lie to you / Please ask me to / ‘Cause life feels so much better / When we just avoid the truth / Baby are you okay / To lie with me?” sounds similar to what My Chemical Romance accomplished over their career, and with equally-pleasing results. In fact, this is a great song to start with if you’re unsure of diving back into the murky waters of the world of Coheed and Cambria.

”Bad Man” is another one of those brooding songs dripping with heavy synths that makes you feel like you’re hearing something incredibly important in the music scene. It features some rare auto-tuned vocals in the pre-chorus before Claudio Sanchez explodes into the hook of, “When you need a bad man / A bad—mama, watch your mouth / They’ll think twice about messing with you / You need a bad man / A bad—mama, call him out / Evil is as evil do / Better believe I’m in no mood.” It’s a pretty cool, NIN-esque song that sounds different than what Coheed have done in the past, and thus keeps the interest incredibly high in what they’re doing on this record. Add in a nice ballad in “Our Love,” and it further displays just how well thought out these songs are on Vaxis II.

”Ladders of Supremacy” begins the trio of longer songs to close out the record, and definitely gives longtime Coheed fans what they came for if they weren’t digging the brevity of the earlier material. This track in particular features several starts and stops and brings the prog rock to the center of the musical landscape. It develops casually throughout each of the complex verses, and takes its time building up to each anthemic moment. “Rise, Naianasha (Cut The Cord)” sounds similar to the approach Coheed went for on In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, yet their artistic polish is just a bit more improved than the earlier stages of the band.

Everything seems to build up to the closer, “Window of the Waking Mind,” an epic opus of rich dialogue that wraps up this latest chapter. One of the closing verses features commentary on the characters in the story saying, “Who says you got to rush to get old? / Figure it all out or you’ll be left in the cold / Little one, let them / Don’t follow, just set them free / You can do it on your time / So you know I’ll be watching you / Armed to the teeth / Don’t you go poking / While the lion, he sleeps / My boy, it’s okay to cry.” I’ve always appreciated how much time Coheed puts into their lyrics to reward their audience with deeper dives into the story, but they’ve never done it in a preachy way. The story is there for those who want it, and for those who came to rock out, they’re more than happy to accommodate that base of their audience as well. There’s so much to unpack and enjoy on this latest album of material that reinvigorated my interest in this legendary band. The future continue to looks bright for the world of Coheed and Cambria.

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