Coheed & Cambria

Oct. 2, Zilker Park

As Friday’s other token metal act, New Jersey’s post-proggers Coheed & Cambria must have been tempted to soften their set. Instead, they blazed with every big, bombastic battle hymn in their back catalog. The jackhammer sprint of opener “No World for Tomorrow” took time to emerge from a bass-free mix, but the sing-along crew at the front of the pit covered until “Gravemakers & Gunslingers” skidded through like a hair metal drive-by. By the tango-tinged stomp of “In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3,” the live sound mix had settled enough for singer/guitarist Claudio Sanchez. Grinning under his wild explosion of hair and bouncing around the stage with his trademark skipping shuffle, he took advantage of the sun to break out the call-and-response bop of “Blood Red Summer.” Fans hoping for something from the next album were thrown an unfamiliar and delicate rendition of the Church’s “Under the Milky Way,” and even the Pink Floydian drift of perennial closer “The Final Cut,” complete with talk box and theremin, was a little anticlimactic in daylight.

This article appears in October 9 • 2009.

A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.

SUPPORT US

The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.