Download 2010: COHEED AND CAMBRIA

Following the release of Year Of the Black Rainbow, Claudio Sanchez talks about the end of an era - and the start of a new one

Photo by Gary Wolstenholme

Coheed and Cambria's slot at Download Festival this year feels like the end of an era. Not only did it complete a cycle of regeneration for a band almost torn apart by personal issues just a few years ago. With new album Year Of The Black Rainbow, the fictional story that underpins the lyrics of the band, that of Coheed and Cambria and their children, has finally been completed, leaving many fans wondering where the band goes from here.

Claudio Sanchez talked to Ruth about finally playing with a solid line-up again, bringing Peter David into the mythology of Coheed and Cambria, and the possible future of the band.

You've always struck me as a great storyteller, so what makes a great story for you?

"Ooh, I don't know. Well, me being in science fiction, something that would certainly translate and relate to reality I guess. Something where you can kind of see the parallels in the fiction with the real, if that makes sense. Something that kind of echoes a universal theme and quality: A question that anyone can really ask themselves and hope to answer with personal gain and growth."

So you're into the idea that fiction can teach?

"Maybe, yeah. Yeah, certainly. Like something that kind of echoes a feeling that the reader might have, a question they might pose for themselves, and might help them answer that."

You've always been a band with a great deal of emphasis on the experience and ambience live. How do you approach playing a festival, where you're a lot more restricted in that sense?

"Um, we just try to do what we do, and try to treat it as any other show. We try to keep it as comfortable as possible, because again it isn't our show, it's a celebration of the music and everyone. So you just try to be as comfortable as possible and do what you do and hope that you may gain some new fans, 'cause that's really what this is for."

Does it feel different now that you're playing live an album that Chris Pennie has contributed to? [While Chris had been in the band prior to the making of 2007 album No World For Tomorrow, contracts had prevented him from playing on it - Ed.]

"Is it different? Yeah, it feels really good actually, and different because you know when the band was falling apart, it didn't feel so good to be a part of being in it, and now with the history behind us, and Chris into the fold, and Mic better," [Mic Todd had left the band to battle drug addiction - Ed.] "I mean it just feels refreshing and exciting. It's new, in a way, and to be able to have Chris on the album, and now touring as a full fledged member of the band, it feels great, without a doubt."

The Broken

coheed and cambria | MySpace Music Videos

What was it about Year Of The Black Rainbow that made you want to connect it to a novel rather than a comic this time round?

"Well, one of the things I've wanted to do is adapt the pre-existing comics into standard prose novels: and this being the first story, essentially, the origins of the characters Coheed and Cambria, I thought it'd be nice to just start in that medium, and that way, in terms of novels, it'll come, the story will come out and unfold in chronological form. As opposed to the comics, which are kind of mismatched and out of sequence."

Do you ever regret doing the comics?

"Oh no. Not at all, I don't regret doing the comics at all. I'm actually doing the story of In Keepign Secrets... right now - the first issue came out last month, and the second issue comes out later this month - so no, not at all. I love comics. I mean, I love literature in general and any form of it, so you know when I get a chance I'll read whatever, but comics, that was my first introduction to reading as a kid, so I just enjoy it."

So as someone who works in both comics and novels, did that influence your decision to work with Peter David on this novel?

"Yeah, yeah. You know, I met Peter through our agency group, and I've always known Peter's work with Incredible Hulk, and some of his creator-owned titles like Fallen Angel. I thought why not? My wife actually read a prose novel he wrote on called Tigerheart, which she really enjoyed and so I thought let's give this a shot in this medium and if it works, maybe we'll partner up and do future stories together, and we have. We've started to collaborate on the In Keeping Secrets... story. So Peter, after working on Year Of The Black Rainbow, I've found a partner in, because he's a tremendous talent, and he really helps bring a lot to the mythology, in terms of questions that I've never asked myself to broaden it. So yeah, I really enjoyed working with him on Year Of The Black Rainbow, so much that I brought him along for a few other stories."

I was curious about whether he was going to be working on the technical aspect, or whether you would be bringing him deeper into the mythology.

"Mmhmm. He's just there to really kind of strengthen it, you know. With Second Stage Turbine Blade, and those stories, those were my first kind of attempts at really kind of falling into the medium. Sometimes I'm that kind of guy that likes to just throw a tonne of stuff at the wall, and see what sticks, whereas Peter's certainly helping me kind of filter through that, and really strengthen the stories, you know? So I've certainly learned a lot from working with him and that's why I want to continue to work with him."

Now that the story of Coheed and Cambria has been completed, a lot of people are going to be asking what happens with the band now.

"Well, you know, it's funny, 'cause we've been getting that the band's going to break up, or we're gonna you know do albums without concepts. I mean, we'll see. It's tough to say at the moment. I've been working out some ideas for the future, maybe..." [he pauses] "but we'll continue, figure it out."

I was just wondering whether we'd have to wait until that final counter on your official website ticked down.

[Laughs] "No, we'll be, it might happen before then. I don't know, we'll see."

When I heard Joe Barresi and Atticus Ross would be producing Year Of The Black Rainbow, I imagined it would be one person doing one half of the record, the other doing the other half. Then I saw the videos and saw they were sharing the duty. How did that work with their different production styles?

"They played off of each other's strengths and weaknesses, basically. I don't know, I thought they were great together, without a doubt. Atticus was certainly more of the synth based fellow, and Joe was a tone kind of a guy, getting the right sounds for the right kind of performances. So again, they really played off of each other, and it felt seamless, it didn't feel clumsy at all. It was probably the best experience I've had working with a producer."

I noticed some co-writing credits with Atticus Ross. Was he quite hands on? Was that how that came about?

"Well, I brought the tune to Atticus and we actually worked on it in his house, in his home studio. And he brought so much of a different atmosphere to the tune that it kind of changed the tune. Originally 'Pearl...'" [...Of The Stars] "was actually a Prize Fighter" [The Prize Fighter Inferno, Claudio's acoustic/electronica side-project - Ed.] song, and so it was very acoustic heavy, and a lot of just different sounds, but again, when Atticus, we started working on it together and building the song up, it just felt like a different song. He certainly had a hand in making it what it is now that we're here."

---

***For more Coheed, plus Deftones, Dillinger Escape Plan and more, check out the DOWNLOAD 2010 RM Report***

Year Of The Black Rainbow is out now on Roadrunner Records.

by Ruth Midget

Further links

Coheed and Cambria dot com

Official site of one of the most unique rock bands around