Customer Reviews

Second Stage Turbine Blade (Reis)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's no secret (or surprise) the Equal Vision is trying to capitalize on the success that Coheed has had with their latest two albums, "In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth 3" and "Good Apollo I'm Burning Star 4", by re-releasing Coheed's classic debut "Second Stage Turbine Blade". Not that it would be a bad idea to do that. There's a lot of Coheed Demos circulating around that were from the pre-SSTB period, that would have been welcomed additions to the album. However there's only 3 newly included songs : Elf Tower New Mexico (B-side from SSTB sessions), Junesong Provision (Acoustic), and "Everything Evil" (demo). While these are great tracks to have been included with the re-release, they don't really merit the price of buying the cd over if you already own the original. I'd recommend just downloading them off the internet instead, and saving your money. This album is mostly directed at fans new to the band, and who most likely haven't bought this one yet.

You still get the all the tracks from "Second Stage Turbine Blade", which in my opinion is still Coheed's best work to date. Every song on the cd is memorable, and their musicianship was just as amazing then as it is now. Songs have a much harder edge, and are lacking the poppier elements found in their two following albums, which is a good thing. They do have catchy tunes in "Time Consumer" and "Devil In Jersey City" though. I tend to like the lyrics on this one a lot more too, because it seems like the songs individually could have a message, and not pertain to the story, unlike their later material which all directly relates to Claudio's CoCa backstory. The songs are of the perfect length too; they all fall in between 4 and 5 minutes, making the listen much more pleasurable, as you aren't getting 8 minute long epics that you tend to lose your attention during. Songs like "Hearshot Kid Disaster" and "Junesong Provision" show what Coheed and Cambria was all about at the time, while songs like "Delirium Trigger" and "33" shows signs of the experimentation that the band would later take on. My favorite Coheed song to this day is still "Neverender", and that along with the rest of the collection reminds me of all the good times I had with this album. There's also a fair amount of screaming on this one, which is somewhat absent from their newer material, which is probably for the best. While the screaming on here works well, I would hate to see Coheed just placing random screaming on their records now like every other band in the world today.

This is definitely a worthwhile purchase if you're a Coheed fan and don't already own this one. Like I said I still consider it to be Coheed's best, not just because it's their first cd or anything, but because it still gives me the most pleasurable listen, all the way through. If you're new to the band, then this is the perfect opportunity for you to see where the band came from. If you already own it, you're probably better off just finding the extra songs on the internet, they're widely available. However this album still remains a great piece of music, and one that I love every single time I listen to it.

Second Stage Turbine, contrary to its title, is the first album from Coheed and Cambria. But, unlike many bands firsts, SSTB holds a confident, bold and rocking sound. Blending all that is great about punk, metal and pop, this album keeps stunning me the more I listen to it.

The songs are of decent length and contain many complex and satisfying guitar parts. There isn't much soloing on this album as their others, but the brilliance Travis Stever and Claudio Sanchez express on their guitars does not disappoint. If you are familiar with other Coheed albums, this one is a bit different (being their first) because it isn't crowded with strings or synth or weird effects like some of their latest stuff is. This is straight up guitar rock. And don't worry; regardless of what you've heard, they are defiantly NOT `emo.'

I love Coheed and Cambria, and though now they've shifted into more of a Prog arrangement, I think that their raw-er sound in this album is excellent.
1. The Second Stage Turbine Blade... Introduction Music.
2. Time Consumer... Moving, powerful song, "Maria, my star, matthew goodnight"
3. Devil in Jersey City... Even though the concept is quite contrary, I think this is a fun song to just sing along to.
4. Everything Evil... Though it starts a bit slow, after the first three minutes it becomes one of the beautiful songs ever. "Stay until Wednesday, and write me a childlike letter pretending. At war here on Thursday let's make this our last day at home by the fence..."
5. Delirium Trigger... This is personally my least favorite song on the cd, though other people seem to like it.
6. Hearshot Kid Disaster...I love this song. I can't really think of anything else to say about it.
7. 33... This is one of my favorite songs, of all time. The drumming is amazing, as is every part of it.
8. Junesong Provision... Though I am partial to the acoustic version, this song is still great. It's nice and fast-paced.
9. Neverender... This is a highly underestimated song, even though it is one of my favorites. I like all the emotion in this song. It's passionate.
10. God Send Conspirator... Another amazing song. A nice way to end the (original) record.
11. Elf Tower New Mexico... Probably my third favorite song of all time. I love the singing, the weird melodies, everything. It's spectacular.
12. Junesong Provision Acoustic... This remains to be my favorite song of all, it is so creepy and oddly sweet. The high pitched vocals and the dark lyrics are an excellent combination.
13. Everything Evil Demo... Though the beginning of the song is almost exactly the same, about seven minutes into the track a haunting croon leaves you wanting more.


mhm.

Coheed And Cambria's debut studio album The Second Stage Turbine Blade was released back in 2002. On this; their first ever album, the band's music wasn't as developed or progressive as it would eventually become, and the vocals haven't developed as fully as they are on the band's later efforts but it is no less of a strong record.

If you have only heard the band's later work, it may take a good few listens to adjust to the style and especially to get used to the production, which isn't as polished as the later albums, but you'll be well rewarded should you choose to preserve and allow the album to grow on you.

The Second Stage Turbine Blade is a great record, the songs are all enjoyable and the lyrics right from the off are as inventive and interesting as they ever became. If you watch the version of this album performed live on the Neverender DVD you'll soon come to appreciate just what a good album this is and how well it still stands up today even despite its production and Claudio's vocals.

Highlight moments include the opener `Time Consumer,' and `Delirium Trigger,' which foresees the direction the band would take on their next album and `33,' which is a fun almost pop punky song that sounds utterly unlike anything else the band would ever release.

To conclude; Coheed And Cambria fan should never overlook or write off this album just due to its age or lack of hit singles. Its still full of good songs that fit in with the band's overall catalogue better than you'd expect and is worthy of inclusion in any fan's collection.

This is a great cd. I highly recommend it and all other Coheed & Cambria cds. I also highly recommend the accompanying comics. Without them its just good music, with them it makes a great story and helps to make some of the lyrics make sense. Just by reading the lyrics you can NOT understand the story.

This CD is a great introduction into the saga that is Coheed and Cambria. While many people compare this album to Rush, the band does not cite Rush as an influence. This CD does share the style, although it most certainly differs from Coheed's latest three (4 in just a month or two) but it has it's own fantastic style.

Not the best Coheed cd, but it still rocks!!! Amozon's service was excellent as always.

For those that are familiar Coheed and Cambria's music this album is more along the lines of "In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3" in terms of sound. If your not familiar with Coheed stop what your doing right now and listen to them. Overall, as much as I love all of Coheed's stuff, this album is my favorite. I'm sure there are several fans that would disagree with me, but if there's is one album I absolutely have to have it is this one. It took me awhile to get into this band, but once I did I couldn't stop listening.

i can see why coheed and cambria have evolved to what they are now... i first heard of them with their album
Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV.. and i was hooked... i wanted to know what started it all and what makes these albums all one big story... this album is a must have if you're a big fan of Co&Ca.. don't expect the kind of music that they are playing now tho... remember, this is their first album as the name they carry now.

Them C&C fellows pull off quite an astonishing album for their first. It's quite awesome, and this is what today's progressive rock is meant to sound like