GOOD APOLLO, I'M BURNING STAR IV, VOLUME ONE - FROM FEAR THROUGH THE EYES OF MADNESS

Throughout their career, Coheed & Cambria have established themselves not only as a band adept to treading the fine line between progressive rock and modern emo rock, but also as a band whose sound becomes stronger and more developed with every new album release. "In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3" was nothing short of a landmark release for C&C, cementing a solid career for the group. Surely they could not create a follow-up album worthy of a monster release such as that...right?

Wrong! With the release of "Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness" (which I'll shorten to "Good Apollo," because I don't have all night), C&C truly established themselves as a talented prog rock band, capable of melding catchy riffs and melodies with elaborate, intricate soundscapes and orchestrations in an unbelievably expert manner. And, while there could be debate on whether or not "Good Apollo" tops or rivals "Silent Earth," it is apparent that "Good Apollo" is a strikingly different album in either case.

The album begins with the haunting and beautiful intro track, "Keeping the Blade," which is comprised of a piano and strings section. What follows is yet another short track, "Always & Never," which is dominated by a lovely acoustic guitar and the vocals of lead singer Claudio Sanchez.

The album truly kicks off with the incredible "Welcome Home," a dark, energetic track characterized by a powerful hard-rock rhythm and another epic strings section. The next song is "Ten Speed (Of God's Blood & Burial)," which, although lacking in the orchestral elements of its predecessor, does not fail to rock equally as hard as "Welcome Home." Then comes "Crossing the Frame," which carries on in the same vein as the last track, albeit a bit more upbeat,

Next is "Apollo I: The Writing Writer," which maintains a dark and well-done soundscape for the majority of the song. The song remains quite dark, aside from the more light and energetic chorus. This song is surely the most progressive on the album, until the suite at the end.

The following song, "Once Upon Your Dead Body," is quite catchy and enjoyable, but seems to only echo certain previous tracks on the album, specifically "Ten Speed" and "Crossing the Frame." Then comes "Wake Up," which is a touching and beautiful acoustic track, accompanied by absolutely stunning orchestrations. Personally, it is one of my favorite songs from "Good Apollo."

After that comes the songs "The Suffering," "The Lying Lies & Dirty Secrets of Miss Erica Court" and "Mother May I," which all hint at the album's tendency to repeat previous ideas. None of these songs provide anything new or ground-breaking that hasn't already been covered earlier in the album, but they all provide considerably fun listens, especially "The Suffering," which I tend to play quite often.

After these tracks come the last four tracks of "Good Apollo," which together make up the "Willing Well" suite. These tracks show Coheed & Cambria at their most progressive on "Good Apollo." There aren't as many catchy moments to get stuck in your head this time around, but instead VERY complex and in-depth compositions. "I: Fuel for the Feeding End" and "II: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness" showcase such progressive tendencies through two forceful, high-octane heavy rock tracks. Both songs have little or no structured patterns, but instead simply do as they please.

The suite then continues with "III: Apollo II: The Telling Truth." This song simply seems to repeat "Apollo I," with some additional parts near the end. The suite and the album close with "IV: The Final Cut," which is most definitely the darkest song on the album. It's a slow yet powerful rock track, with a prominent organ throughout. After the final verses of the song, the rest of the track is dominated by a series of impressive blistering guitar solos, which then fade out with a nice keyboard solo.

In conclusion: "Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV, Volume One: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness" boasts incredible musicianship all the way through, swapping catchy and enjoyable pop rock songs with more dark, intricate progressive pieces. There is much repetition in the album, which bars it from a perfect 5-star rating, but there is more than enough solid songwriting to compensate for that. "Good Apollo" is a true milestone for Coheed & Cambria, a band that never ceases to evolve from where they're at.