Album Review: Coheed and Cambria-The Afterman: Descension

Coheed and Cambria returned with a full head of steam with last year's The Afterman: Ascension. The return of original drummer Josh Eppard seems to have energized the band to make their best material in years. The Afterman: Descension, the second part of the double album, doesn't quite hit the heights of it's predecessor Ascension, but it's still a solid entry to Coheed and Cambria's discography.

The Afterman: Descension is undoubtedly the most progressive and experimental record Coheed and Cambria has released to date. There's a lot of bizarre shit on here that's even out of the ordinary for a band  like Coheed that is no stranger to taking chances. The synth and horn line on the 80's-sounding "Number City" and the spacey chaos of album opener "Prelethal" threw me for a loop in just how bonkers they sounded. Neither song is terrible by any means, they're just a little uneven due to their odd sound. Outside of those mixed experiments and the weak ballad "Iron Fist", the steps that Coheed takes out of their comfort zone work pretty well. The mid-paced "Dark Side of Me" is effectively chilling while "2's My Favorite 1" is one of the few slow songs in their discography that isn't stagnant and makes good use of Claudio Sanchez's unique vocals. As usual, Coheed and Cambria is at their best when they are crafting faster-paced songs."Key Entity Extraction V: Sentry the Defiant" wraps up the already brilliant Key Entity Extraction series from Ascension on a very high note. It keeps up the unpredictable, energetic vibe of the first four parts of the series and it's without a doubt the finest track on this record. "The Hard Sell" and "Gravity's Union" also make for grand prog rock tracks with sprawling hooks and great musicianship across the board. They are truly great at pretty much everything they do musically, but they are at their best when they are just rocking out with great riffs and infectious choruses/vocal lines. 

The Afterman: Descension is a quality record and a fitting companion to The Afterman: Ascension.The diversity this record has to offer is jarring at times, but mostly very appealing and effective. It's great to see they going more and more out of their comfort zone even though some of the experiments don't really work. It's not quite as triumphant as Ascension, but The Afterman: Descension has it's fair share of memorable tracks and unique quirks to standout on its own.

3.5/5 Stars
Standout Tracks
1.Key Entity Extraction V: Sentry the Defiant
2.The Hard Sell
3. Gravity's Union