Coheed and Cambria
Webster Hall, New York, NY
October 11, 2012

With a smoke filled stage and a light show fit for an arena, progressive rock’s Coheed and Cambria pulled out all the stops at Thursday night’s sold out show at Webster Hall. Fueled by a rowdy amped up sea of New York City’s faithful crowd-surfing to the band’s every lick, the show from the back of the house played out like a live concert video with only the band’s most avid fans brought in to show off some of their exuberance. And the band, to their credit, brought nothing short of their A game on this night.

The description of the crowd response to the start of each song simply wouldn’t do the band its proper justice nor would any picture showing the sea of bodies bum-rushing the stage as each song hit its most anticipated point. But rest assured, the standing room only floor was a raucous one. Touring on the heels of the release of their latest acclaimed album “The Afterman,” the setlist just scratched the surface of Coheed and Cambria’s extensive and extraordinary catalog. Frontman Claudio Sanchez’ on point vocals hit each desired note all night long in Geddy Lee fashion as the band’s signature methodic, melodic guitars infectiously synchronized with their brand of hard choruses and catchy vocals.

Sanchez’ high pitched vocals blaring out from within his massive mane of slightly pulled back hair immediately make him the focal point of a band that in totality is greater than the sum of its parts. Fluidly, the band seems to feed off of each other, fueled by an irrepressible crowd, fully charged up long before the chants of “Coheed” welcomed the quartet to the stage. Sanchez, a noted comic book nerd, and his band are in town for the 2012 New York Comic Con which launches its long weekend today, but the jam packed crowd here was looking for any viable excuse to get the band to perform locally in their hometown.

The show’s opener, a blistering version of “No World For Tomorrow” fed the electric “Gunslingers and Gravemakers,” bringing the entire space of Webster Hall to a literal frenzy. A particularly haunting version of “Mother Superior,” despite a brief acoustic guitar glitch, pleasantly resulted in a completely a cappella chorus, which the band harmonized and improvised to perfection. What followed was a rousing rendition of “Key Entity Extraction V: Sentry the Defiant”, perhaps the most metal performance of the many songs played. Watching Sanchez and company fully comfortable in the spotlight after reuniting with drummer Josh Eppard and teasing the waiting crowd with the continuation of songs thought to be nearing their end, showed off their brilliant methods of hard rock titillation. The explosive roar after each tune’s final note proved as much.

By the time Sanchez had returned to the stage during the encore with his dual-necked guitar, everyone in the house realized what was next. And as the show closed out with the heavy, stirring verses of Coheed’s signature “Welcome Home,” the energy level in the room had finally reached its zenith. Whether it was a product of performing in front of their hometown fans or whether the band simply managed to hone all of their collective talents, Thursday night’s show at Webster Hall felt like a special place to be. If the band’s latest release is as successful as we anticipate, the next time we’ll have our horns raised at a Coheed & Cambria show will be at Madison Square Garden. And you can be sure that we’ll be there to do it all over again.

Coheed and Cambria- Live at Webster Hall, New York, NY
October 11th, 2012
Setlist

1. No World ForTomorrow
2. Gravemakers and Gunslingers
3. Everything Evil
4. Key Entity Extraction II: Hollywood the Cracked
5. Ten Speed (Of God’s Blood and Burial)
6. The Afterman
7. The Suffering
8. Mother Superior
9. Key Entity Extraction V: Sentry the Defiant
10. Blood Red Summer
11. Goodnight, Fair Lady
12. In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3
13. Key Entity Extraction I: Domino the Destitute
14. A Favor House Atlantic
15. Welcome Home
16. The Willing Well IV: The Final Cut

- Jane Van Arsdale