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The Prize Fighter Inferno

My Brothers Blood Machine

Written by: PP on 30/11/2006 14:21:49

The Prize Fighter Inferno is the solo project of the Coheed & Cambria frontman and genius Claudio Sanchez. It opens yet another side-story in the ever-expanding universe of his comic "Coheed & Cambria", upon which all of Coheed & Cambria's albums are based, telling the lives and deaths of the two main characters bearing the name of the band. The album is told from the point of view of Jesse, one of the characters from the original story, and includes recurring themes like the McCloud family and others from the first albums.

Not only does it open up a side-story to the Coheed universe, but it also sounds remarkably different from anything we've previously seen Claudio involved in. Many of the songs are backed by electronic beats or nearly psychadelic keyboard effects unlike those on the Coheed albums, giving a late-night discotecque feel to many songs, but especially "The Margretville Dance", which sounds like the perfect track to close off an all-nighter given its calmness and subtle melody perfect for lulling you to full relaxation. Claudio's single guitar is acoustic all the way through the album, but its originality can especially be found on tracks like "Run, Gunner Recall, Run! The Town Wants You Dead!", where he shines with his ability to pick, strum and pull strings to fuse latino-style melody with the oddities of the Coheed & Cambria sound. Though this doesn't mean that the album is filled with the irresistably 'oh-oooh, oh-oh-ohh-oh-oh' falsetto choruses many Coheed & Cambria songs have, nor with anywhere near as complex instrumentals as we are used to from Claudio. Therefore on the first few listens, "My Brother's Blood Machine" sounds largely dull and eventless, but like with the Coheed material, further active-listening sessions reveal the true genius of Mr Sanchez. His musical intelligence shines through tracks like the brilliant "Who Watches The Watchmen?", a track which at first may sound like a b-side of Coheed's b-sides, but upon close attention turns out to be one of the best tracks on the album.

The gems on the album, most notably "Death In The Family", "Who Watches The Watchmen?", "The Going Price For Home" and "The Flight Of Moses Early & Sir Arthur McCloud", are so good that they leave you dazzled with Claudio's brilliance time and time again. But unfortunately, like Claudio himself has stated, not all songs on the album are great as many of them serve the purpose of advancing the story rather than as single songs. "Wayne Andrews, The Old Bee Keeper" is one of these, dwelling in the same place as it started through the whole track with minimal change through the song, as if it is leading nowhere, kind of in the same way as many of the Angels & Airwaves tracks.

Alas, the album isn't 'up there' with the Coheed albums, but it's certainly an album fans of Claudio's work will appreciate. Your initial expectations of the content of "My Brother's Blood Machine" are likely to be wrong, as it is considerably more silent and hass far less catchy melodies than his main act. With the first half of the album containing most of the gems, you're left with an empty feeling in the end where you're scratching your head unsure what to really think about it. Those Coheed fans who have closely studied the story and the comics will find this extension exciting and full of wonders, but for others who never really paid much attention to the actual story, "My Brother's Blood Machine" may not be the right choice.

Download: Who Watches The Watchmen?, A Death In The Family
For the fans of: Coheed & Cambria
Listen: Myspace

Release date 20.11.2006
Equal Vision
Provided by Target ApS