Columnist Spencer Patterson: Number’s up for Coheed frontman Sanchez

Spencer Patterson

Friday, July 2, 2004 | 8:46 a.m.

Claudio Sanchez, frontman for rock band Coheed and Cambria, sounds like a smart guy on the phone.

But judging from his album titles, you might wonder if anyone ever taught him to count.

Sanchez named Coheed's 2002 debut disc "The Second Stage Turbine Blade."

Last year's follow-up? "In Keeping Secrets if Silent Earth: 3."

Which leads to the obvious question: If "Second" came first, and "3" came second, what ever happened to "One"?

Never fear. It's on its way, just after Coheed and Cambria finish up "Four" -- both parts that is.

Sanchez explained it all in a phone interview from the band's Vans Warped Tour stop in Las Cruces, N.M., on Tuesday. The tour hits Las Vegas' Desert Breeze Skate Park on Sunday, with gates scheduled to open at noon.

"The first one will get done in the future, but what we have to do next is finish four," Sanchez said. "Four will be split into two records, so we'll do both of those and then go back and do one."

Call it the George Lucas sequencing method, a fair comparison given the sci-fi theme that runs through Coheed's conceptually linked album series.

"I was definitely a fan of science fiction growing up, and horror movies, a combination of the two," Sanchez said. "The story definitely takes place in a sci-fi platform, with a lot of horror elements to it, a lot of murdering and monster-type imagery."

The band's albums are set in a dark, alternate reality, with the story centered around central characters -- who else? -- Coheed and Cambria.

But Sanchez doesn't expect every listener to follow the storyline through the albums' dense layers of guitars, keyboards and strings.

"I understand that lyrically, the songs are very vague, and it's hard to really grasp the concept, but it's there," Sanchez said. "We do that intentionally, because we understand that not everybody is going to be into the idea of a concept.

"I write the lyrics so you can take away something that relates to you personally, instead of just having this concept forced down your throat."

Musically, Coheed and Cambria's latest album -- which was reissued Tuesday by Columbia Records -- is stylistically comparable to the Mars Volta's "De-Loused in the Comatorium" and A.F.I.'s "Sing the Sorrow," among recent works.

Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman, a Coheed fan, referred to the band as "punk-rock Rush."

Sanchez said he's quite comfortable with that sort of "progressive rock" label.

"I think of it as the most comforting term used for the band," he said. "Because it's kind of how I think of the band, whether it be the long songs or the progression from record to record or the progression from song one to song 13."

Sanchez has already written most of the lyrics for the next disc. He's also hard at work on a series of comic books chronicling the stories of Coheed and Cambria.

Where does he plan to start? At the beginning, with the second, of course.

Warp speed

A few other acts worth seeking out at Sunday's Warped Tour stop include:

Los Angeles buzz band IMA Robot created a stir with last year's quirky self-titled debut. The trio's synth-pop music seems ideal for a live setting.

On the scene since 1983, snotty skate punks NOFX have a drummer named Smelly and a frontman named Fat Mike. Need I say more?

Celebrity watchers take notice, Juliette & The Licks is the rock vehicle for actress Juliette Lewis, star of such flicks as "Cape Fear" and "Natural Born Killers." The band can't possibly be as creepy, can it?

Fresh off a main stage slot at Coachella, Sweden's the Sounds are trying their luck with the Warped crowd. Their danceable, retro-new wave approach should stand out.

If you like your punk rock a bit on the poppy side, but not quite Sum 41 style, check out the Bouncing Souls, the Matches or longtime scene regulars the Vandals.

Show some love for the locals. Hard rock stalwarts the Ill Figures lead a Vegas pack that also includes Utmost, Bent Valve and Kid Deposit Triumph.

And don't forget, schedules aren't determined until the day of the show. So get there early, or risk missing out on a few acts you might have red-flagged.

Quick hits

A look at a few of the other Independence Day weekend shows scheduled to hit Southern Nevada:

Gene Pitney, a pop vocalist who came to prominence as a teen idol during the 1960s, headlines the Cannery's "Star Spangled Rock & Roll Weekend" shows at 8 tonight and Saturday. Also on the bill: the Lovin' Spoonful. Tickets are $29.95 and $39.95 per day.

Sans most famous member Eminem, Detroit hip-hop collective D12 plays the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Scheduled to open: Slum Village and Bonecrusher. Tickets are $32-$37.

Saxophonist Richard Elliot and keyboardist Jeff Lorber take center stage for the second installment of this summer's "Jazz Under the Stars" series at Spring Mountain State Park.

Gates open at 6:30 p.m., with admission $45.50 for adults, $15 for children ages 13-18 and free for those 12 and under. For more information, call 228-3780.

Party band Sugar Ray headlines Sunday's "Red, White and Boom" celebration at Desert Breeze Park. Also scheduled to perform: Mavin, a quintet featuring former Las Vegan A.J. Trauth.

Music begins at 4 p.m., with admission priced at $5. For more information, call 455-8200.

On sale

Carole King plays the Colosseum at Caesars Palace on Aug. 21. Tickets are $65-$100 and were to go on sale at 10 a.m. today through the Caesars box office, at TicketMaster outlets, by phone at 474-4000 and at www.ticketmaster.com.

Flogging Molly stops at the House of Blues on Oct. 23. Tickets are $16.50 and go on sale at 11 a.m. Monday at the House of Blues box office and through TicketMaster.

Tickets are on sale now for four other recent additions to the House of Blues concert calendar: Mobb Deep on July 18 ($20); Pedro the Lion on Aug. 6 ($12); Less Than Jake on Sept. 2 ($15) and Bright Eyes with Jim James and M. Ward on Oct. 12 ($15-$20).

Tickets are available through the House of Blues box office and TicketMaster.