Hello ! I’m here with Claudio Sanchez of Coheed and Cambria. We're here to talk about your next and 10th album, The Father of Make Believe. Do you have one word to describe it?

Mortality? I mean, you know, I think it's the thing that really sparked the theme of the album. You know, I had experienced some loss very recently and that put a lot of things into question. When I was younger, I didn't really experience death that much, I was kind of sheltered from it. And now, as I'm getting older, it's very real and very apparent. And while I was writing The Father Make Believe, I had lost my uncle and it made me, like, sort of realize that he was fairly young and his wife was now widowed. And it brought into mind, like, my grandfather, who had also lived 35, 40 years without his wife. So, you know, I have a pretty strong connection with mine. And it just started making me think, what would life be like if I wasn't here? You know, or vice versa, and that sort of sparked the song. Yesterday's Lost opens the record. And with that, you know, being in my 40s, I'm starting to ask myself the questions of what would life have been like if I didn't suggest the concept behind Coheed and Cambria and allowed, like, my truths to really speak clearly in the songs? So those sorts of questions start getting posed now in this life as I get closer to dying, you know. So, yeah, that's, I guess, why I would choose that word.

First of all, I'm sorry for your loss.

And it seems even though you always choose a sci-fi universe to talk about personal experiences, I mean, your writing always comes from personal thoughts and experiences. Do you choose to do it in a sci-fi universe to keep some kind of distance ?

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I created it as a diversion, you know, because when I was younger and I created and I became the singer in the band, the attention that came with it made me feel very uncomfortable. So singing these songs about my life back then, it just… I didn't want that truth to be out there for other people to share, you know. I didn't want to villainize anyone. I didn't want there to be any misconceived ideas of the life that I grew up in. So that's why I created The Amory Wars. Amory is the street I grew up on. It's called Amory Drive. All of the characters in those early records, in those early comic books are based after real people. And eventually, essentially, it's really just about my family, you know, and all of the records have kind of been that, just about myself. Myself and the players in my life and just going forward. I mean, ultimately, every record is a journal entry into my life and a therapeutic way for me to sort of overcome whatever obstacle I'm facing at the time of writing that material.

That's beautiful. You seem really close to your family and to all that concept of, you know, loving your family, being here in the moment. Is that the message you want to give to your fans through your music?

The thing that I want people to get is just that personal connection, you know, to find themselves in the songs and just find that thing that can maybe even help them get through. And I feel like we do achieve that, you know, with some of the one on ones I've had with fans and how they perceive some of the songs and how the songs may have helped them in their lives. You know, that's really sort of it for me. At the end of the day, I'm just writing these songs to help me. It's really nice to know that they can transcend myself and help someone else.

That's absolutely beautiful. And through your albums, it seems in every album, you have a different story. It's like a new volume of a comic book, a new era. You opened it with Blind Side Sonny. Why did you choose this one? How does it prepare the listener for the adventure to come?

I think we chose that one because it was so different, you know, so unexpected. And I wanted the audience to know that this record is very unexpecting. Coheed is that way in general, like, in terms of how versatile we are with the music that we put into the albums. But this one, I think even more so with the song Blind Side Sonny, which, sidebar, I actually wrote here in Paris. I took a trip, writing retreat with my wife, and I stayed here for about 10 days. And two of the songs on the record I wrote, Blind Side Sonny and Meri of Mercy, here. That's just a little sidebar. But I thought it was a cool song to sort of come out there with again, just so fans would, like, realize that this record is full of unexpecting moments. The first three tracks of the album are Yesterday Lost, Goodbye, Sunshine and Searching for Tomorrow. It shows.

Yeah, it seems we already have a story through the first three title tracks.

And Yesterday Lost sounds more like a ballad. So is it like a kind of hard time before a helpful moment?

Well, what it is when I wrote Yesterday Lost, again, it was about leaving, you know, like, uncontrollably, like, dying. Basically what life would be like without a certain someone. And I think Goodbye, Sunshine kind of continues that motif, but in a different way. It's almost more being. It's almost more me standing at the funeral procession of, like, Coheed and Cambria, like the end of the band and sort of tributing all of the good and the bad that it's afforded. It's given me to be the person I am in life now. And Searching for Tomorrow is really more about trying to find something better than the life that you have, but almost like, in a way, suffocating that good thing that you do have because you can't see it. So, yeah, they all kind of, like, work together in an interesting way.

And your previous album has been really well welcomed by your fans. How did you get into the creative process for this one?
Oh, well, Window of the Waking Mind. I was so proud when I finished that record. So, to get into The Father of Make Believe, I was actually really concerned I wouldn't be able to follow up Window of the Waking Mind because I thought it was so good. So I just kept writing. Like, I didn't even think about a record. It wasn't until I lost someone that I was like, you know, this is... this is the narrative I'm taking. And it started. The record started to form after that. But yeah, I just approached it as therapy. I just went, I'm gonna write music for the sake of writing music. And I'm not going to put it into that calendar of now it's time to write a record, and force those limitations onto the song. So I was just like... It wasn't until that moment that it really started to speak to me — what the album was about and that I was even writing a record.

So, yeah, you let the creativity flow and you didn't force yourself to write.

And did you record it all together in the studio or separately?
We did it separately. You know, that's the thing I loved so much about Window of the Waking Mind — it was a product of the pandemic, so we had to do it remotely. And when it came time to pick a producer for The Father of Make Believe, I listened to Window of the Waking Mind and I was like, You know what? I want to redo this because I love this so much. So it was a little bit of everything — remote and not. Basically a hybrid. But for the most part, a lot of it is just me sitting in my writing space, writing music, with the exception of the two songs I wrote here. That's really it — sort of sending it around and getting everybody’s input on what they thought their arrangement should be. Then I would help curate that because ultimately I wanted to make sure that the message and the lyrics were really clear. But when I step into that kind of producer role, it's nice to have someone like Zakk Cervini who really gives me an objective opinion. It’s not just all me, because I'm so close to the material from the beginning to the end. That’s a beautiful step and a beautiful relationship I have with him. By the end of writing all this stuff, I had 30 songs. I went to Zakk and said, Listen, this is what I think the record is, but let me know if there's anything I'm missing. He went through all the sessions and found a couple — like Someone Who Can. That song wasn’t initially meant for the album; I had written it for myself, like a solo project type thing. But I put it in the sessions because I thought it was worth somebody hearing. And he thought it was a song we should explore more.

Yeah, having someone in front of you, helping you and being more objective, looking at your songs really helps you through the creative process.

I think so. Definitely more now than ever. I mean, Window of the Waking Mind was the first time I had really become fearless enough to allow somebody else's opinion into my music. Everything before that has never really changed from the demo process — just a nicer sounding version of what I wrote. Whereas Zakk brings a real producer’s mind and perspective. Like on Window of the Waking Mind, songs like Shoulders and The Disappearing Act were part of the session files, but they weren’t the songs they became until he worked on them. He really brought attention to what I do — a respect that I had never had before. So yeah, it’s really nice. Again, I'm so close to this material — I’ve been living with it since Window of the Waking Mind, and that’s years. Sometimes it’s hard to see the forest for the trees. I haven't always been open to that, but with these last few records, I’ve opened myself up to someone’s opinion that I trust.

That's beautiful because you don't only open to somebody else, but in the end, you open to all your fans and everyone who listens to the album, they're able to know a little more about you and about your feelings and thoughts.
Absolutely. I’ve just become more open to that idea as I get older. I start to realize that a lot of this stuff started from a very insecure place. And I never wanted to villainize anybody I was writing songs about — it wasn’t my place to highlight certain dysfunctions. I wanted to keep that stuff hidden. But now I realize how hard living is, how hard being a parent is. And I don’t think it’s villainizing anything or anyone — it’s more about paying tribute and showing respect to the journey. I wasn’t mature enough to see that when I was younger and created The Amory Wars and things like that.

And not on writing state, but more on the technical and the instrumental part. Did you experience something you never experienced before?
I mean, I played around with some instruments that one wouldn’t typically associate with a rock band — just weird things. I purchased a strange instrument called the Apprehension Engine that I used percussively on little bits here and there. Also waterphones — these really weird ambient instruments that add textures and layers to the emotional background of some songs. I think I’m always learning when making records and writing songs. It's hard to pinpoint every nuance, but those are probably the two biggest things I remember. I’m always fooling around with stuff.

So you're experiencing a lot in the studio and you're sharing a lot on stage. What is the song you prefered recording in the studio? And what's the song you're excited to play live?
Oh, wow. For me, I love creating, first and foremost. So any song in the studio is fun for me because it’s a chance to really put my imagination to the test. If I had to choose, on the new record, I really loved making The Flood. That’s one where I was really thinking visually and adding textures that aren’t typical to a rock band — trying to immerse the listener in the feeling. As for playing live, I'm more comfortable on stage than I am being a human being in the world. So I clearly get something from being up there. My favorite songs to play live are definitely the ones that get the biggest reactions — the energy from the audience is such a physical representation of what the song means to them. Songs like Welcome Home, The Liars Club, Shoulders, Disappearing Act, even Blind Side Sonny — we've been playing that a little. Those get very visceral reactions, and that means a lot.

And it seems in the album that you're the main character. You are The Father of Make Believe. What does it mean for you to be The Father of Make Believe ?
You know, it’s more of a love-hate kind of situation. I titled the album The Father of Make Believe because of its ambiguity. Yeah, it could mean I’m the father of make believe because I’m the guy in Coheed and Cambria who created this epic rock concept. But really, I see the character in the story — Vaxis — as the one who’s taking that title. And I’m seeing a connection between myself and that character. In the previous two records, I saw myself more as the father or the creature character. But now, I relate more to Vaxis, because he has the power to create the future in his own image. That’s what’s going to play out in the stories. And part of me wonders: What does the future look like for me? Is this a new start? A metamorphosis? I don’t know. But the title works because it fits in both the real world and the fiction.

Did the album have another title before The Father of Make Believe?
No, no. I didn’t really have a title. After I finished the record and Zakk and I were working on it, I kind of threw the idea of The Father of Make Believe at management — like, I think that’s what the next record is called. And I didn’t really get any reaction, so I wondered how it had landed. Then one day, someone said they loved the title. And I was like, Okay, that’s it, because I really had nothing else. It was just an extension of how I was feeling — What could my future look like? Had certain things not existed, or even though they do, can I change them going forward? That’s really what it’s about: you have the power, the destiny, the free will to make any outcome your own.

I love that !

I have only one question left : Do you have a message for your fans?
My message is: I just want people to enjoy The Father of Make Believe. I want them to find their own connection with Coheed — whether it's just the music, or through the lyrics. That’s the most important thing. The comics are really just an extension — if you want more of an experience from Coheed and Cambria. But in general, to the French audience and to Parisians — I don’t know if you know this — over 20 years ago, I came to Paris to visit a friend, and I wrote the first two songs of Second Stage Turbine Blade in the city. The concept was born here. There’s a deep connection between the origin of the band and Paris. That’s one of the reasons I always come back. My wife and I came back for The Afterman — we sat by the river and wrote most of that story. I find the city very inspiring, and I would love to have a real connection with it, because the concept is so connected to it.

Well, thank you a lot. Thank you for taking the time and answering all our questions.

You're welcome. Thanks for taking the time.