Vaxis – Act III: The Father of Make Believe
2025 studio album by Coheed and Cambria
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Vaxis – Act III: The Father of Make Believe is the eleventh studio album by American progressive rock band Coheed and Cambria. It was released on March 14, 2025. The album, like most of the studio albums from the band, is a concept album that continues the Amory Wars storyline. A deluxe edition of the album, called the New Entities Edition, was released on October 3, 2025.[1]
| Vaxis – Act III: The Father of Make Believe | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 14, 2025 | |||
| Recorded | 2024 | |||
| Genres | ||||
| Length | 57:27 | |||
| Label | Virgin | |||
| Producers | ||||
| Coheed and Cambria chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Vaxis – Act III: The Father of Make Believe | ||||
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Themes and composition
While the album continues The Amory Wars storyline established in most of the band's previous albums, frontman and lead writer Claudio Sanchez has stated that this album was more personal than others, with a focus on personal stories rather than the concept first.[2] Sanchez has described the album as a "midlife crisis."[3]
The album's themes revolve around loss,[2] as "Yesterday's Lost" sees Sanchez ponder a potential time without his wife[2] and "Meri of Mercy" features the return of characters inspired by his late grandparents.[4]
Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 82/100[5] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| 3 Songs & Out |   [6] |
| Kerrang! | 4/5[7] |
| Maximum Volume Music | 9.5/10[8] |
| Metal Hammer |  [9] |
| New Noise Magazine | [10] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[11] |
| Sputnikmusic | 4.7/5[12] |
Vaxis – Act III: The Father of Make Believe was released to critical acclaim from many contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 82 based on five reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[5]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Claudio Sanchez except "Corner My Confidence" written by Sanchez and Zakk Cervini.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Yesterday's Lost" | 3:24 |
| 2. | "Goodbye, Sunshine" | 4:16 |
| 3. | "Searching for Tomorrow" | 3:33 |
| 4. | "The Father of Make Believe" | 4:39 |
| 5. | "Meri of Mercy" | 4:16 |
| 6. | "Blind Side Sonny" | 2:22 |
| 7. | "Play the Poet" | 3:29 |
| 8. | "One Last Miracle" | 3:12 |
| 9. | "Corner My Confidence" | 4:04 |
| 10. | "Someone Who Can" | 3:45 |
| 11. | "The Continuum I: Welcome to Forever, Mr. Nobody" | 3:43 |
| 12. | "The Continuum II: The Flood" | 6:23 |
| 13. | "The Continuum III: Tethered Together" | 4:36 |
| 14. | "The Continuum IV: So It Goes" | 5:45 |
| Total length: | 57:27 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "The Omni-Voice" | 23:24 |
| Total length: | 80:51 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Key Entity Extraction VI: Melvin the Mistake" | 3:50 |
| 16. | "Key Entity Extraction VII: Yuko the Trivial" | 3:52 |
| 17. | "Key Entity Extraction VIII: Peter the Wishing" | 6:28 |
| 18. | "Key Entity Extraction IX: Shiloh the Selfish" | 3:56 |
| Total length: | 75:06 | |
Notes
- "Yesterday's Lost" contains, at approximately 0:28, a reprise of "The Hollow" from The Afterman: Ascension.
- "The Continuum III: Tethered Together" contains multiple allusions to the Key Entity Extraction suite from the Afterman albums, most prominently reprising the melody of "Key Entity Extraction I: Domino the Destitute" from The Afterman: Ascension. It also contains the choral chant from “The End Complete III: The End Complete” from Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume Two: No World for Tomorrow.
- "The Continuum IV: So It Goes" contains, at approximately 5:16, a reprise of "Pretelethal" from The Afterman: Descension.
Personnel
Coheed and Cambria
- Claudio Sanchez – vocals, guitar, synthesizer, production
- Travis Stever – guitar
- Zach Cooper – bass
- Josh Eppard – drums
Additional musicians
- Christopher Jahnke – orchestrations
Technical
- Zakk Cervini – production, mixing, engineering
- Chris Athens – mastering
- Julian Garguilo – mix assistant, engineering, additional production
- Sean-Paul Pillsworth – drums engineering
Artwork
- Chase Stone – art
- Nick Steinhardt – design
Charts
| Chart (2025) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Scottish Albums (Official Charts)[13] | 11 |
| UK Albums (Official Charts)[14] | 70 |
| UK Independent Albums (Official Charts)[15] | 4 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums (Official Charts)[16] | 3 |
| US Billboard 200[17] | 51 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard)[18] | 9 |
| US Top Rock & Alternative Albums (Billboard)[19] | 8 |