The Mars Volta | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Picking up the pieces from At the Drive-In, Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez formed the Mars Volta and wasted little time branching out into elements of hardcore, psychedelic rock, and free jazz that expanded on the boundaries of their previous work. Although their previous bands demise ultimately arrived before they were able to truly capitalize on their mounting commercial triumphs, the Mars Volta immediately impressed with their willingness to eschew conventional logic and push themselves into new artistic directions instead of opting for the more marketable sounds. (Interestingly, their progressive yet streamlined approach gave them the early lead among critics against their former bandmates in Sparta, the more emo-leaning of the bands resulting from the split.) Bixler-Zavala and Rodriguez-Lopez enlisted friends Ikie Owens (also of the Long Beach Dub Allstars) and Jeremy Michael Ward, and the Mars Volta debuted with the EP Tremulant in 2002. Still, as much of their reputation was built on the strength of their live show, their highly energetic performances resulted in a wave of word-of-mouth hype that elevated the band to near-mythic proportions because so little of their recorded material was available to the public. Sadly, Ward passed away May 25, 2003 at the age of 27 from an apparent drug overdose. The Mars Volta had recently returned from an European tour supporting the Red Hot Chili Peppers, where they introduced brand-new tracks from the full-length De-Loused in the Comatorium, which was released via Universal the following June. The band returned in early 2005 with their second full-length, the ambitious song cycle Frances the Mute. (They also issued the live set Scab Dates later that year.) Leading up to the release of third album Amputechture in September 2006, drummer Jon Theodore quit and was replaced by Blake Fleming (who had played on early Mars Volta demos). The album also featured an expanded role for the Red Hot Chili Peppers John Frusciante. Less than a year later, in late 2007, the new single "Wax Simulacra" paved the way for the fourth Mars Volta album, The Bedlam in Goliath, which debuted at number three on the American albums chart. Less than two years later, the band had prepared their follow-up, a slightly quieter outing titled Octahedron that became their debut for Warner Bros. Rodriguez-Lopez has also recorded multiple times, producing more than a half-dozen albums within the span of as many years. In 2011, it was announced that At the Drive-In would be reuniting, though this didnt slow down Bixler-Zavala and Rodriguez-Lopez, who released their sixth album as the Mars Volta, Noctourniquet, in early 2012. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 9 Title: Tremulant EP Released: 2002-05-02 Tracks: 3 Duration: 19:27 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Cut That City (05:44) 2 Concertina (04:54) 3 Eunuch Provocateur (08:48) |
 | Album: 2 of 9 Title: De‐Loused in the Comatorium Released: 2003-06-23 Tracks: 10 Duration: 1:00:51 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Son et lumière (01:35) 2 Inertiatic ESP (04:23) 3 Roulette Dares (The Haunt of) (07:30) 4 Tira me a las arañas (01:28) 5 Drunkship of Lanterns (07:05) 6 Eriatarka (06:20) 1 Cicatriz ESP (12:28) 2 This Apparatus Must Be Unearthed (04:57) 3 Televators (06:18) 4 Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt (08:41) |
| De‐Loused in the Comatorium : Allmusic album Review : When Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala silenced At the Drive-In in the midst of its popular emergence, there was no question that the two artists would return with new music as exciting as their previous band. However, there was plenty of discussion in corners and over drinks about what, exactly, that music would sound like. It was clear that much more was happening under those Afros than biting, post-hardcore anthemics laced with psychedelia. In 2002, Rodriguez-Lopez and Bixler-Zavala returned with the single "Tremulant," attributed to their new project, the Mars Volta. Its shifting soundscapes were certainly a hint, but with the Mars Voltas ambitious De-Loused in the Comatorium, its clear the ATDI expats mushroom-headed hairstyles hide bulging brains that pulsate with ideas, influences, and a fever-pitch desire to take music forward, even if theyre occasionally led too far afield for the audience to follow. A concept album of sorts, Comatorium is a swirling ten-song cycle inspired by Julio Venegas, a childhood friend of the band who followed his fearlessness to a self-inflicted end. While the storyline is bewilderingly obtuse, it nevertheless unifies the albums wildly shifting sounds. Thrumming, Led Zeppelin-inspired pounding gives way to the thump of a free jazz bass punctuated with blasts of guitar squelch in "Drunkship of Lanterns." Meanwhile, the windswept landscape of "Roulette Dares (The Haunt Of)" unfolds over seven minutes, revealing remnants of ATDI, fissures of glittering, confessional pop, and layer upon sedimentary layer of a shrieking Bixler-Zavala, harmonizing with himself over vintage 1970s organ. All of this gives way to a gentle landslide of an outro, where an expressive guitar solo that would make Carlos Santana scratch his head threads its way between brooding bass. Later, Red Hot Chili Peppers secret weapon John Frusciante stops by for "Cicatriz ESP," which undergoes a full stop after its relatively straightforward (for these guys, anyway) beginning, reentering the atmosphere to the fiery strains of at least three concurrently soloing guitarists. Though the brief-by-comparison ATDI-ish "Inertiatic ESP" acts as an opposite to the epic "Cicatriz ESP," the bands ardent desire for re-creation is defined in the latter songs shifting folds and faults. But while De-Loused in the Comatorium may well remove the stigma from the prog and art rock forms it suggests, and is certainly a monument to unbridled creativity, it can also be seen as bombastic and indulgent -- much like prog has been in the past. Comatorium is exciting, to be sure. But in a way, it avoids answering that old question about the Mars Volta: What will the music sound like? | ||
 | Album: 3 of 9 Title: Live Released: 2003-07 Tracks: 4 Duration: 42:29 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Roulette Dares (The Haunt of) (09:29) 2 Drunkship of Lanterns (09:38) 3 Cicatriz ESP (16:03) 4 Televators (07:18) |
 | Album: 4 of 9 Title: Frances the Mute Released: 2005-02-07 Tracks: 12 Duration: 1:16:55 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Cygnus....Vismund Cygnus (13:02) 2 The Widow (05:50) 3 L’Via L’Viaquez (12:21) 4 Miranda That Ghost Just Isn’t Holy Anymore (13:09) 5 Cassandra Gemini I (04:45) 6 Cassandra Gemini II (06:40) 7 Cassandra Gemini III (02:55) 8 Cassandra Gemini IV (07:41) 9 Cassandra Gemini V (04:59) 10 Cassandra Gemini VI (03:48) 11 Cassandra Gemini VII (00:46) 12 Cassandra Gemini VIII (00:53) |
| Frances the Mute : Allmusic album Review : The Mars Voltas 2003 debut was a dense, experimental run-on sentence of science fiction and musical exploration. But though it ultimately rewarded patience with stretches of unbuckled rock & roll genius, De-Loused in the Comatorium was also a maze-like and obtuse migraine dealer that made people frustrated and crazy. For 2005s Frances the Mute, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala worked principally with their touring band, but "joining the band for selected moments" are strings, horns, electronic programming, pals Flea and John Frusciante, and the coqui frogs of Puerto Rico. There are no song breaks, making the track listing more of an outline. But Mutes printed lyrics are a helpful guide, a map of Mars thats meant to both direct and fascinate. "She was a mink handjob in sarcophagus heels"; "Dont be afraid when all the worms come crawlin out of your head"; "they were scaling through an ice pick of abscess reckoning and when Miranda sang everyone turned away...." -- perhaps the only match for the cerebral weirdness and eventual beauty of Mars Voltas lyrics is their music itself. The roar of Rodriguez-Lopez and Bixler-Zavalas post-hardcore past is fully locked away, replaced by an equally powerful flair for expressive percussion, intricate vocal harmonies, and extended solos for electric guitar (as on the initial part of "Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus"). Sure, there are moments on Mute that reach the grandiose heights of heavy music -- "LVia lViaquez"s ear-splitting changes will blow back your hair. But the same song is sung half in Spanish, half in English, and its flashes of heaviness fall between stretches of Afro-Cuban rhythm. Other portions of Frances the Mute are murky and distant, like field recordings from the ocean floor, while still others shift drastically between brittle acoustics and a stuttering, guitar-led volatility that threatens to crack open the earth. Its constant shifts mean the record is claustrophobic and even dizzying; it demands perseverance. But its great when a blast of a trumpet cuts through a gloomy moment, and Bixler-Zavalas vocals are a thread to reality. For example, while his lyrics for "Miranda That Ghost Just Isnt Holy Anymore" and "Widow" are mysterious poems, he sings them with a fervor thats immediately identifiable. That passion is evident throughout Frances the Mute; its the organic fever that was buried on Comatorium. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 9 Title: Scabdates Released: 2005-11-07 Tracks: 12 Duration: 1:12:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Abrasions Mount the Timpani (04:07) 2 Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt (05:56) 3 Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt: A. Gust of Mutts (02:34) 4 Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt: B. And Ghosted Pouts (04:52) 5 Caviglia (02:45) 6 Concertina (04:17) 7 Haruspex (05:23) 8 Cicatriz (08:16) 9 Cicatriz: A. Part I (02:33) 10 Cicatriz: B. Part II (07:39) 11 Cicatriz: C. Part III (04:27) 12 Cicatriz: D. Part IV (20:00) |
| Scabdates : Allmusic album Review : Scab Dates accompanying photography is a frenetic blur of instruments and sweaty hair. Singers stand on amplifiers, and keyboardists stare intently at the veins popping in their hands; drummers reach over snares to tweak guitar strings, and saxophones appear out of the ether. Its an accurate portrayal of the Mars Voltas collagist sound, their subtitled and bullet-pointed avant metal that increasingly seems like the soundtrack to a film only Omar Rodriguez-Lopez can see. Still, even at their most insular (some would say self-indulgent), the Mars Volta seethe with intensity. Scab Dates proves this. Most of the more wandering elements of De-Loused and Frances the Mute disappear for this live document, replaced by hails of screaming organ, increased thump to the rhythm section, and Cedric Bixler-Zavala showing off the insane volatility in his voice. They still get jammy in places, but the extended guitar solos and softer textures lead to inevitable explosions. As nothings ever been traditional with the Mars Volta, its no surprise that their live albums arent, either. The songs flow seamlessly and take subtitled digressions just like the studio records. In the liners, Rodriguez-Lopez describes how field recordings he made while on tour found their way into the mix, and there are no "How ya doin, Phoenix?!" or "Let me see you jump, San Diego!" from Bixler-Zavala to discern where the songs were recorded. All you get are dates -- "recorded between May 2004 and May 2005" -- and the occasional bit of crowd chatter to tell you this is live. (Well, the sound quality is a little off, too -- sometimes the drums sound terribly flat.) This means that Scab Dates is yet another intriguing window into the Mars Voltas world, instead of just a live album holdover. Highlights include "Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt" and the Comatorium highlight "Cicatriz," which becomes Scab Dates epic closing suite. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 9 Title: Amputechture Released: 2006-09-11 Tracks: 8 Duration: 1:16:23 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Vicarious Atonement (07:21) 2 Tetragrammaton (16:43) 3 Vermicide (04:17) 4 Meccamputechture (11:04) 5 Asilos Magdalena (06:36) 6 Viscera Eyes (09:25) 7 Day of the Baphomets (11:58) 8 El Ciervo Vulnerado (08:59) |
| Amputechture : Allmusic album Review : The Mars Volta are continual contenders for the mantle of most experimental high-profile metal group, along with System of a Down, an artist theyve toured with but who usually sell 20 times more records. Mars Volta arent as popular, not because their riffs are less memorable or innovative but because their cycle of musical buildup and release, although similarly jarring, can last at least 20 minutes instead of Systems two. (Its the difference between having a background in acid rock and having one in thrash.) While the early reports on third album Amputechture commented that the duo of Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez had learned a few lessons about silence and forsaken the concept album, dont believe it. The album is little different than their two previous atom bombs, De-Loused in the Comatorium and Frances the Mute -- tense and anxious, continually pushing the boundaries of extreme production, with long periods of dynamics that rise ever higher, followed by an explosion of release (usually screaming hard rock with storms of atonal brass and horns). The album opens with "Vicarious Atonement," five minutes of spectral effects and piercing guitar that gets a boost at the beginning of the next track, "Tetragrammaton," and then blooms into full riffing glory after a few more minutes (and theyre still nowhere near the end of the 16-minute track). John Frusciante, eccentric genius from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, returns on guitar, but Bixler-Zavala and Rodriguez-Lopez exert so much control over the sound of Mars Volta that Frusciante makes virtually no individual impression on this record, although most of the guitar work is his. (Granted, his presence leaves Rodriguez-Lopez open for more intricate work on production.) The Mars Volta are one of the most intriguing bands in rock, but their huge musical power is often deflected by Bixler-Zavalas conceptual themes (which are difficult to follow, but also, perversely, impossible to ignore) and blitzkrieg dynamics that are either dialed down to one or up to ten (but rarely in-between). | ||
 | Album: 7 of 9 Title: The Bedlam in Goliath Released: 2008-01-23 Tracks: 12 Duration: 1:15:50 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Aberinkula (05:44) 2 Metatron (08:11) 3 Ilyena (05:35) 4 Wax Simulacra (02:38) 5 Goliath (07:15) 6 Tourniquet Man (02:37) 7 Cavalettas (09:32) 8 Agadez (06:43) 9 Askepios (05:10) 10 Ouroborous (06:35) 11 Soothsayer (09:07) 12 Conjugal Burns (06:35) |
| The Bedlam in Goliath : Allmusic album Review : It cant come as a surprise that the Mars Voltas fourth album opens with a bang -- sonic terrorism is one of the only things listeners can count on from the band -- but its genuinely novel that The Bedlam in Goliath never lets go of its momentum, not even after a full hours worth of unrelenting war on silence, the wrapping paper for a concept album about the power of the occult. On their first three proper albums, Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez played games of quiet-loud-quiet (or loud-quiet-loud), sneaking around stealthily for minutes at a time before detonating another blast of thrash metal riffing and piercing screams. The Bedlam in Goliath is simply loud-loud-loud, virtually every song played at maximum volume and tempo. But, in fact, instead of being wearisome or exhausting, its an oddly refreshing album. The band gets closer to its roots in thrash and funk-metal than ever before, avoids using electronics except where they can make a big impact, and finally lets semi-permanent guest John Frusciante occupy a readily discernible role. The "Goliath" of the album title is the name given to a spirit conjured by a Ouija board that Rodriguez-Lopez bought in Jerusalem; the band used the board heavily while on tour, and it supposedly brought bad luck to the entire recording process -- including reports of computer poltergeists, flooded studios, and a nervous breakdown for the albums first engineer (who may have simply been driven over the edge by the bands musical extremism). Musically, its the funkiest work the band has ever done. No ones going to confuse them with James Brown (or even Red Hot Chili Peppers), but in a ten-minute streak that runs from the end of the third track, "Ilyena," through the single "Wax Simulacra," and to the end of "Goliath," an eight-minute extravaganza, the Mars Volta finally seize the mantle held by Rage Against the Machine for a dozen years (thanks in large part to Frusciante, as well as new drummer Thomas Pridgen). The band also exhibits more patience on The Bedlam in Goliath than it has in the past. No one who cares about the band should be interested in hearing a "maturing" Mars Volta -- you might as well ask for a sun that wasnt as hot -- but the band has shown the ability to mature in all the ways they can without losing what makes them unique. The album is as dynamic as ever (it seems to live perpetually on a knifes edge of tension), but its more closely composed than Amputechture or even Frances the Mute. This should have been the album where the Mars Volta either wore their formula down to nothing or abruptly turned in a different direction, but instead the band created an album that nearly perfects what theyve been working toward. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 9 Title: Octahedron Released: 2009-06-22 Tracks: 8 Duration: 50:03 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Since We’ve Been Wrong (07:20) 2 Teflon (05:04) 3 Halo of Nembutals (05:30) 4 With Twilight as My Guide (07:52) 5 Cotopaxi (03:38) 6 Desperate Graves (04:56) 7 Copernicus (07:22) 8 Luciforms (08:21) |
| Octahedron : Allmusic album Review : For punk, metal, or hard rock bands, the unplugged album is the one that shows whether theyve been succeeding simply on energy and volume or because of real talent. (Anyone who remained a skeptic of Kurt Cobains songwriting skills must have been converted by Nirvanas MTV Unplugged masterpiece.) And Octahedron, a quieter and more subdued Mars Volta album, proves that same fact (if not at the same level as Nirvana) for a band thats perpetually lived on a knifes edge of tension. Recorded in less than a month, Octahedron is by no means an unplugged album -- its not acoustic, its not confined to ballads, and it includes consecutive hard rockers in "Cotopaxi" and "Desperate Graves" -- but it charts a different direction for the Mars Volta, and proves they dont need to shuttle between dynamic extremes in order to succeed on an artistic level. The format allows a greater role and more space for John Frusciante, who accompanies Cedric Bixler-Zavalas vocals well, and also provides his own highlights, channeling the Edge on the emotional "Teflon" and, later, echoing Pink Floyd on "With Twilight as My Guide." With a few exceptions, Zavalas lyrics are as arcane as ever; the glossary for "Halo of Nembutals" alone would include the words "vermin," "sloth," "ringworms," "necrophiliacs," "carcinogen," "asp," "communion-shaped," and "palindromes." Still, they achieve scrutability far more often than in the past, and reveal more of the tenderness that was occasionally visible in Mars Volta material. ("Since Weve Been Wrong," the single and first track, is especially affecting.) Calling this an unplugged album is useful only in relation to what the group has produced in the past, but what the Mars Volta created on Octahedron will provide them with more range and opportunities in the future. | ||
 | Album: 9 of 9 Title: Noctourniquet Released: 2012-03-26 Tracks: 13 Duration: 1:04:36 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The Whip Hand (04:49) 2 Aegis (05:11) 3 Dyslexicon (04:22) 4 Empty Vessels Make the Loudest Sound (06:43) 5 The Malkin Jewel (04:44) 6 Lapochka (04:16) 7 In Absentia (07:26) 8 Imago (03:58) 9 Molochwalker (03:33) 10 Trinkets Pale of Moon (04:25) 11 Vedamalady (03:54) 12 Noctourniquet (05:39) 13 Zed and Two Naughts (05:36) |
| Noctourniquet : Allmusic album Review : Released just months after Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez old band, At the Drive-In, announced they would be getting back together, the pairs sixth studio album as the Mars Volta finds them exploring the esoteric as they continue their journey ever further down the neo-prog rabbit hole. Noctourniquet highlights the more intellectual, esoteric sound the band has championed over the years, but even though the album soars creatively, it feels emotionally restrained. On the opening track, "The Whip Hand," the gradually building song is suddenly hijacked by electronics at the chorus when a droning synth dominates the mix while Bixler-Zavalas processed vocals proclaim, "Thats when I disconnect from you," a sentiment that seems to track throughout the album. It feels as if the two arent as united in their pursuit of the abstract as they once were, and the amount of extra work and studio magic it takes to bring the vocals and compositions in line leaves the album feeling more over-thought than thoughtfully crafted. Noctourniquet does manage to come together from time to time, though, as songs like "Dyslexicon" and "Molochwalker" trend toward the more visceral, instinctual songwriting that made At the Drive-In such a perfect convergence of raw emotion and technical ability. While moments like that may be just enough to keep longtime fans of the Mars Volta hooked in long enough to let the album grow on them, it might not be enough to make converts out of the uninitiated. | ||