The Mars Volta
De-Loused In the Comatorium
Universal (2003)
I've never heard The Mars Volta call themselves "experimental" or "out there," have you? Where does everyone get this idea? Why would anyone call their music experimental? They DO get spacey at times with their long, drawn-out segments of little or no music in the middle of a song (i.e.: "Cicatriz ESP," "Take the Veil, Cerpin Taxt," etc.), but the only people who label their music with the quoted adjectives are generally critics and/or fans. The closest thing the band has given to a definition of De-loused is the concept for the album: the life and times of Cedric and Omar's friend, Julio Venegas. Considering how hard it is to turn something as intangible as life into something musical, I thought they did this splendidly; the whole album is fluid from start to finish; there are ups and downs (i.e.: "Eriatarka," "Inertiatic ESP"); intense, confusing parts (the chorus of "Cicatriz ESP") and docile, mellow parts (middle of "Cicatriz ESP"). They've arguably accomplished their goal by capturing something well-known in life: contrast and change. With the concept of the album aside, the music appealed to my aesthetics. They don't do the standard "verse-chorus-verse-chorus-verse" etc., but just because they don't doesn't mean … Read more
The Mars Volta
De-Loused In the Comatorium
Universal (2003)
As one of the few music geeks on the planet who wasn't infatuated with At the Drive-In, I approached this … Read more
Every Time I Die
Hot Damn!
Ferret (2003)
Every Time I Die has always been one of those bands that I thought were absolutely wretched. Surprise, nothing has … Read more
Every Time I Die
Hot Damn!
Ferret (2003)
It's a rare thing when the title of a band's record suits that record perfectly, but Every Time I Die … Read more
