Review of the Mars Volta's Album Amputechture

Aspiring to ditch their limited post-punk hardcore sound for something more epic and experimental, in 2000 Cedric Bixler and Omar Rodriguez called it quits with their previous band, At the Drive-In(who were already receiving critical acclaim and fame at the time). Thus The Mars Volta was born. De-Loused in the Comatorium, released in 2001, was hailed by critics and fans alike, quickly gaining a following. The album concentrated on a story and continuing theme throughout; it was a semi-fictional story of their close friend who was left in a coma after attempting suicide; he then woke up, and successfully killed himself. The album explores what might have went on in his head during the coma. After their successful debut, The Mars Volta were granted nearly all control and power for their next album, Frances the Mute, free to venture to new unexplored areas in music. Frances the Mute, released in late 2005, thus concentrated more on an epic psychedelic rock feel with hints of salsa, funk, and long drawn-out experimental sound FX. The album received critical claim and some commercial air time, but received harsh criticism for their meandering guitar masturbation sessions, and aimless pretentious drawn out space sounds. Still, the album launched the band to a new level. They released their third album, Amputechture, in September of 2006.

In their third installment, The Mars Volta completely disregard any traditions established from the pop music mainstream market. Although largely inaccessible to the majority of listeners, one must admire how they have singlehandedly revived the progressive rock genre while still remaining popular in a culture that is obsessed with 3 minute pop hit singles. It's hard to pinpoint the band's exact genre, as they are continually evolving, integrating a vast variety of influences including prog-rock, experimental, psychedelia, jazz, salsa, punk, funk, and tribal music while adding their own level of space like insanity altogether.

There's no denying that Amputechture packs one hell of a punch. Upon first listen, listeners may wonder what the hell they've gotten themselves into. The album is a mixture of De-Loused in the Comatorium's emotional vibe, and Frances the Mute's epic prog-rock, which should in theory please both audiences. A word about the album name itself: Amputechture is derived from their combination of amputation, technology, and structure. Thus the album's main lyrical focuses are about organized religions, society, and culture using vivid and often abstract imagery to display their disgust.

The record clocks in at 77 minutes comprised of 8 tracks, all rich in production quality with their signature bits of raw uninhibited guitar playing. The album opens with the surprisingly soft 7 minute intro, "Vicarious Atonement." Chilling vocals and music lead perfectly into the next track, the epic "Tetragrammaton." This amazing track goes on for a near 17 minutes of sheer musicianship. This song will be sure blow anyone's mind, scare some off, and leave many with multiple eargasms. It's a musical roller coaster to say the least. It's definitely one of the band's most impressive achievements. The album then takes on a more listener friendly turn with "Vermicide", a four-minute relatively mellow song for the band which sounds most like their earlier material. They then pick up the pace again with the 11-minute "Meccamputechture", another epic rock song with some hip hop bass lines in between the rocking out. "Asilos Magdalena", which sounds like a Spanish love song, consists of mainly of an acoustic guitar and Bixler's haunting Spanish vocals. The song gets creepier and creepier as it goes on. This is by far the weakest song on the record, although not bad by any means. We are then thrown into the masterpiece "Viscera Eyes", a 10-minute jam session with a mixture of Spanish and English vocals. The song switches paces about half way through, with a beautiful salsa groove to coincide with Cedric Bixler's high pitched wails, done in classic Led Zeppelin style. Next on the track list is probably the best on the record, the fast-paced epic funky "Day of the Baphomets." Horns, multiple guitars, piano, complex thunderous drums(powered by the skilled Jon Theodore), and space effects, all join forces to bring you to another musical realm in this finale. The album ends on the same quiet and eerie note as it began with "El Ciervo Vulnerado", which brings things to a nice close.

Amputechture is probably the band's most intricate, professional, and brave venture yet. This is definitely quite a feat, considering their last two efforts have been on an epic scale gaining quite a loyal following of listeners. They take a break from the aimless instrumental sound FX, and therefore this album has a lot more direction and structure than Frances the Mute, and even De-Loused. The Mars Volta have proven they're rich in talent, material, and originality, and are here to stay. The most intriguing aspect about this album, is that it was completely produced and composed by Omar Rodriguez, a man who claims he has no formal training in music theory. Cedric Bixler has also reached new heights with this album, as his vocals tend to get higher and higher with each album. Elitist De-Loused in the Comatorium fans may be disappointed, however, as Amputechture has little audible punk influences unlike their debut record. One must realize, though, that the band will never stick with a defined sound, and are constantly evolving, while adding new members and embracing other forms of music. This is much in the tradition of 70's progressive bands like King Crimson. It's hard to say anything negative about this record, because the band is constantly experimenting with their sound, and it's a breath of fresh air in such a superficial music scene that exists today. Like At the Drive-In was once hailed, The Mars Volta may indeed be the saviors of rock and roll.