With their latest album, Frances the Mute, The Mars Volta has become the new Pink Floyd for the ADD Generation. But before you classic rock purists and prog-rock elitists label me a blasphemer, give the album a listen.
From psychedelic vocals and endless guitar solos to pulsing electronic ambience and epic atmosphere, Frances is Dark Side of the Moon on speed. And acid.
In 2000, on the brink of superstardom and at the height of their career, critically-acclaimed alt-rock band At The Drive-In called it quits. Most members went on to form the more emo Sparta, but singer Omar A. Rodriguez-Lopez and lead guitarist Cedric Bixler Zavala had something else in mind. Both men wanted to explore the frontiers of experimental rock music and The Mars Volta was formed.
The Mars Volta released its debut album, De-Loused in the Comatorium, in 2002. A hyperkinetic auditory assault, Comatorium centers around Jeremy Ward, a former At The Drive-In bandmate, and his drug-induced coma and subsequent suicide. A concept album, Frances is the story of one orphan's search for his mother, a story found by Ward before his death.
While Comatorium introduced The Mars Volta's energetic rhythm and electro-rock sound, Frances evolves Rodriguez-Lopez and Zavala's cultivated musical blend by incorporating keyboards, a brass section and strings with an already schizophrenic style.
With five extended tracks, each divided into several "movements," the album features insanely-high-voltage rock mixed with slower, emotive transcendence that engulfs listeners in a lyrical ebb and flow, giving Frances a fluid, moody feel.
"Cygnus ...Vismund Cygnus" opens the album like a kick to the throat: funky bass grooves laced with sick guitar riffs and drum chops showcase the band's signature energy and timing.
"The Widow," France's first single, is the album's only radio-length track, a throwback to the slow Zeppelin ballads of the '70s.
On "L'Via L'Viaquez," the band member's Latin roots shine -- Spanish rhythm and vocals mix straight rock with a slow flamenco beat that would make Tito Puente proud.
A fine specimen of lengthy
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