Mars Volta

[andypollickisgod]

This band used to be one of my all time favorites. Deloused and Frances were absolutely amazing. I have seen them about 5 times now and have yet to be disappointed. Their last two records really suck ass though. It's like they are being weird for the sake of being weird.

Oh well, Frances the Mute is awesome!

[Ghosts_on_TV]

Actually, Bedlam in Golaith is probably their most straightforward. Well, as much as they get anyways.

[red]

I was a huge fan of The Tremulant EP and Deloused, enjoyed Frances the Mute for a short while, then they lost me.  Saw them once and had a blast.  I've heard good things about the newest one, maybe I should check it out?

[andypollickisgod]

I really enjoyed Frances, but dislike bedlam in goliath. The whole concept is... lets see how fast we can play a song. No more jams.

[Love Dogg]

Omar Rodriguez-Lopez is really into some serious solo stuff now.  Always has, I guess, but there are a ton of releases out there.  My main man Jason feels about Mars Volta the way I feel about the Jacket.  To each his own...

[getinthevan]

I saw them open for the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 2003 and loved them, then bought Deloused and loved it.  I don't care for Frances The Mute.  I saw them again opening for the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 2006 and thought they were atrocious.  However, I do enjoy Bedlam in Goliath on occasion.

[wolof7]

Wow last post was in 2008...time for a ressurection..

....So Mars Volta is a band that don't make it easy on themselves.

they were formed from the ashes of At the Drive-in, a progressive punk act from Texas. The 2 core members, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala have been prolific with this band almost to a fault...here's is the breakdown:

De-Loused in the Comatorium (2003)
Frances the Mute (2005)
Amputechture (2006)
The Bedlam in Goliath (2008)
Octahedron (2009)
Noctourniquet (2012)

Each album generally follows a concept or one/many themes. Their lyrics are a combination of mythical, madeup, Spanish, clinical and can sometimes be indistinguishable. They get more shit from pitchfork than deer tick but most critics generally respect their dedication to their proggy, songwriting craft and their musical chops. Their sound is pseudo-metal/progressive rock. On Albums 2-4, songs contain jams that can run-on for almost 16 minutes in length and can be exploratory/relevatory at best or an exercise in self-indulgence that can test the limits of your patience/hearing at worst....

They can be hard to listen to and most albums require many spins to sink into them wholly/fully. However, I love this band. Always have. Even with the stuff I don't enjoy, I really appreciate their sound, it's something I can honestly say I've never heard before. They have their new album coming out next week called Nocturniquet and despite being totally Mars Volta, I believe it sounds as accessible a listen as their first album. I'm sure their die-hard fans (who are crazy) will hate it as many MMJ fans hated the direction change for them round Evil Urges time. However, this takes the band in a direction I think they needed to go...Some songs sound like Radiohead, Nick Cave but make no mistake its the Mars Volta through and through....Enjoy:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/exclusive-stream-the-mars-volta-noctourniquet-20120320

[DewieCox]

New album is pretty good. Maybe at the bottom of my list, but I really dig the rest of their albums. I think it's their biggest between album change.

I'd probably rank the rest

Octahedron
Amputechture
Deloused
Frances
Bedlam

I feel like they out-Rushed Rush when I seen them the first time. Witnessing them blaze through 3 pretty extreme hours of their music was pretty jaw dropping.

[wolof7]

 That's an interesting order Dewie...Most TMV fans shit on Octahedron, I always thought it had a lot of merit but have listened to it the least out of all of their albums. Can't wait to see them live someday...Obv a band that brings about much differentiation in opinions, here is my ranking:

Deloused
Amputechture
Frances the Mute
Octahedron
Bedlam (has 3 of my favs songs by them on it but I dare one to sit and listen to this album through in 1 sitting without going absolutely insane)

...also I have to turn off TMV when my wife comes in the room, she despises them and we have identical tastes in music...she hates them worse than when I spin Primus which indicates a deep hatred.

[soto pop]

Had a copy of the leak for a couple of weeks and wasnt a big fan of it.  Twenty spins later and two listens of the physical cd, and I can say I really am starting to dig it, ALOT. Usually how it goes with them, the stuff I dont like/ or get initially, ends up being my favorite eventually. I love the fact that they make me work for it; if I "get" the album immediately then I worry. If my brain is like "what the fuck is this," I know I'm gonna love it in a couple of weeks.  There is so much to this album that was missing from the leak. It does bother me that so many people will judge the album based on the inferior sound quality of the leak and without a copy of the lyrics; oh well, to each his own. Add headphones to the mix and now we're really talking.