The Mars Volta

[Refused]

Mars Volta aren't really a conventional live band though. More of a jam band live.
I remember reading a review of them at a festival. I think they just jammed for 20 minutes, while the lead singer sat typing on a typewriter.

[WeHeldTogether]

^Live jams are the way they create songs.  I think the more recent Mars Volta shows have been 80 percent jammage.  They play one song and then a long jam(like an hour long) and then two songs and finish.

[T_Roxie]

I like a lot of crazy buckethead and primus albulms, but i still dont "get" this band at all.  It sounds like horrible noise to me.

[stardustonmyfeet]

Mars Volta suck, nothing but noise over noise with some spanglish furiously being spit out by the lead singer.? Such a shame becuase At The Drive In had some pretty good material.? But then they split and they broke into two bands The Mars Volta & Sparta.? Sparta is actually a good rock band, check out the first 6 songs on Porcelain, fuckin mint!!!

Spanglish?? Spanglish is spanish and english words mixed together in one sentence.? This is a bad example, but saying "Me gusta potatoes" is spanglish.? None of the Mars Volta's lryics are like this.? Are you saying you don't like Spanish and English lyrics put together, or something?

yes i dont

[Juanjay]

I had a friend that was in the band for a few years but is no longer in the band so I don't listen to them much anymore. I think Omar can write some good stuff but then he can write some amazingly horrible stuff as well.

[2112]

The singer is probably one of the best.

Vermicide is better than the whole Spaghetti Incident times 2

[polluxlm]

New album out -  "The Bedlam In Goliath".

I've been spinning this maybe 20 times already. Fantastic album, their best since De-Loused.

Check out Aberinkula/Metatron, Wax Simularca, Goliath, Agadez, Oubeiaras (or something) and Soothsayer. Absolute top notch.

[bazgnr]

I really enjoyed De-Loused and Frances the Mute, but for some reason, everything since has been a little...exhausting to listen to.  I'm all for bizarre concepts and incomprehensible lyrics from time to time, and I enjoy prog. rock with the best of them, but I can only handle this one in small doses, I think.  Hopefully it'll be a grower.   

[demo23nz]

Much preferred At The Drive In. 'Relationship of Command' was a fantastic album.

I still do like a lot of Mars Volta's stuff, but some tunes are a little too experimental for my tastes. Gotta be in a certain mood
I definitely appreciate that they're just going for it like that though...

Meanwhile, I found Sparta good, but a bit low on excitement compared to ATDI. I guess it's really a matter of the combination of all those guys that hit the perfect note for me.

[bazgnr]

Much preferred At The Drive In. 'Relationship of Command' was a fantastic album.

I still do like a lot of Mars Volta's stuff, but some tunes are a little too experimental for my tastes. Gotta be in a certain mood
I definitely appreciate that they're just going for it like that though...

Meanwhile, I found Sparta good, but a bit low on excitement compared to ATDI. I guess it's really a matter of the combination of all those guys that hit the perfect note for me.

Good call.  "Relationship" was, in fact, a great album.  Sparta tunes are a bit monotonous, but are far more melodic overall than most of the Mars Volta's output (however, melody is far from the point of what Mars Volta is doing).  Time to dig out "Relationship," I think...

[demo23nz]

Can't go wrong with that one!

Those guys were amazing. To hear a very contemporary sounding, Ross Robonson produced album that I LOVED blew my mind back in 2000/1 when it came out.

[Dave_Rose]

Awesome band! Deserve a little more credit if you ask me.

[polluxlm]

Awesome band! Deserve a little more credit if you ask me.

Will be remembered as the Zeppelin/Beatles of our time in terms of creative input.

[Bodhi]

Awesome band! Deserve a little more credit if you ask me.

Will be remembered as the Zeppelin/Beatles of our time in terms of creative input.

are you fucking kidding me? This band is fucking terrible.  I saw them open up for RHCP...terrible...just terrible....Long drawn out jam sessions played by guys who are mediocre guitar players at best...and you put them in the same category creatively as The Beatles and Zeppelin?  Am I also as creative as The Beatles?

[polluxlm]

No, you're probably not.

[WeHeldTogether]

Awesome band! Deserve a little more credit if you ask me.

Will be remembered as the Zeppelin/Beatles of our time in terms of creative input.

are you fucking kidding me? This band is fucking terrible.  I saw them open up for RHCP...terrible...just terrible....Long drawn out jam sessions played by guys who are mediocre guitar players at best...and you put them in the same category creatively as The Beatles and Zeppelin?  Am I also as creative as The Beatles?

you saw them OPENING for someone...thats the whole point.  i saw them on the same tour.  the crowd wasn't into them, they werent into the crowd either.  their sound was badly mixed in the big arenas.

i saw them twice on their solo tour this winter and they were TEN times better.  joking around with the crowd and actually looking like they were having fun.

and Omar probably isn't the best guitar player but he is very creative in the stuff he writes.

I think they're the Zeppelin of our time because of the risks they take both on stage and in the studio.  Soooo much energy live and they aren't afraid to change their song every album.

[polluxlm]

After 6 months the new album still holds up.

Complex, hard hitting, melodic, experimental...it's got it all. My favorite tracks seem to be Aberinkula/Metatron, Wax Simulacra, Ouroborous, Conjugal Burns, Agadez and Goliath.

Anyone catch them live on this tour? I've missed out several times due to work, and now it happened again. Another year...

A new album slated for the end of the year, early 2009 btw.

[BurningHills]

Still one of the absolute worst "bands" that I've ever heard in my life.

[polluxlm]

You keep saying that.

Good for you.