release date: June 23, 2009
There are three kinds of people: a) those that have never heard The Mars Volta, the current long-standing project by former At The Drive-In members Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, b) those that hate The Mars Volta, and c) those that like The Mars Volta. Sadly, although I am a big fan of ATDI, I can’t make it through any album by The Mars Volta except their three-song debut EP, Tremulant, and their latest album doesn’t change that for me.
I was ready to give Octahedron the time and patience I figured it deserved. Each of their albums have been termed more and more “accessible” (read: palatable) and I figured album #5 was time for me. I’m not a big fan of prog rock but I was ready to give this one a shot. I was planning on painstakingly decomposing each track, finding the elements of it that rocked just like ATDI did so many years ago, and becoming a fan. Instead, I realized that after you take out all the annoying background sounds, this albums sounds like a cross between Coheed and Cambria and The Eagles. Nothing on this album felt like rock music, aside from track #5, “Cotopaxi”, which may be the only song from this album that I actually keep in my music collection. The rest felt like creepy, self-indulgent, hyper-exhibitionist mediocrity. In other words, like a skinny kid flexing in the mirror and kissing his tiny little biceps.
Maybe it’s unfair of me, especially since I’m such a big ATDI fan and I was hoping for something along those lines. But at the end of the day, listening to Octahedron did nothing for me other than compel me to get the first Mars Volta full-length, 2003′s De-Loused in the Comatorium, in hopes that THAT album will actually sound a little bit like ATDI.
Russ Crandall:
Tyler Miller:
Steve McKay:
Giang Cao:
It’s strange how the two bands that sprang from the breakup of ATDI (The Mars Volta, and Sparta) are both half as good they were.
Seems like ATDI fans are absolulety close minded or totally incapable of listening to something that has more than 2 verses and a chorus, sorry, it has been proven over time.
I still rate AtDi higher than the Mars Volta, purely because AtDi were a tighter, focussed group that made some great rock songs despite how short their output was. However, everyone gives the Volta a free ride due to their technical skills. For example, Scabdates their live album contains a FORTY MINUTE version of “Cicatriz ESP” from De-loused in the Comatorium (a track that originally lasted 10 minutes, I’m all for extension and reinterpreation but there has to be a limit), that consists of nothing but loud noises, starry effects and self-indulgent prog-rock masturbation.
Led Zeppelin were techinically brilliant and could still play a catchy three minute song without having to go progressive jazz all over it. People seem to think just because it’s technical, that means you have to love it when you don’t; case in point Spinal Tap “Jazz Odyessy”.
“People seem to think just because it’s technical, that means you have to love it when you don’t”
Or maybe you don’t like technically proficient music, because for me that jams were awesome (except the part with the speech and that). Same for the Take the Veils jams.
ATDI to The Mars Volta was a huge move forward in everyway. You guys are just stuck there or maybe prog music is not for you, but that doesn’t mean ATDI was better than The Mars Volta, because they weren’t… and to clarify I listen to both bands.
It’s not that I don’t like technically proficient music, I’m all for that, but when it seems aimless and go nowhere like a lot of the Mars Volta’s later output I just lose interest. I’m not saying that they shouldn’t do epic songs, I think “Cicatrez ESP” from De-loused is brilliant, but something like “Cassandra Gemini” from Frances the Mute, just gets tired after 10 – 15 minutes.
I like prog music like Rush or Tool, cause those bands are tight and focused, maybe not as technical or experimental as the Mars Volta, but I don’t lose interest there. Mind you, Sparta is not a great follow up to AtDi. Though they do have some good sounds.
I’m glad you didn’t approve cause that piece of shit song they have on Guitar Hero World Tour was the hardest song to sing on my expert vocal career. I failed it probably 30 times!
Lol people here is laughable… is this by any chance a mainstream only blog?
What defines a “mainstream-only blog”? If you check our music category I think you’ll find that we cover a wide variety of albums, many of which aren’t what anyone would consider “mainstream”. If me dissing The Mars Volta for their lack of ingenuity and reliance on distracting sounds to mask their shallow and poorly-transcribed songwriting is me being “closed minded” or unable to stray from the “mainstream”, then you probably missed the point of my review.
Nice grammar.