Venous Ataxia; No Hace El Cuerpo

Mind Blown.

De-loused in the Comatorium blew my fucking mind. I recall the first time I heard The Mars Volta, one particularly slow evening stocking CDs. The name sounded familiar when I saw the jewel case in the queue, I believe Inertiatic ESP was getting radio play on some of the Clear Channel stations. But I did not expect that my musical horizons were soon to be expanded so greatly.

The Mars Volta really spawned my interest in progressive rock. They opened up my ears to a genre that soon became the driving interest of my quest for new music. After acquiring every piece of Volta I could track down, I went all Hungry Hungry Hippo for prog-rock. Overpriced Bubble Puppy reissues, Wishbone Ash, as much Gentle Giant as I could find; I bought it all. Living rent free in my girlfriends apartment really opened up my discretionary income, but I would not say that I used discretion when purchasing vinyl. Frankly, I wasted a ton of money on albums that I still have yet to listen to. I do not regret it now though, at least I have a reason to give that Amon Duul album a spin.

Today though, I review The Mars Volta's second full length offering, Frances the Mute.

The Mars Volta - Frances the Mute

http://www.discogs.com/Mars-Volta-Frances-The-Mute/release/447805

There are two vinyl pressing of Frances the Mute. The regular 3 LP version (which is the one I own and am reviewing) and a 4 LP special edition that contains the single, "The Widow." While I yearn for the special edition, the vanilla press is sweet nonetheless. The glossy tri-fold jacket houses three LPs, each with custom sleeves and labels. The colors are really deep and saturated, I really like the packaging on this album.




The exterior of the jacket displays a somewhat disturbing picture of two automobiles passing each other, their driver's heads are covered in red velvet bags. The imagery that The Mars Volta alternates between esoteric and improvisational, much like their lyrics. Though I am sure much of the artwork in this album is steeped in meaning, I can not wrap my head around the message (if any) being conveyed. The image is flipped upside down on the back of the jacket, the spine is also reversible. The third pocket of the jacket folds inside the front and back. It displays a figure perched precariously on an immense tangle of roots. This image is cast through a kaleidoscope and etched onto the sixth side of the album.




Did I mention that I love vinyl etching?




The interior of the jacket houses two more photographs. One depicts two more hooded figures seated in the back of a car. I get a Guantanamo Bayish feel, these photographs are fairly unsettling. The second photograph, spanning the other two partitions of the jacket, is set in a desolate industrial roadway. A hooded figure straddles the top bar of his bicycle and is focused on a mannequin viewing its reflection in a mirror. The reflection, however, is not a mannequin. A man in a suit appears in the mirror, but his face is curiously absent, that part of the image falls in the void between the pockets. I have to wonder if this was intentional.

Enough with the artwork, let's get to the listening.

This album, at over seventy minutes in length, is a fucking marathon of Rock. Of the five tracks, only one is less than ten minutes long. Side 1 contains the first two tracks, "Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus" and "The Widow." The vinyl here looks perfect, I've only played it once. It begins with a soft guitar, tumultuous and twangy beneath reserved lyrics. After a moment, the band kicks in. The percussion really drives this track while effects laden guitar tangentially explores the melody. The vocals seethe with emotion.

I will take a moment to address the lyrics here, and will not revisit them unless I am really struck by a particular line. The lyrics for this album were essentially improvised during recording. Omar chose to record each instrument and performer separately for this album. While recording of the vocals, Omar helped Cedric feel his way through the songs. At times, he would simply use gibberish to find their place, much of the words were actually devised afterwards. The lyrics seems to be the main gripe of The Mars Volta haters. I feel that they are akin to jazz; improvisational, groove oriented, and occasionally discover a lick that is transcendental. Especially in Frances the Mute, discerning their meaning or relation to the story arc of the album is almost entirely pointless. However, Cedric has a knack for stumbling upon impressive one liners that really plumb the depths of stock emotion. I will make an effort to highlight those instances as I review this album.

Side 1 concludes with "The Widow." This is about as close to a ballad that you are going to find in The Mars Volta's catalog. This track was released as a single for radio play, and why it was chosen is readily apparent. This track is exceptionally accessible. Following the "soft verse, LOUD CHORUS, soft verse" pattern it builds to a cathartic release. This track demands your attention for its duration and lulls you out of hypnosis as the melody falls apart leaving you adrift in a sea of synth. This side concludes with a locked groove of what sounds like some sort of out of tune engine.

Side 2 features the track "L'Via L'Viaquez." Following a few seconds revisiting the sound from the locked groove on Side 1, the guitar on this track explodes into an amazing solo. To me it sounds like Jimi Hendrix; there is definitely a classic rock feel to it. The lyrics are in Spanish, adding to the Latin feel of the percussion. I really dig this track, probably my favorite on the album. There are some really interesting percussive sections that inevitably return to one amazing guitar solo after another. Once again this track drifts slowly into ambience, reprising a heavily distorted version of the chorus vocals. Side 2 also ends in a locked groove, coqui frogs chirping melodically.

Side 3, "Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore," begins with a long section of the coqui frogs. Eerie vocals begin to fill the background as the track builds into a melancholy horn section. The lyrics on this track are very dark, families are separated, children go blind, everyone turns away. This track culminates at around midpoint and slowly falls away into another locked groove, about one bar of music.

The remaining track, "Cassandra Gemini," is split between sides four and five and concludes the album. It begins spastically and at full volume. After the opening section, strange demonic vocal effects weave a lyrically dense tale. Impenetrably dense, it is nevertheless unnerving. This cut progresses in five sections. There is some more impressive soloing in the first two sections. This builds into a horns section and lyrics concerning drowning ophidians. Side 4 cuts section three, "Faminepulse," in two.

Side 5 begins with the second half of "Faminepulse," a largely ambient section. The composition begins to pull together as we approach the fourth section, "Mulitple Spouse Wounds." What a name. The album ends with a reprise of the first section of Cygnus, "Sarcophagi." "Cassandra Gemini" is an excellent multi-layered beast of a track, it is a very satisfying conlcusion to the album.

Personally, I think this is the first "true" Mars Volta album. Though De-Loused in the Comatorium is excellent, I feel Rick Rubin's influence stunted the development of the album during recording and production. On France the Mute we see Omar Rodriguez-Lopez really begin to unleash. Using an unconventional recording technique and letting in more ambient soundscape sections, this album stands out to me as more complete than the first full length. Though not my favorite Mars Volta album, I would not hesitate to offer it as a first experience for new fans.

The Mars Volta's vinyl versions can be difficult to locate. It is safe to say that when they release something, it is likely worth purchasing from a collector's standpoint. However, unless you have a pretty fat roll in your back pocket, purchasing the first three albums second hand is for huge fans only. Bedlam in Goliath and Octahedron remain reasonable but De-Loused, Frances, and Amputechture float around $100, $70, and $60 respectively. Keep your eyes peeled at garage sales, maybe someone's mom will put their kid's record collection on sale for a dollar a piece and you can buy them all.

No, don't do that. That would be an awful thing to do and you are an awful person for considering doing it.