Review Summary: The Mars Volta swerves the bang and goes for a snap, crackle and pop.
It only feels like yesterday I was reviewing the previously unreleased version of
De-Loused, to commemorate the band’s discography getting a much-needed vinyl re-release. In that
Landscape Tantrums review, I mentioned the band had been out of commission for nearly ten years and that their absence was sorely felt in the rock genre. Without their creativity being poured into the scene, the removal of their idiosyncratic influence left a chronic void that was yet to be filled by another artist. To my delight, once the vinyl release’s promotional cycle had run its course, the band announced their return with a brand-new album and tour. Of course, this is The Mars Volta we are talking about, so while I had overwhelming felicity for the news – given the time that had passed since their last album, and the fact the band are known for shaking up their sound with every release – I had an educated feeling
The Mars Volta was going to be the biggest sonic deviation of their career. The first single accompanying the news, ‘Blacklight Shine’, wasted no time at all in sending the message: this record was going to be a polarising one. However, while some fans displayed a knee jerk reaction to the subtle nuances of this percussive-heavy track, to me the calypso beats and benign, tropical guitar passages made it an obvious exponent of the “album experience”; a track ripped straight out of an LP that was designed to be heard collectively – which is not dissimilar to any of their other albums, honestly.
Nevertheless, despite my reservations for
The Mars Volta at the time, I can now acknowledge the album is sure to rustle a few feathers along the way. Firstly, this album feels more akin to the less universally adulated latter portion of their discography than, say,
De-loused – in the sense that it champions “less is more” as its mantra over demonstrating the virtuosity within the band with labyrinthian, narrative-driven tracks. To give a surface-level summation of the album’s sound, it’s an amalgamation of
Octahedron’s leisurely tempo and sombre timbre with
Noctourniquet’s ethereally textured production style. On top of that, there’s a much more Latin-centric flavour to the LP that hasn’t resonated this prominently since
Amputechture, albeit I’d argue the focus on percussion, washy synths, and a plethora of crisp ambient electronics allows for this aspect of the record to flourish even more effectively than it did on
Amputechture. All of this is pedantic detail for what
The Mars Volta actually is though; and what it is, essentially, is The Mars Volta’s version of a pop record.
All of the hallmarks from this style are present: the austere straight-road-songwriting, the alarmingly less cryptic and verbose lyrics, and a frontman who’s forced to hog the limelight for the duration of the LP, burdening himself with the melodic load. Certain liberties have also been taken to make this artistic venture viable. The obvious one is that
The Mars Volta doesn’t have any spectacular peaks and troughs – with the energy sitting steadfast in the mid-region for ninety-five-percent of the record – and there is very little in the way of guitar-flexing, with Omar’s playing sitting in the dark corners of the room. This probably sounds like the ingredients for a midlife crisis disaster, but in actuality it’s not as scary as it sounds. The results somehow retain the band’s core identity in spite of the odds, and that’s because while pop is indeed the focal point here, this sounds more like a pop album made in the seventies than a vapid contemporary sounding one. The zeitgeist of the seventies is encapsulated perfectly here: from the influences on offer, to the incidental (or intentional) use of selected instruments that emit the feelings from this decade. I was constantly reminded of seventies prog bands like Genesis and Yes tied to the alluring, soulful funk of Stevie Wonder. In short, it’s an experimental pop record that pays homage to the seventies, and in this regard, it definitely succeeds in its endeavours.
Is
The Mars Volta actually good though? As a long-time fan who has listened to the band since
Frances the Mute and has vocally regarded them as one of the greatest bands in music history, I think it’s a valiant effort, but a mixed bag. For certain,
The Mars Volta is another hue blending into their complex persona, but the record has a load of okay tracks interspersed with some questionable ones, and some brilliant ones. Since the album centres entirely around Cedric, it’s a good job his vocals are, generally, excellent and on point, but even then, there are some moments on here that range from bizarre to downright annoying. ‘No Case Gain’ falls into both categories, because it’s filled with eccentric, irritating avant-garde-esque vocal lines that don’t work well with the tone. ‘Vigil’ and ‘Collapsible Shoulders’ reside in the latter camp; the former because, while catchy, Cedric’s generic note-arrangements grate after twenty-seconds into the chorus; the latter, Cedric’s approach comes across very whiny and damages the overall tone of the piece. Conversely, ‘Tourmaline’ is the best track on the album, because it gleefully leans back into the magic of their old formula. Cedric’s excellently ranged, poignant vocals send a charge of energy into the track, with the instrumentals reinforcing Cedric’s efforts: the haunting guitar effects punctuated by rock-solid grooves and layers of archaic synth effects create layers of dynamism within the piece. These qualities aside, there’s just a lot more to unpack here where, up to this point, the record feels more reserved. The preceding track, ‘Equus 3’, ‘Cerulea’, and album closer ‘The Requisition’ follow suit in a similar vein to ‘Tourmaline’ as the clear-cut highlights here, just because they try and concentrate their energies into something more noteworthy, and fight against the album’s pacified pace.
Outside of the minor blunders and distinct victories, what you’re left with is an album that is… fine, it’s okay. From endlessly listening to
The Mars Volta for this review, I kept waking up with ‘Blacklight Shine’’s earworm melody in my head, which proves the band have some sharp ideas nestled inside of this LP, but on the whole, it’s hard to avoid the harsh truth a lot of this feels very lowkey and, well, not all that memorable. Everything is where it should be; it’s excellently produced, the vibes conveyed are fantastic, and there’s clearly a vision in mind and a lot of care being put into the project, but ultimately, it’s just not that exciting to hear, especially on repeated listens. As far as reunions go, this could have been a lot worse – it’s far from being a bad album, but this is hardly the band functioning on all cylinders. (The fanboy in me is also a little disheartened Juan Alderete isn’t back in action for the reunion, though this could be for a number of logistical reasons. However, it is nice to see Eva Gardener, the OG Volta bassist, returning for this album, as she does a fantastic job on the rhythm section.) Regardless, The Mars Volta are back, and it’s a great thing to see.
The Mars Volta might not be the explosive return many had yearned for, but at the very least you’ll get an album that showcases a brand-new set of facets. From a technical standpoint, there’s very little to fault here, but from an artistic one I feel like the band have dropped the ball in a few places and failed to create an album with enough memorable moments in it. The serene aesthetic is undisputedly the selling strength here, but if you’re looking for some of the band’s best creative ideas, you won’t find many of them here. Nevertheless, if you’re wanting a wholesome pop-rock album with plenty of experimentation, you may find a thing or two to like here.
