Review Summary: Earth to the Rodriguez-Lopez family: you're 35 years too late.
It's a commonplace occurrence these days: guy finds guitar, guy discovers 70s prog, guy imitates said prog. More and more frequently, this process flow delineates the creative process of Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, friends, family, and affiliates; if
Cryptomnesia,
Octahedron, and other recent pursuits weren't enough, here comes the extended jam interpretation a-la Zechs Marquise's
Our Delicate Stranded Nightmare. With an all-too-familiar formula mixing equal parts funk, fuzzed out rock, and just enough atmospheric experimentation, one would be hard pressed to find a more faithful era-specific recreation. Blistering instrumental work keeps the group out of the realm of mediocrity; this is definitely a piece made by musicians, for musicians. A certain haphazard flair presents guitar-work analogous to a certain Rodriguez-Lopez brood compatriot - and while obviously not as much of a technician, there is just enough variety to maintain some kind of individual identity. However, the cardinal difference between Zechs Marquise and Omar's solo work lies within the carefully orchestrated ambient passages; they lack the random noodling of
Cryptomnesia, the oft-overbearing noisy textures of
A Manual Dexterity, and are even reminiscent of Mars Volta atmospherics on a good day. The whirling synths and feedback amalgamate into a kind of darkness that works as an acceptable juxtaposition with the more traditional rock sections.
While derivative to an extent, the Zechs Marquise sub-collective is successful in their aim of contrasting sounds. With more focus, this could be the side-project Mars Volta fans have been expecting - of which Omar has yet to deliver.
