Octahedron

by

The Mars Volta

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Do you hear that? Its the collective crying that occurs after the release of yet another Mars Volta album. You would figure that at this point fans would understand what the Mars Volta are all about. Do they really not yet understand that the band will never give fans what they want but instead will follow their own creative instincts? You never hear a Bjork fan complain when she goes off and does something really strange like on Medulla or Volta and yet the Mars Volta, a band that is clearly hell bent on being abstract and artistic, gets a lip full every time they go in a different direction. Get over it and get used to it.

I guess its customary to bring up the bands past records when speaking of the most current release and the easiest comparison is that this record is 99% ballads. If "Asilos Magdalena", "Miranda that ghost", and "Televators" were some of your favorite songs than you should be right at home with this album.

My number one complaint (and there were very few of them) about The Bedlam in Goliath is that the band never took a moment to relax on that album. With every song being fast paced and loud I longed for those moments on a Volta record where I could take a breather before the next relentless thirteen minute prog rock latin jazz head bopping track would begin. Octahedron is the Ying to that albums Yang. I for one welcome a much slower album that builds to a more meaningful and impactful conclusion.

Cedric's lyrics are more heartfelt and the emphasis he's allowed to give every line really helps a lot. Where this record will truly shine is when they mix these beautiful songs with their other material in their live show. Otherwise its a more mellow but also a more meaningful experience when listened to from beginning to end. To complain is to not "get" what this band is all about. If you are listening to them you should be more than happy to be surprised on every album. They challenge their fans and it just seems like some fans don't want to be challenged. For them their are plenty of other bland offerings out there. I for one am glad that sometimes it takes a couple of spins to enjoy a track or two.

I loved The Bedlam in Goliath, so adjust your barometer accordingly when considering my review. The previous Volta album was a muscular, diverse, intense, disturbing, ambitious album with little reprieve throughout; Octahedron is, from one possible perspective, constrastingly refreshing. From another, it is a weak, dissolved effort; the shortest, slowest, and quietest album thus far from the band, and with few surprises. For those who found that TBiG rocked too hard, the subdued Octahedron will offer some relaxed music, but (as I imagine the majority of fans' opinions are directed) the rest may find disappointment.

As I've indicated, the album is short. Eight tracks, fifty minutes. A numerical analysis suggests the band has grown lazy. Anyone familiar with the progressive death metal band Opeth might see an analogous situation between Deliverance/Damnation and TMV's TBiG/Octahedron. It's clear the decision here for a less bombastic approach was deliberate; the lingering question is whether or not the change is appealing. All TMV fans (in my experience) adore De-loused; many consider it the band's greatest piece of work (I tend to vacillate), and Octahedron contains several cuts that remind the listener of parts from De-loused. Copernicus is almost equal parts Televators and Radiohead. The drawn out, reflective melodies and harmonies featured consistently over the album are interesting, but there is nothing here as haunting as Miranda That Ghost..., or as sprawlingly eerie Soothsayer. Desperate Graves does steal the catchy chorus award, making it a highlight of the album.

The album does rock in parts, and the results are generally not failures. Luciforms, the longest track on the record, alternates heavy, mid-tempo sections with ponderous, mysterious ones; building up towards a climax that is embarrassingly reminiscent of Tetragrammaton (one of the greater pieces of music the band ever created). This latest track doesn't approach the level of visceral delight characteristic of Amputechture, however. This is the worst album from the band and arguably the least progressive; it isn't bad, but hopefully we can expect more energized efforts from them in the future. It seems that the unpleasant occult experiences associated with TBiG may have scarred TMV's creative tenacity. Still, the album is worth hearing for its more exciting moments. Since We've Been Wrong exudes a lulling drift of atmospheric, melancholic prog-pop/rock that beckons at the album's gates for a full listen.