DE-LOUSED IN THE COMATORIUM

Mars Volta's debut album sets in place most of the motifs they'd deploy throughout their career - motifs which will either make you love the band or find them profoundly annoying, as I do. The impossibly goofy title of the album and tracks (Drunkship of Lanterns? Spare me!) hints at a desire to be overcomplicated without really having the substance to support that. Sure, the playing is fast and fancy, but it isn't put together into aesthetically pleasing compositions, just as the song titles consist of tone-death word soup. It's a fancy trick, and I guess it worked well enough for this album, but for me the Mars Volta's career consists of wasted potential and a whole lot of Emperor's New Clothes.