FRANCES THE MUTE

The Mars Volta are perhaps the most innovative band to influence progressive rock in the 21st century. And with the release of Frances The Mute they achieved a recording that is as good as anything before or since in my opinion. A personal favourite that owes this platitude to the bands ability to generate a highly charged narrative without the need to use lyrics as the primary storyteller. In fact there is nothing easy about this recording and except for a few great riffs and solos this is one of the least accessible albums in my collection. It is considered to be Heavy Prog and that description does fit the vocal style quite well but musically it owes an awful lot to jazz fusion, Avant-garde and Eclectic genres as well. It is a piece of work that bridges many of the apparent gaps between prog genres and it does so in glorious style.

The Volta parted ways with Flea for this effort but lost absolutely nothing in the range of talent on offer here; guitar and vocals are especially brilliant as well as stylistically unique and innovative. The percussion is also an awesome display of capability switching from metal to ballroom at the drop of hat and always coloured with latin rhythms. Like the first Volta release, this is another narrative concept but if anything, it works together in even greater fashion; it is a true classic of the 2000s but is sadly not receiving the recognition it so richly deserves. For this I think we need to reference the accessibility of the album - it is perfectly understandable when people struggle badly to get into something so frantic, complex and dissonant.

The music is constructed of so many textural components that it never fails to provide meaningful impact response at all levels and right across the full range of instruments. This is most especially enhanced by the vocals being delivered with enormous levels of passion and the guitar that is never afraid of sounding ugly in order to get the message across. With complex rhythm and a well delivered dose of orchestra there is everything you need to ensure this one is first choice when it comes to making your desert island discs selection but only once you have managed to stay the course to digest it - you are going to need a huge appetite though.

The lyrics are immensely complex, not least because they are a mix of English and Spanish but they can be baffling in both languages and provide the avid prog fan with another layer to focus on, listen after listen. The theme of the album needs that raw edge to the production which really sits well with the textures to create the enveloping emotional experience and a meaningful journey. As far as the album's progressive nature; it really is extremely difficult to imagine something that is more progressive which is perhaps the main reason this work is under appreciated. The longer tracks versus Deloused do give the listener more time to access the material but the high levels of dissonant guitar, obscure lyrics, heavy jazz and latin influence all contribute to making this work one of the most challenging there is. It is fortunate that there are a couple of great riffs and mind-boggling stylistic shifts because those sections are easy to love which generates a real need to return to the album. It is only on repeated listens that appreciation of the other more complex, less accessible sections becomes possible, so without them, many might discard this work without giving it a fair crack.

They really don't get much better than this and it sits right at the top of my list.

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