FRANCES THE MUTE - SINGLE

This here represents the title track for the Mars Volta album "Frances the Mute." Despite this distinction, the track does not actually appear on the album itself, (although the lyrics are printed in the CD case). The band released this track as a single, and it can be found in most MP3 stores in the neighborhood of $1.50.

There are clear linkages to the album from which this tracks takes its name. The first four and a half minutes contain uninteresting and repetitive bell sounds, similar in character to the long stretches of noise that occur in album tracks such as "Miranda, That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore." It's unclear why they had such a long intro, but it is certainly consistent with the feel of the album.

Once you get past that intro, however, you get a really fantastic song that would have fit right in on the album. After some top notch Volta intensity, you have a subtle acoustic middle section which really shows off Cedric's vocal abilities. It builds up again into a powerful peak, and then closes out with a jam on the acoustic riff which opened and closed the album.

The album Frances the Mute is a significant work, and this single is really a microcosm of it. It belongs beside the album, but stands apart from its tracklist. If you enjoy the album, as I do, you might enjoy this sense of completion.

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