FRANCES THE MUTE

Never having been a huge At the Drive In fan (who strangely enough are rarely mentioned in the reviews above) I came to the Mars Volta with an open mind. Having read some of the reviews I had to write my own.

Anyone who expects a classic prog-rock album from these guys will be sorely disappointed, yes Storm Thorgerson/Hipgnosis did the art, yes there are multi part epics, yes there is wild variation in dynamics/tempos, but remember the album was recorded in 2004, not 1974. Mars Volta are as prog as you can get in 2005 without being a throwback or revivalist group, they are trying to do something new and injecting life into a tired genre (and selling a lot of records too).

Mars Volta can play their instruments, there may not be a virtuoso in the band but does there need to be? They can write intricate and engaging songs that are simultaneously difficult and listenable (i.e Cygnus... or the closing Cassandra... epic). Not an easy thing to do (though they do get lost from time to time in the noisy bridging sections). They can also write a decent pop song (the Widow), and of course thats the entry point for new fans. There's plenty to like here, it may not be 'old school' but it's pretty good.

Nonetheless one must keep in mind that times have changed, bands of today have a much different musical upbringing to those of the classic era. Remember Mars Volta came from a punk/hardcore background so their approach will be different (ATDI sounded like a pumped up Fugazi to me - which is not a bad thing at all), celebrate this difference.

"Frances the Mute" should be lauded for bringing progressive music back to the general consciousness and expanding the audience it has.

TMV are good, not yet great. But they could be. Give it a go.