AMPUTECHTURE

I've followed The Mars Volta before they existed. At the turn of the millenium, I was thoroughly convinced At the Drive-In was going to become one of the great innovators of rock. When they splintered, I followed their two most popular creative forces into what became The Mars Volta. One EP and three LP's later, I am left jaw-slacken at what they've evolved into. They have become everything I hoped they would: master musicians.

Tremulant was an incredible sampler that was over my hallucinogenic head at the time of it's release. De-Loused was a masterpiece but it reeks of drug use, which I once viewed as a positive but now see as having cheapened the album. Francis, while a fine album, was opaque and it's difficulty was, in my opinion, a deliberate attempt by the artists to hide it's inherent superficiality and lack of depth.

What is this album, Amputechture and where the hell did it come from? I can not define it. Although "original" is an adjective used to the point of cliche in music reviews, I have never been hit with a piece of music this original upon first listen. It strikes me as a piece of classical music. You can hear Omar has arranged the group into a "big band" sound and it plays out more like a piece of art than it does a rock album.

I want to stand up and shout, this band is too good for most people to "get" and I'd like to keep it that way. Those morons at Pitchforkmedia, who constantly promote shoe gazer crap, slagged this album because it was over their heads.

Is there something I am missing because this album has inspired me to drop an entire Saturday night just to listen to it in it's entirety. It is impenatrable and a challenge, and it is incredibly good. Cedric is the image of this band, Omar the orchestrator. John Frusciante is my favorite guitarist of all time and to have him play guitar for an entire album with my favorite band, is too good to be true. I recommend. Too early for detail. We speak your name.