Rating: 7.0 (Average)
It's been a little less than a year and a half since The Mars Volta released the sprawling Amputechture, and many Mars Volta fans still haven't digested that goliath (pun intended) of an album. Unfortunately, the band haven't shaken off the sludge of Amputechture, but they try to combine it with the energy from De-Loused. In some cases it works, in many other cases, it doesn't. When the energy comes in though, it still doesn't have the excitement and tension that their first two full lengths had, and sometimes not even the memorability that Amputechture had.
Opener "Aberinkula" is unlike any of the other album openers, starting immediately rather than the slow buildup and explosion the last three albums (and EP) held. Unfortunately, "Aberinkula"'s formula doesn't work; it's too in your face, and it doesn't help that the tension dies in the verses. It would have been a smart move to place a track like "Tourniquet Man" is the beginning rather than in the middle. "Ileyna" is in the vein of "L'Via L'Viaquez"; it even begins with a quiet section, yet doesn't rock quite as hard, which is again the downfall of the track. "Wax Simulacra" is one of the best songs on Bedlam, and features one of Cedric's best vocal performances. "Goliath" is one of the hookiest songs the Mars Volta have ever performed, and contains some of Omar's best work, along with a near-hardcore punk drum pattern.
"Tourniquet Man" is, while a good song, misplaced. It feels very out of place and would have been (as previously mentioned) better as an introduction, due to it's short length and "build up" quality. "Cavalettes" leads you on to think it will be an exciting track, but after the intro leads into a quite boring song, despite the faster tempo. It's too straight forward, and would have been better if a more exciting drum pattern was used in the verses. "Askepious" is a much more interesting track, but uses incredibly 8-bit sounding brass. "Ouroborous" is the best and most exciting song Bedlam, with a lightning riff and slithering vocals. It's becoming clear that the better Mars Volta songs are often more of the simpler ones (see: De-Loused in the Comatorium). "Soothsayer" is a calmer song, and sounds like a collaboration between De-Loused and Frances the Mute, which works better than De-Loused meets Amputechture. The main guitar hook really makes the song memorable. "Conjugal Burns" is another track that falls victim to bad sequencing. It sounds more like a middle/late album track rather than a closer.
The biggest problem with The Bedlam in Goliath is the track sequencing; a little re-arranging on the part of the band would have greatly improved the album. All in all, in a technical standpoint, the Mars Volta are still one of the most talented bands around. Their songwriting has taken a turn for the worse, they've lost the hooks that kept their longer songs interesting and rely instead on repetitious passages, but they are in top instrumental performance here. Yet, while Omar's guitar was the star on previous expeditions, the real standout here is new drummer Thomas Pridgen, who adds a real backbone to the spacey psychedelia.
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