New Mars Volta single: "The Malkin Jewel"
 

Here's the new Mars Volta single "The Malkin Jewel." The whole album Noctourniquet comes out in March. I thought this was bizarre at first, as I do with all new Mars Volta's releases, but i bought it-- and I have now been listening to it non-stop. Love it now. It will certainty be an interesting album.

Euronomus posted it in the Mars Volta thread there a few days ago. I listened to it then and I didn't really like it at all. It's growing on me, kinda. I prefer what it turns into than I do the start of the song, but... I dunno. Of their albums, I've given the most time to Amputechture, and that's their only album that I can say for sure that I really like. If I gave as much time to their others, I might enjoy them just as much.

This, for the time being, sounds a little like someone was listening to Les Claypool in reverse on some sort of random shuffle. Whether that opinion will change, only time will tell :P

Didn't know there was a TMV thread. Mods can move this if they want.

Amputechture is my favorite TMV album as well, and I think it is their most traditional progressive rock album. Many fans gravitate toward Frances, but it ranks second from the bottom for me behind The Bedlam in Goliath, which didn't really work for me at all.

Yeah, it took about 3 listens before I realized that the arrhythmic section at the beginning was throwing the rest of the song off for me. The second half of the song is really quite awesome and the beginning is def growing on me, but why it's so off kilter is really bugging me. At first I felt like they time-shifted the guitar, but after a close listen and some counting I realized it's the drums that throw the feel off. The guitar is just doing some fairly standard syncopation in 4/4 but I still can't wrap my head around what the drums are doing. As a musician it fascinates me, but as music fan I'm still not so sure about the choice they made here.

Better than anything on Octahedron.... so that's a good sign. Also, anyone get a ATDI-ey vibe from Cedric in the first half?

I know Octahedron is completely different, but I love it. It is to The Mars Volta what Jar of Flies was for Alice in Chains.