I have a hard time determining if De-loused or Bedlam is better.

I think TMV would be a good band if they stopped being pretentious prog twats, got rid of the vocalist, and focussed on their ambient moments.

So really what I'm saying is they still suck even though they have moments of calming ambience that I can appreciate.

The Mars Volta since De-Loused have progressively got worse with every album, which is a shame because De-Loused is stunning

Holy shit. Can you somehow explain or compare the two? I'm really trying to understand...

They're both different albums, that's for sure.

I think De-Loused was more conventional, and maybe more accessible, whereas Bedlam is more energetic, etc.

On Bedlam it seems like they were taking more risks.

Um, they were taking huge risks with Frances but still managed to produce 5 full blooded fantastic songs. And I agree, it's certainly more energetic, in the frenetic, chaotic, completely random kind of way. Not as bad as Amputechture, but really...I don't see how anyone can make a comparison in terms of quality with De-loused...:|

I didn't like Frances that much, in all honesty.

The Mars Volta are a fairly diverse band, so people are going to like different things about them.

TMV kind of gets the "Rush" treatment. For most people, it usually comes down to whether or not you can get past his voice.

I loved the vocals on De-loused. They're a bit melodramatic, but he pours so much energy and passion into them.
I would have thought the biggest barrier to their accessibility is how dense and frenetic their style can be.

For srs? I thought Bedlam was pretty amazing.

Then check out Omar's solo stuff.

Hey now, none of the "De-Loused was godlike and everything else is worse" bull****. I myself prefer Amputechture to De-Loused and Frances, though all of TMV's stuff is quite competant from my point-of-view depending on how you approach it as a listener. :)

So essentially, they're incapable of producing bad music. That doesn't sound like fanboying at all...

I said they were competant, not that they never produce less-than-steller music. Kids here can bitch all they want, but at the very least TMV are top-notch instrumentally, even if half the **** they write lyrically doesn't make a lick of sense, which is one of their weaknesses IMO.

That said, I'm not a fanboy of any band or artist out there....






















...except maybe Buckethead :p:

:)

:laughing:

God, I hate their vocals, but apart from that, its not too bad. I dont really see how they're mind-blowing or anything, though.

Oh wait, they did do a soft machine cover. not a great one, but a soft machine cover nonetheless, so that gets them extra points in my opinion...

LMFAO

As soon as I saw that, I knew it was 2 Girls 1 Cup. Omar is the man. :rofl:

Hahaha that was awesome.

The Mars Volta
 

Mars Volta is brilliant, always has been, always will be. Deloused is my personal favorite album of theirs, closely followed by Bedlam. I think they're underrated and one of the greatest bands of our time, I'm greatly anticipating their next album. Any general comments about how great the Volta is are welcome. Also curious what people think their best album is and why.

i like their first album, a little. the rest i hate unfortunately.

:(

If you really thought that a music message board of this size would not already have a thread on this band then you are truly very naive.

TMV>ATDI>Sparta

I'm not a big fan of Sparta, too whiny. And ATDI was great, but you have to admit that you can't really sit through a whole album without checking to see how much time's left in it.
Now The Mars Volta is completely different. I never get tired of listening to these guys.

*Fixed.

I'm not really looking forward to this next album, based on what I've been hearing about the direction. The Mars Volta are best when they're wild and unpredictable, as demonstrated on Bedlam. I know that Cedric has great vocal riffs, but he needs energy to go with it.

Has anyone seen ATDI live? they're ****ing insane man, but then they have to be little *******s and tell you not to thrash around. Pot calling the kettle black much?

Haha, Cedric seems like a real prick.

Well, I may have to post in the "to help prevent the spread of fanboyism" thread soon. :D

The Mars Volta - Octahedron on June 19th
 

The Mars Volta - Octahedron - June 19th

Mars Volta were quite a bit outside my cumfort zone when I first came upon Frances the Mute. Cassandra Gemini (last song on album) eventually won me over and I traced back to their first album. De-Loused didn't do as much for me but their third album was exactly what I wanted from them. Finally Bedlam came out and I think most would agree that although the musicianship was outstanding as normal, it was a bit abrasive and not easy accessible.

Octahedron is scheduled for release on June 19th it seems. It was already in the works upon Bedlam's release, and I recall Omar saying their fifth album was to be more acoustic, but I can't find any sourced confirming that. Couple thing we know (maybe):

• 8 Tracks
• Label claims it to be more accessible than last four albums
• John Frusciante from RHCP is said to be involved

Any thoughts or anticipations?

Octahedron was in the works when bedlam was released, there is also a six album already done which is said (by omar) to be upbeat and agressive

The album itself is not acoustic, it's just the feel the album has, it's not unplugged or anything like that

The tracklist for octahedron is the following

1. Since We've Been Wrong
2. Teflon
3. Halo of Nembutals
4. With Twilight as My Guide
5. Cotopaxi
6. Desperate Graves
7. Copernicus
8. Luciforms

The first song is probably the song they played on new years eve (acoustic) which fans dubbed Beneath the Eyelids

John frusciante has been involved in ALL mars volta lps

Nice. Good information, guys. :thumb: Anyone listen to Omar's solo stuff?

Omar's (first) 2009 solo album was pretty cool.

And as much as I love The Mars Volta, I like them wild, not laid back so much. I'll hear the album anyways though, because you can't really go wrong with Cedric and Omar.

I don't expect it to be considerably more laid back, just a somewhat different sound, which should be very interesting.

Yeah, whatever they do it'll be cool.

If by acoustic, they mean less electronic, and maybe a world music type vibe, then that would be awesome.

Whatever it is it will be good I'm sure, just look at their work in De Facto.... all the proof you'll ever need.

Wow, I didn't know Omar released solo stuff. I also didn't know they were releasing a fifth album any time soon, let alone have been working on a sixth. I'm REALLY going to have to check out Omar's solo work, as I love everything Ive heard of TMV.

They change their sound with every new release, and thank goodness too, because Bedlam was their worst release imo.
8 days after my b-day! ^^

Meh, I didn't care for it much.