The Mars Volta are one of those bands whose sound is quite uncommercial, yet for some reason their music has really clicked with mainstream audiences. Mixing psychedelic, progressive rock, jazz-fusion, and latin styles, The Mars Volta's music sways from light, to expansive, to explosive. Amputechture is their third album, and sees them upping the ante on the prog and jazz elements, as seven of the eight songs here exceed 6-minutes, giving the band ample opportunity to go off into uncharted waters. Take for instance the near 17-minute "Tetragrammaton", a wild piece with no shortage of jangly & biting guitar lines, tasty keyboards, horns, and the expressive vocals of Cedric Bixler-Zavala. At times the band really goes into lengthy noodling, which for some might come across as a little meandering, but the instrumental bits are quite good. The more song-based "Vermicide" is a haunting rock song with some dark guitar riffs, powerful drum work, and squonking sax, while the mini-epic "Meccamputechture" has touches of mid-70's and 80's era King Crimson, featuring savage guitar and bass lines. There's deep progressive funk mixed with Latin groove on "Viscera Eyes", and some more extended fusion and prog romps on the lengthy "Day of the Baphomets", a strange hybrid of Yes, King Crimson, and Mahavishnu Orchestra influences. The guitar work on this piece is quite chilling.
Amputechture is not an album for everyone, but if you like far reaching modern music with a myriad of styles and textures, this will certainly be up your alley. And yes, this most certainly can be called a prog rock album.
Track Listing
1. Vicarious Atonement
2. Tetragrammaton
3. Vermicide
4. Meccamputechture
5. Asilos Magdalena
6. Viscera Eyes
7. Day Of The Baphomets
8. El Ciervo Vulnerado
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