(Music) The Mars Volta: "Amputechture"

When I first heard The Mars Volta back in 2003, I was instantly captivated by their intense progressions, diverse musicality, and amazing talent. As such, I was equally as delighted when "Frances the Mute" was released in early 2005. "Frances the Mute" was an incredible album by almost all accounts, but it was one that couldn't be listened to in small doses. It literally would not work if you just wanted to hear a song or two or say to your friend "Hey, check out this song!" It simply was not that kind of an album, that was the way The Mars Volta intended it to be, and, at least to me, it worked in that light. "Amputechture" is a very different story, however, and it seems that in many instances, The Mars Volta just got a bit lazy on this one.

Take, for example, "Tetragrammaton," a song that clocks in at over 16 minutes. But why? I've heard many hardcore Mars Volta fans describe this track as epic, but is it really? In my mind, it just seems to be long, for the sake of being long. In fact, at around 4:50 into this song, the musically literally stops for a split second and then picks back up again with a completely different progression and melody! It sounds as if you didn't like the song you were listening to, and you changed tracks. But this isn't what happened at all. What it sound like to me is that The Mars Volta liked both parts of the song but didn't feel like making a nice transition to accompany the change. It's not just an exaggeration, it's awful, it sounds lazy, and it completely ruins any momentum that the song has going for it.

It'd be one thing if this was a one-time occurrence, but this supposed laziness is all over the place. On "Day of the Baphomets," The Mars Volta again stops the song at about 4:35 and then comes in with a completely different song on the same track. What's worse, however, is that unlike "Tetragrammaton," this is literally a song change and the musical theme from the first part never actually appears again. It is a 100%, true song change, and nothing less. Why then does The Mars Volta leave it on one track then? Well, as I stated earlier, it really seems as if the band is trying to make songs long for the sake of being long. Sure, this could always be argued, but it is very apparent on "Amputechture" and it's one of the album's biggest drawbacks.

One more thing on the laziness note, neither "Meaccamputecture" nor "Viscera Eyes" have endings. It's just runs into the next track. No ending, no transition, just a track change.

Moving on, I really need to point out that there is some amazing stuff on this album. There are times when the riff is so amazing, or Cedric's melody is so dumbfounding, that you really just have to listen to it and be amazed. All of "Meccamputechture," for example, is thrilling, and is really the only song that utilizes all of it's time to the fullest extent. In addition, most of the 5-minute noise solo's (or "ambiance" as some would say) has been removed from "Amputechture," and when it is used it feels much more necessary than it did on "Frances the Mute. "

This is by far The Mars Volta's lightest album, though light for The Mars Volta is not saying much. Still, songs like "Vicarious Atonement" or "Asilos Magdalena" really show a "softer side" (please forgive the phrase) to the band that, with the exception of "Televators" from "De-Loused in the Comatorium," has been missing completely from their works.

"Amputechture" is really a mixed-bag for Mars Volta fans, and new listeners alike. I don't want to give the impression that it is a bad album, because for the most part, it's a really good album. Unfortunately, it's not that good of a Mars Volta album. "Amputechture" could very well be considered middle ground between their first two LPs. For most of the album, you'll be listening to stuff that is very similar to their previous works. There are incomprehensible lyrics, brushes with greatness, a lot of "falling apart," amazing displays of talent, and, of course, the obligatory radio-friendly song ("Vermicide"). In that light, "Amputechture" should be seen as a good album, but a failure for The Mars Volta and a disappointment for their fans. Simply put, there is nothing new that is brought to the table here, and what is will wear thin on its listeners very very quickly.

Recommended for fans of The Mars Volta, but only those who are uncomfortable with change, and would much rather listen to the same ol' formula over and over and over again for ludicrous amounts of time.

Key Tracks:
1. "Tetragrammaton"
2. "Meccamputechture"
3. "Viscera Eyes"

3 out of 5 Stars