Hear the music of 'Mutes'
Genre-bending Mars Volta become music's first punk-rock Latin jam band on sophomore release
Matt Johnson
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“Francis the Mute” can only be described as a run-on sentence that would make even the staunchest of grammarians smile. When “At the Drive-in” broke up in 2002, fans wondered what was going to be next. What was to come no one could ever have imagined.
The Mars Volta emerged with their first release in 2003 called “Deloused in the Comatorium.” This album fused what “At the Drive-in” was famous for and took it to a new progressive level. Now, another two years later, Mars Volta fans have waited and wondered what possibly could be next.
“Francis the Mute” was released in early 2005 to an eager fan base. “Francis the Mute” is a concept album based on a journal; concept albums are commonly heard on today’s radio stations. Concept albums were thrown out with the bell-bottoms and record players. This album is reminiscent of Miles Davis’ “Bitches Brew,” Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” and The Who’s “Pinball Wizard.”
This is not an album to purchase if you are looking for fourteen pop songs with hooks and catchy lyrics to be humming back to yourself all day. This album was made to be listened to from start to finish, and with songs like “L’Via L’Viaquez” and “The Widow” you do not want to take this CD from your Walkman and it will be a constant on those iPods.
While listening to this album you quite possibly will be overwhelmed with the blending and blurring of musical lines, which in recent history have not been crossed or even thought about. Rock, jazz and even salsa are some of the mixed genres. Cedric Bixler-Zavala and guitarist-producer Omar Rodriguez-Lopez intentionally take each of these styles, toss them into a blender, and what came out was a 77-minute long concept album with no track breaks. These two men take you on a ride and only give you a basic outline of the track listing to feel ill-prepared for what is ahead of you.
Before anyone can suggest this album to someone else, you need to give a word of caution. This album must be listened to at least once a day for a month before you can develop an opinion. You are not only buying an album; you are buying an album that makes every other CD you own obsolete. You are buying into the future of music, and the future looks very bright.
