Friday, August 1, 2008

The Mars Volta - Tremulant EP (2002, U.S.A.) Pysch Rock


There goes my obscure music nerd cred! - A band that is on the charts these days? surely not? This is one of my favourite recordings, it caught me at a time when I was just starting to delve into prog and I loved it then and I still love it today.

The sound is remarkably different from modern day TMV. Here instead of 'angular' well produced hard rock we have a refreshingly gritty recording with a dark and genuine atmosphere. This is the distillation of a bunch of minds that had indulged liberally in all manner of psychedelic substances and had a pent up musical urge that needed to get out. 'Eunuch Provocateur' is easily the best song the band has ever recorded, the way it goes from subdued melancholy guitar to a trance inducing almost electronic drum beat is inspiring and the feverish chorus and complex melodies really set it apart as something quite special. Likewise the intensity of Opening track 'Cut That City' is both confronting and delightful and on the whole the three songs are undeniably cohesive in their construction perfectly tempering furious bursts of jagged riffing with mellow passages.

I only wish the band had have stuck with this style of music and recording for a while longer, oh well I should really be grateful they even recorded this guy in the first place. I guess that's the trade off with quitting drugs if you're a musician - on one hand you get your health back, on the other hand you'll never write music the same again.

Track Listings

1. Cut that City (5:44)
2. Concertina (4:54)
3. Eunuch Provocateur (8:48)

Total Time: 18:26

Download Here: (The Mars Volta - Tremulant EP, 192kbps)

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