The saga of Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez has been a long and tenuous drama playing out over the last two decades and numerous music projects. The pairing of Cedric's vocals to Omar's guitar and surreal orchestrations have made for some great music over the years. In the right circles At the Drive-In and The Mars Volta are practically household names, but much more has been concocted between the two. But through it all they have remained a powerful, if combustible creative duo. That was right up until early 2013 when the fuse finally burned up and everything exploded: The Mars Volta had split over creative differences and the two were firing off in opposite directions.
For reasons known only to them they
have come back together in 2014 for yet another first impression.
This one is called Antemasque (or ANTEMASQUE if you're into
capitalization). Backing up the two masterminds is longtime Volta /
Omar drummer Dave Elitch and prolific bass player Flea contributes
sporadically as well. With this (somewhat) new band in tow this is a
musical step forward that is informed by their collective history without
being slavishly bound to it. For starters only one of these ten
tracks breach the four-minute mark, making for a startlingly short
total run time of 34 minutes. Without exaggeration, Omar has composed
and performed songs longer than that before. If past efforts have
indulged the duo's tendencies for long-form composition and extreme
technical prowess (I'm looking at you Amputechture),
Antemasque is a showcase for their sharper, shorter songwriting
chops.And, you know what? It works.
The very first song demonstrates this
new approach to their collaboration excellently. '4AM' is punchy and
brash right out of the gate. Cedric yelps his paranoid lyrics over a
pulsating new wave beats and jangling melodies. It is still muscular,
showing off some of their old hardcore stock, and when the last verse
kicks in at double-time you already have the first genuine mosh-able
moment on the record. In short, it is the ideal lead single to show off the group's
new wares. Those strong, bass-heavy songs lead the album in well. 'I
Got No Remorse' cribs a few guitar sounds from 80s King Crimson which
should come as little surprise; Omar has never made any
excuses for his shameless Robert Fripp worship.
But the album is certainly not all
highly-strung punk rock. The numerous references to Rush are curious
as they are one of the few classic prog acts that wasn't referenced
in the work of The Mars Volta. One listen to '50,000 Watts' will
doubtlessly bring forth memories of Moving Pictures and Power
Windows, of Geddy Lee in a kimono thrashing the life out of his
bass guitar on the moon. On the flip-side of that, 'Drown All Your
Witches' has a gentle psychedelic charm like Led Zeppelin at their
quaint, folked out best. If you're looking for spooky sonic
nightmares there's still plenty to enjoy here. 'Providence' is
dripping with bad-trip sonics as Cedric howls 'You've been burning at
the stake' like a wounded banshee.
Since the influences are less esoteric
this time around there is more room for happy, hookier moments to
shine through. 'Ride Like the Devil's Son' is practically begging for
you to clap along with it. Don't be surprised if some of these songs
get stuck in your head for quite some time. This is potentially the most
accessible album from these two auteurs yet. And really, is that such
a bad thing? You will have no trouble playing this record over and
over again if the desire takes you, which hasn't really been feasible
with these two since Relationship of Command. It's energetic
while still being silly, dense when it needs to be but sparse when it
helps. Most of all, Antemasque is a refreshing album that reminds us
never to pigeonhole great creative minds – they can always find new
ways to surprise us.
Rating: B+
Recommended tracks: 4AM, Drown All Your
Witches
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