Last Friday night I was lucky enough to get a free ticket and my name on the guest list (thanks Tony!) to see The Mars Volta. It was a good night, I got to see parts of the Brixton Academy new to me even though I’ve been there a fair number of times in the last decade. However, the gig itself was decidedly odd…I should confess up front that I’d never listened to any of Mars Volta’s music before so its probably my own fault. They were loud, which is fine. They were loud and had a guy playing brass and often switched instruments with often 3 people playing percussion. However they were loud and they just wouldn’t stop.
Honestly they wouldn’t which was the strange thing. There was no support act, the tracks meandered on longer than any other band I’ve seen, often one bleeding into the next and at no point did they stop to speak to or even acknowledge the audience. If no audience had been there at all I fully expect they’d have got on stage and performed their 3 hour set (yes Three!) with the same energy and enthusiasm.
Maybe that counts as cool… but that accompanied with the vocals being less audible than the guy playing the maraccas makes me think it isn’t.
If any Mars Volta fans (Pete?) stumble upon this post please let me know what it is about them that I wasn’t getting and I’ll try and look out for it next time….
mnemonic flotsam 
I always dislike it when bands don’t introduce themselves, it feels like they don’t give a crap about their (usually) paying audience.
I do know them a bit but I can’t say I’ve listened to the record much since the 2 month honeymoon period ended (until today that is).
The intro tracks to the “De-Loused in the crematorium” album are pretty darn good. I may call on them in the future to test that mythical fantasy hi-fi that I never get round to specifying let alone buying (the one who’s requirements would influnce the house I buy).
Basically I think you are just getting old and you were never really into mental nu-metal or whatever genre they fit into anyway.
mustdowork.
Oh yup, I’m already old (28, whens your birthday again?) and must confess I don’t really understand this modern music.
I mean really, its just noise isn’t? not like when we were growing up. Fields …. as far as the eye could see… and all the Angel Delight you could eat….