Label: Mercury Records
Release date: June 23, 2009
Production: Omar Rodríguez-López
Album length: 50.03 min
Genre: Progressive Rock/Experimental Rock
Rating: 8.5/10
Before “Octahedron” came out, guitarist Omar Gabriel Lopez and singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala, the driving forces behind American modern prog heroes The Mars Volta, kept saying, half joking and half serious, that it was time for this experimental and often concept-minded band, born from the ashes of At the Drive In, to make its own “pop album”. “Octahedron”, their fifth studio effort, was without a doubt the most accessible Mars Volta record to the wider masses so far, packed with acoustic and melancholic moments. On the other hand, it was nowhere near a sudden “commercial sellout”, since it stayed firmly rooted in progressive rock and still had plenty of experimental moments, with broken-up rhythms, sudden time changes and those trademark outbursts of distorted fury, backed by Cedric’s unmistakable, frenetic singing.
Compared to its wound-up, hard-hitting predecessor “The Bedlam in Goliath” (2008), “Octahedron” was almost serene and meditative by The Mars Volta’s usual standards. It was also their last album with Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante and drummer Thomas Pridgen, and the first without keyboardist Isaiah “Ikey” Owens. Most of the keyboards on the record were played by Marcel Rodriguez-Lopez, Omar’s younger brother. “Octahedron” steered clear of a concept altogether, and every song is its own lyrical chapter. Most of the lyrics deal with disappearances and abductions, and some of them are also socially critical, aimed mainly at American society, which is pretty much what you expect from rock musicians with Latin roots.
The nostalgic opener “Since We’ve Been Wrong” starts out as a calm ballad and is loaded with acoustic arrangements, while Cedric delivers one of the most tranquil and subtle vocal performances in The Mars Volta story up to that point. It all comes wrapped in a lovely chorus and sweet-sounding guitar harmonies that still carry Lopez’s unmistakable guitar sound. Around the middle comes a shift into a symphonic section, where the Mellotron mostly takes care of the grand atmosphere.
“Teflon” is a more “traditional”, experimental-leaning Mars Volta creation with a noticeable King Crimson influence, featuring complex guitar passages, broken-up rhythms, unexpected time changes and socially critical lyrics about what could have happened to American society if the Republicans, led by the late presidential candidate John McCain, had won the 2008 US presidential election. Compared with some of his successors, McCain now even counts as “moderate” and “calm”. Cedric had mostly avoided such blatantly political topics in the past.
Despite its generally pronounced experimental nature and complex rhythmic sections, “Halo of Nembutals” has a melodic chorus and comes across as pretty interesting as a whole. “With Twilight As My Guide”, which doesn’t hide certain Pink Floyd influences, is a gentle, acoustic-driven ballad with a distinctly melancholic vocal performance from Cedric, Mellotron curtains, melancholic guitar passages and a slightly psychedelic ending.
The punchy “Cotopaxi” is one of the few cuts on “Octahedron” with the expected Mars Volta chaos, unpredictability, heat and tension, as Cedric suddenly morphs back into his frenetic vocal self, while the Alderete/Pridgen rhythm duo, driven by Lopez’s guitar acrobatics, gets plenty of room to stitch together some cunning time changes. The hyperactive “Desperate Graves”, topped off with a dark ambient section, carries on in the same chaotic, experimental style that made The Mars Volta famous on their earlier albums, only this time it doesn’t miss a closing, distinctly subtle acoustic guitar arrangement.
The melancholic ballad “Copernicus”, with its acoustic arrangements and gentle vocal approach, once again moves the album’s mood into calm, ethereal waters. A clever use of electronic samples gives it a slight psychedelic stamp and partly justifies its drawn-out length. The closing venture, “Luciforms”, is the experimental peak of “Octahedron”. The opening part is fully psychedelic until a chaotic rhythm section kicks in with a frenetic guitar sound, one that King Crimson chief Robert Fripp probably would have liked too.
With “Octahedron”, their most accessible yet still broadly experimental album to date, The Mars Volta pulled the “handbrake” and made a record that’s a pleasure to listen to from start to finish, even when you’re not in the mood for their harder-hitting, avant-garde and chaotic adventures. With “Octahedron” they proved they’re nowhere near the untamed “savages” who only care about making as much noise as possible, which is how a certain “puritan” part of the music crowd saw them. The brave decision to try something different on “Octahedron” from what fans had expected of them until then more than paid off, and the album as a whole ranks among their most interesting achievements to date.
Author: Peter “Dr. ProgRock” Podbrežnik
Track list:
1. Since We’ve Been Wrong (7:20)
2. Teflon (5:04)
3. Halo of Nembutals (5:30)
4. With Twilight as My Guide (7:52)
5. Cotopaxi (3:38)
6. Desperate Graves (4:56)
7. Copernicus (7:22)
8. Luciforms (8:21)
Lineup:
Cedric Bixler-Zavala – vocals
Omar Rodriguez-Lopez – guitar, synthesizer, drum programming on track 7, arrangements
John Frusciante – guitar
Marcel Rodriguez-Lopez – keyboards, synthesizer, Mellotron, percussion
Isaiah “Ikey” Owens / keyboards (credited, but doesn’t play on the album)
Juan Alderete – bass guitar
Thomas Pridgen – drums
Guest musician:
Mark Aanderud – piano
