Frances the Mute (CD)
#2 Seller of 2005! The Mars Volta is neither a concept album band nor a prog band. Sure, they excel at both, but Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala formed the Mars Volta to dispose of labels and limitations of any kind, to move beyond. The Mars Volta's Frances The Mute is NOT a "sequel" to 2003's De-Loused In The Comatorium. Yes it builds a story around the memory of a dear departed friend--but the similarities end there. Where De-Loused... was a finite sci-fi narrative that took place entirely in an imaginary universe created for the story, Frances...transpires in the real world, inspired by a diary found by late bandmate Jeremy Ward and the similarity of the anonymous author's life to his own.
Featuring the first in-studio foray of the finely honed Mars Volta live machine and Omar's first time in the producer's chair, Frances... is basically five interconnected songs (the band considers silence between songs "a distraction"): Trademark Volta crescendos of opener "Cygnus? Vismund Cygnus" dissolve amidst a cacophony of electronic pulses and ambient washes of surf--or are they highway?--background noise, giving way to majestic ballad "The Widow," which itself splinters and careens into the powerhouse stomp of "L'Via L'Viaquez," a showstopper highlighted by career defining performances from every member of the band: Bixler-Zavala' hair-raising en Espanol vocal, Rodriguez-Lopez' guitar speaking in tongues, drummer Jon Theodore alternately invoking Bonham's ghost and taking backseat to half-tempo salsa grooves conjured by bassist Juan Alderete De la Peña, keyboardist Ikey Owens and newest member Marcel Rodriguez-Lopez (yes, fact-checkers, he is Omar's (younger) brother). Dive in at the 3:45 mark and tell me you're not listening to the classic rock of the future. "Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore" hits full rock throttle around the eight-minute mark before concluding with several minutes of Morricone-esque atmospherics and segueing into the explosive intro of "Cassandra Gemini," kicking off a 32-minute epic that ultimately returns to the opening motif of "Cygnus?" thus rounding out the five-song 75-plus minute epic!
| Tracklisting | |
| Disk | 1 | |
| 1 | Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus |
| 1 | Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus: Sarcophagi |
| 2 | Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus: Umbilical Syllables |
| 2 | Widow |
| 3 | Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus: Facilis Descenus Averni |
| 3 | L'Via l'Viaquez |
| 4 | Cygnus...Vismund Cygnus: Con Safo |
| 4 | Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore |
| 5 | Cassandra Gemini |
| 5 | Widow |
| 6 | Tarantism |
| 6 | Via l'Viaquez |
| 7 | Plant a Nail in the Navel Stream |
| 7 | Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore: Vade Mecum |
| 8 | Faminepulse |
| 8 | Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore: Pour Another Icepick |
| 9 | Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore: Pisacis (Phra-Men-Ma) |
| 9 | Pisacis (Phra-Men-Ma) |
| 10 | Con Safo |
| 10 | Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore: Con Safo |
| 11 | Cassandra Geminni: Tarantism |
| 11 | Multiple Spouse Wounds |
| 12 | Cassandra Geminni: Plant a Nail in the Navel Stream |
| 12 | Sarcophagi |
| 13 | Cassandra Geminni: Faminepulse |
| 14 | Cassandra Geminni: Multiple Spouse Wounds |
| 15 | Cassandra Geminni: Sarcophagi |
| Jesus
- Kentucky, AL, India |
| hehehehehhehe, as expected this album went way over the heads of a great many people. However if you do have a musical ear and a half bit of patience give this a few listens. One important thing to note is how much this will grow on you once the insanity becomes an expectation. Everyone goes on about Cassandra, but really wow Miranda is pretty much the best and most epic song ever, from fleas trumpet, to the ultimate rock climate shortly after one of the best choruses in the transition between phra-men-ma and con safo. Just when you though it couldn't get anymore intense... | |
| Hunter Mack
- Berkeley, CA, 94710 |
| While undoubtedly talented, it's of my opinion that The Mars Volta haven't created an album to date that actually shows it. Francis the Mute is genuinely enjoyable, but the pacing and spacing hint at some sort of disconnect. The upside of the whole thing is that I'm sure we'll see the real thing at some point. | |
| Jenny Fong
- Auckland, , New Zealand |
| An epic album that still continues to amaze me after every listen. Listening to this album is a mind blowing experience. Get it now if you haven't already! | |
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| Susan Sharp
- Worcester, MA, USA |
| I don't get what's so great about this album. While Omar and Cedric are great musicians, creating an album so cryptic and deceptive is just kind of lame. The key to Frances the Mute supposedly lies in the vinyl production, which includes music not on the CD that allegedly makes the whole album sensical. It's a cheap marketing strategy that musicians shouldn't place on loyal fans. Frances the Mute is full of attempts at being weird, and it results in an album that simply is not accesible at all. Pauses as ''distractions''? Is this art, or a bad attempt at separating themselves from the masses? It's disappointing to see Mars Volta move in this alienating direction, especially after the wonderful success that was DeLoused in the Comatorium. | |
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| Tim Comeau
- Marlborough, , USA |
| I can't even find words to express how amazing I find Frances The Mute. Cedric and Omar are phenomenons whom I refuse to believe are from this earth. They are muses sent from heaven to deliver us this amazing music. Every song is a masterpiece. I highly recommend this album to anyone and everyone. If you don't appreciate Frances The Mute then I can't say that you appreciate good music at all.
~AmbulanceX | |
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| Cynthia
- norwalk, CA, USA |
| The insanely original Mars Volta have done it again with their follow up to De-loused in the comatorium being nothing less then amazing! This 77 minute long cd will put you in a trans with their talent and originality of mixing prog with hints of salsa. This is definately the cd to check out! | |
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| Stephanie
- Mexico City, , Mexico |
| Once I heard the album a caotic atmosphere caught my ears. At the beginnig a guitar is delicately played, then Cedric's whispers joined. Even though a lot of bands agree with just producing more of the same, there are some who are interested in proposing something new. The Mars Volta are one of those bands, with their own and peculiar style, delivered a master piece. Frances The Mute is an album infested with schizophrenic moments, they tried to made more evident their latin essence, and the caribean rythms. Their inspiration was a Jeremy Ward's diary. In short: an excellent cd for 2005 that won't let our spirit rest... | |
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| Cory Hunter
- , , USA |
| The only word that comes to mind when describing FTM is "perfection". This 77 minute minute epic not only brought me in, but changed my outlook on life. This is the way music is supposed to sound and The Mars Volta are in the process of changing music history. I wouldnt be surprised if theyre music could cure cancer. If only we could give 5 stars | |
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| D Kromo
- Los Angeles, CA, USA |
| The Mars Volta's sophomore album, Frances The Mute, is one of the best albums I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. It is infinitely refreshing to hear a band like this producing this type of sound. I have heard some try to box them into genres such as alternative and (surprisingly) progressive punk. The Mars Volta cannot be categorized so easily. De-Loused in the Comatorium, their first album, set the stage for this forray back into experimental rock which has not been seen or heard from for years, arguably decades. The format of this album and its proclaimed inspiration are just as interesting as the music which flows from it. Ashlee Simpson fans beware: this album is "heavy". It is not for the musically faint at heart. With each subsequent listen, the listener will discover something new. I hesitate to deem this album sophisticated, for in reality it is beyond that. It is a masterpiece in its own right. My only complaint is that track 2, The Widow, though fitting wonderfully into the context of the album, seems as if it may have been too crafted for the radio as a single. However, this is my own personal pet peeve with today's radio culture and should not be interpreted as a bad aspect of The Mars Volta's masterpiece. Some call them the next Led Zeppelin, some call them the next Mahavishnu Orchestra. Lets just wait and see how the revolution they are currently inspiring in popular music plays out. | |
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| David Wilcox
- West Palm Beach, FL, USA |
| This album is really amazing. I thought De-loused was good, but this is even better. Awesome guitar work, drums, vocals, bass, everything. Well-written songs (collections of movements) that work together as a whole. | |
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| sixteenvolt420
- drums, RI, USA |
| wow! what a great cd. it's very hard to label this into just one genre as it's a great fusion of many different types of music. frances the mute tells you a little tale, in over an hours time. the first single"the widow" is just a sample of part of the tale that awaits. if you don't buy this inspiring and great cd, you you be kicking yourself in the butt. it is truely a brilliant cd, and cd's of this fortitude don't come along very often. this is the third cd by the mars volta, so if when you buy this, you may as well buy the tremulant and de-loused if you don't already own them | |
| David
- Leicester, , Britain |
| Frances the mute is a 77 minute Spanglish tale of murder, abandonment, corruption, blackmail and revenge that wouldn?t look out of place alongside Shakespeare?s? Titus Andronicus.
The songs are loud, cryptic and angry, travelling at an athletic pace with illogical cuts in melody that defy expectation and add to the bewildering excitement. However in the middle of these phonic lacerations are two songs (The Widow and Miranda that Ghost Just Isn?t Holy Anymore) that soothe; but at the same time burn you in their mournful beauty.
This LP comes frustratingly close to complete genius. It is like an artist taking a perfect portrait and adding a landscape without placing the figures inside it. This only serves to add an extra level of intrigue as the listener is suddenly pulled out of a song and then minutes later, placed into a completely new one. If you have time to decode these ?Umbilical Syllables? then this will be your album of the year.
Frances The mute is not a Prog record. It?s not a Punk record, nor is it Jazz or Salsa. It takes each of these, merges them and moves them away from their limitations. So sellotape your ear to this pigeon as it flies the hole. | |
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| Juan Ojeda
- Casselberry, FL, USA |
| I heard a couples of songs and i was blown away...The Widow is awesome...Mars Volta is going to blow everyone with this new cd.... | |
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