The Mars Volta rolled into town for their first tour in a decade after opening for their hometown crowd in Texas. What to expect was uncertain for a ban that released what they regard as a ‘pop’ album, a word that would never define their previous works that that might fall somewhere between Santana, Rush and their previous hardcore band, At The Drive In.
Some bands might lean heavily on their new material, but The Mars Volta was generous to their diehard fans. The setlist was composed of a mix of songs mostly from their first two albums, Deloused in the Comatorium and Francis the Mute, with a few from their third album Amputechture and only a couple from their new self-titled album.
The show started with “Vicarious Atonement,” a slow song soothing the crowd’s rowdy energy which was otherwise ready to explode. It also gave the band a chance to showcase the new touring members of the band including a new drummer and keyboardist before moving into “Roulette Dares,” a higher velocity which brought forth all of the crowd’s energy wherever they stood, on the floor or in the balcony.
Let’s talk about the crowd. When rare shows play in Atlanta, it’s airport terminus and interstate crossroads make it a magnet for the most dedicated fans in the southeast and anyone who can afford a plane ticket. Everyone was excited to be there. Beside me was a son who bought his dad a ticket to the show, a fan who road-tripped from Knoxville, and a group that flew in from Orlando.
Particularly for the classic songs, the crowd was often singing the lyrics louder than Cedric Bixler-Zavala could sing them over the PA in a venue not known for its lack of volume. Cedric certainly felt this energy and began stage antics he is known for, swinging around the mic stand and returning the energy in any movement he can.
The band progressed into “Eriatarka,” another heavier song from Deloused. The band was playing as tightly as they ever had at this point. The crowd was happy to sing along to the new song “Graveyard Love” and appreciated the new music. Following this song was “L’Via L’Viaquez,” a lengthy song which intersperses Spanish lyrics and Santana-ish grooves with salsa breakdowns in-between. Accordingly, the crowd was more than happy to sing the Spanish lyrics and pretend to salsa dance. We got to see the talents of Leo on the keys during a jam in this song, who mostly stuck with jazzy sequences and arpeggios.
“Empty Vessels” quieted the crowd again before they played “Cygnus,” the opening song from Frances the Mute. Clocking in regularly at 13 minutes, the band jammed it into an even longer space. Omar, taking the lead during this jam, favored staccato notes and experimental soundscapes. He used reverse delay effects, down-tuning his guitar with delays, ring modulators… you name it. He used every tool he had and maintained a serious and focused expression throughout. He did this and more again on the “Drunkship of Lanterns,.” a song listed at #91 on Rolling Stone’s 2015 list of the “100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.” It is easy to see why with his experimental guitarwork.
Following was “The Widow,” a slower, more emotional song where the crowd happily sang along to the chorus, “Never sleep alone.” Cedric seemed to favor lower notes than the recorded version on this song. “Cicatriz ESP” was next. Cedric again omitted higher notes allowing the crowd to sing them.
The band omitted two songs from their Texas shows, “Viscera Eyes” and “Blacklight Shine,” the latter a great single from their new album and continued with “Televators.” One can speculate that his vocal chords were strained by this point, evidenced by a 13 song setlist compared to 15 and 14 for their opening hometown dates.
The band then played the two opening songs from Deloused to conclude the set, “Son et Lumiere” and “Intertiatic ESP.” Needless to say, the crowd was singing along loudly.
As they left the stage, Cedric and Omar both seemed taken aback to the wave of massive applause. The fans were very excited to have this band back, and the band performed at their best. Hopefully they take the applause as a welcoming invitation to create more music and come back to Atlanta soon!
