Frances the Mute

Well, with how diverse, complex and intriguing this album is, it's a little difficult to quite put into words what listening to it is like. Of course, it's nothing but positivity regarding each song. Although, you can barely call them all 'songs' since the vast majority link together to make for a listening experience that takes you through so many twists and turns. Guitars, fast paced, slow paced, bilingual and extraordinary lyrics; what else is there left to cover for The Mars Volta? If you've only heard The Widow and L'Via L'Viaquez, then I'd highly recommend you take careful consideration when buying this album. You may not get what you expect with the rest. That may be in a great way or a bad way. But if you like music that's a little 'out there', don't take another minute to buy it and find out what's in store.

Having heard the songs The Widow and L'Via L'Viaquez and having read some of the reviews here, I thought the album was going to boil down to those two songs and a load of unlistenable avant garde nonsense. Luckily I bought the CD (prefer to have a physical object to really focus the attention) and I can't stop listening to it. There are so many exhilarating moments, both vocal and instrumental, throughout the 70 minutes of this album. You have to give it your full attention, sit down with it and pay attention. It's magnificent! As a 42 year old it's been a long time since a record exhilarated me like new music used to do when I was 15 but this takes me right back. Discovered it 11 years late but who cares?

Great album from the marvellous Mars Volta. Recommended.

Thanks for the cd.much appreciated. Excellent condition. Will buy in future. All the best

Great album, takes a couple of listens to appreciate (and a few more if you haven't heard TMV yet) but awesome atmosphere and tension and great musicianship all the way through. The concept is really interesting also. It's up there with 'Deloused' and personally I prefer this album.

Bring me more, need to purchase more like this. Great stuff.

Frances The Mute, the second studio album by The Mars Volta is one of the most interesting and creative albums ever released. No other album has ever had such an effect on me, at first I hated this album, resented the large music free sections, impenetrable lyrics and Latin music influence which had largely been absent on the band's debut. Eventually I grew to enjoy about half of about half tracks on the album, hating the beginning or end of some songs, or enjoying the choruses of songs but not caring for what just seemed like jams that weren't going anywhere. Then one day, I just 'got it' and ever listen since has been an absolute joy, one of the most impressive growers in musical history. Every listen reveals more saxophone parts, more keyboard sections, a new bass slide or guitar vibrato or a 3rd guitar part altogether. The lyrics too, which frustrate the listener so much on first listen, intrigue for years afterward due to Cedric's unique style which at times seems like a stream of consciousness, at times seems like a word replacement puzzle and at times seem to contradict information given in press releases. The story which accompanied the album was about the search for the character's biological parents, which is portrayed in lyrics like 'All the brittle tombs, Five hundred little q's I'm splitting hairs to Match the faces,' or 'Who do you trust Will they feed us the womb Chrome the fetal mirage,' ' and 'Umbilical syllables Left to decode, There was no cradle I can taste it, Come on now, All night I'll hunt for you, Let me show you what I mean.' If these are examples of the most obvious lyrics you can imagine how difficult it is to interpret lyrics like 'She was a mink hand-job in Sarcophagus heels.' Its easy to get caught up on the lyrics and forget about the quality of the album, an album which begins and ends with an acoustic guitar piece called 'Sarcophagi,' that sounds like its coming out of a transistor radio in the distance, and album that opens with a 13 minute song and contains a 30 minutes song called Cassandra Gemini, which is supposed to be split into five movements but is instead slit randomly across eight tracks, some of which are incorrectly labeled as being a part of the previous 13 minute track, 'Miranda That Ghost Just Isn't Holy Anymore,' which is contained entirely on track four. The album is best listened to as a whole, from beginning to end as each song relates to another lyrically or musically at some point or another, and the majority of tracks have atmospheric intros or outros to establish a mood or help tell the story that you are more tempted to skip if you just wish to listen to one track. I am a big fan of concept albums, but never before have I heard an album that had more thought and effort put into it, nor an album with more secret alcoves and hidden meanings, where sections of music represent sections of the story or means of story telling. On paper, Frances The Mute is one of the most interesting albums I've ever heard of, but I'm glad to report that on CD its also one of the best albums I've ever listened to, and it entertains me just as much as it impresses me.

I thought i would write an INFORMED review, as i have actually heard the album. And make no mistake, it has the same energy (if not greater) and the same skewed time signatures, but unfortunately, many many more of the 5 minute silences that i personally hoped had been left behind with cicatriz ESP, however, some of the silences are up to 12 minutes... Which seems to me to be a ploy to make their album longer that it really is. Omar infuses many more of the latin influences we saw glimpses of in DITC, many of the lyrics are in spanish. Whether this adds depth to the music or simply a cliched latin sound is a decision you will have to make. The album IS an epic however; two 15 minute tracks, and one 33 minute closer certainly emphasise this fact- they dont lack stamina, however, they do seem to drain in imagination, as the album seems to deteriorate in musical quality as it goes on, a 33 minute track really needs to be captivating to provide any interest, however, what should be the best track on the album ends up as the filler. Track Synopses: Cygnus Vismund Cygnus: Best track on the album, pounding bass, brilliant guitar, and inventive, Exactly what i hoped this album would sound like. The Widow: Extremely Boring! Like a drawn-out televators without the brilliant vocals and haunting atmosphere. L'Via L'Viaquez: Hmmm, almost DITC worthy, but somewhat samey,nonetheless quite catchy. However i lose interest towards the end- not something i thought i'd ever do with mars volta Cassandra Gemini: 33 minutes of what could quite easily be passed of as pretentious tripe. It starts off almost interesting, and then continues into some poor sampling, and as soon as you gain interest again, it descends into a silence for about 5 minutes, and ends rather hurriedly and without saying much. I want those 33 minutes of my life back. Let me finish by adding that I LOVE The Mars Volta, but i feel this album is simply below their standard. My Review may seem negative, but the opening track is absolutely standout and it is 15 minutes, and the rest of the album is good, but simply not as good as it should be. A disappointing effort.

ほんといい作品。こんなに刺激的で、プログレ並みに分数が長くても曲、構成にまとまりもあり、カーステにCD入れっぱなしでも飽きない音楽は久々。。。というか初めて？というくらい気に入っています。 こういう音楽を俺は待っていたんですよぉ 1stもかなり良いですが、こいつは王道とは言えない音楽にして名盤と言えるくらい素晴らしいものに昇華された奇跡的な作品です。というかマーズヴォルタの存在自体が奇跡(T.T)なのかもしれません。 「ゴリアテ」のフルシアンテとの共演もヤバいですね。

Frances The Mute ist ein Album in dem der ständige Wechsel von Musikstil, Rhytmus, Tempo und Lautstärke im Vordergrund steht. Was sich dadurch entfacht, ist ein einzigartiges und in seiner Komplexität unerreichbares Prog-Rock-Inferno. Verspielte Rock-, Jazz- und Latinparts treffen auf elektronische Soundcollagen mit eingestreuten Samples und hinterlassen ein mitunter psychodelischen Cocktail, um dann gleich wieder Lautstark aus den Trips ins volle Bewusstsein zurückgerufen zu werden. Hier gibt es auch nach vielfachen Hören noch Entdeckungen. Omar Rodiguez-Lopez frickelt ausgelassen und unverwechselbar auf der Gitarre, Cedric Bixler Zavalas Gesang super abgestimmt und nicht so überpräsent wie auf manch anderen Alben. Es gibt Raum für viele Instrumentalstrecken mit hochkarätigen Gastspielen, ekstatischen Solos und hintergründigen Streicher- und Bläserarrangements. Es ist wie ein unvorhersehbares Bilderbuch, welches durch verschiedene Erlebnisse, Stimmungen und Orte führt, dieses vermischt, stellenweise düster beklemmend und dann doch wieder lebensbejahend wirkt. Dies ist nicht verwunderlich, soll doch im Album die Episode um den Tod des ehemaligen Bandmembers und Freundes Jeremy Ward verarbeitet worden sein. Und damit verbundene Themen wie Isolation und Sucht Eingang gefunden haben. Passender Weise endet das Album dann dort wo es anfing und verführt zum Drücken auf Repeat.

As described.

Toujours avoir un CD de Mars Volta, en voiture, en amoureux, pour se décompresser ou décompenser. Cet album magistral s'adapter facilement à tous les contextes et à votre humeur du moment, pour peu que vous ne soyez pas suicidaire quand même (Omar et Cédric ne font pas de miracle).... On commence fort par le premier titre (Cygnus vismund cygnus), ça part dans tous les sens mais c'est tellement bon, pour ensuite aller vers des titres d'une facture peut être plus évidente et mélodieuse (The Widow, L'via etc.) pour retrouver des plages très aériennes et apaisées pour ensuite et finir par un petit pétage de plomb en règle.... Immense quoi....

Tras su extravagante, jazzero, improvisatorio y por supuesto único directo progresivo hasta el momento, esta banda norteamericana del sur más sureño, nos ofrece esta pieza de música increíble. Adusfrutar!