Music
The Mars Volta — Amputechture
Amputechture
Universal
Shehzaad Jiwani (CHARTattack)
09/12/2006 8:04pm

Amputechture is The
Mars Volta's most stripped-down record, though at over 75 minutes,
that's not saying much. The band are obviously more focused this time
around, and the album is almost radio-friendly compared to the bloated
wasteland that was Frances The Mute. The big difference is in the
compositions. Where they once relied heavily on dense layers and
off-the-wall rhythms to bombard the listener, Amputechture slows things
down with minimal overdubs and less frenetic tempos that make the songs
coherent, even accessible. Unfortunately, in toning down their
instrumentation and structuring, there's not a whole lot happening on
most tracks, and the album loses momentum fast. Instead of ambient
noise filling the gaps as on past albums, the band repeat riffs and
prolong solos ad nauseum, making the longer excursions static and dull.
It's far more listenable than Frances, but they've erased the elements
that made them compelling in the first place.
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