As the ever-evolving the Mars Volta, they immediately impressed with 2003's gold-certified Deloused. (By contrast, the first night leaned heavily on early material.) Picking up the pieces from At the Drive-In, Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez formed the Mars Volta and wasted little time branching out into elements of hardcore, prog, psychedelic rock, and avant-jazz and funk. It seems they’re trying to play virtually their entire discography on the tour: The band - which has opened with a different song on nearly every set on the tour - kicked things off with “Grounded” from 1995’s “Wowee Zowie” and the setlist featured nearly all of that album and the following one, 1997’s “Brighten the Corners” - but curiously, zero songs from their final album, “Terror Twilight.” According to trainspotters on social media, this night was the first time they’ve played “AT&T” in 12 years. No wonder that, midway through the set, Malkmus took a big glug of water and said, “I just drank that water like a dog after a hot walk - you get a little hoarse after four nights.” As the ever-evolving the Mars Volta, they immediately impressed with 2003s gold-certified Deloused. On their later albums, that seasoning carried over to their songwriting, as Malkmus’ almost run-on melodies were delivered in a cleaner, sharper manner, as if he were no longer quite so embarrassed by how pretty or catchy they can be.Īnd although their current tour - their second reunion trek, following one in 2010 - consists entirely of songs dating from their 1989-1999 recorded career, the group has spared little effort in keeping things fresh: For this four-night stand in the city that was long their base, the group mixed up the setlists every show, playing between 25 and 30 songs in just under two hours, on four consecutive nights. Picking up the pieces from At the Drive-In, Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez formed the Mars Volta and wasted little time branching out into elements of hardcore, prog, psychedelic rock, and avant-jazz and funk. Although they always downplayed their ability to “rock out” and still do, when the band locks in on hypnotic grooves while singer-guitarist Stephen Malkmus plays solos with a Lou Reed-ish combination of soaring melodies and brittle squall (usually finishing with some self-mocking gesture), they can hold their own with virtually any rock band. The stereotypical scrawny, bookish, indie vibe and image of the group’s early records had become so cemented that few seemed to notice how tight and accomplished they became after drummer Steve West joined the group in 1993. Back in the day (“the day” being the 1990s), Pavement became so typecast as a cliché-lambasting, anti-rock band that they never really got credit for what a great rock band they were - and, as their ongoing 30th-ish anniversary tour shows, still are.
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