Live Review: The Mars Volta - The LC - 9/12/08

So, it turned out that the Mars Volta actually played this time. And I gotta say, last night, the two cancellations and the eight months wait seemed to be a reasonable price to pay for such an excellent show. I had seen the Mars Volta before, but it wasn't anything close to this. From where I was standing the mix sounded amazing. It's hard to believe that it could sound so great with so much instrumentation going on at once, but it sure did. And unlike when I saw them touring with S.O.A.D, the crowd was actually there to support them. As a result, the amount of energy they brought was tremendous.


They opened the show with a lengthy jam that led into Bedlam's goliath of a track...'Goliath' (excuse the lame ass pun), and they never looked back. They seemed to effortlessly achieve a perfect balance of improv and structured tracks. I was so captivated that I couldn't help but get my groove on and sing out loud. I think the show pretty much topped my charts as far as adrenaline goes.


One of the standout songs during the show was the ever-so-funky 'Ilyena'. I was hoping they would play that song, but I wasn't sure how it would translate live, but just like most everything else that night, they nailed it. Despite the awesome set, I still wish they would have included my personal favorite of their discography "Roulette Dares", but they more than made up for it. Aside from that, the only thing that brought the show down a bit was standing on the fringe of the 'mosh pit'. However,towards the end of the show Cedric asked them to stop, and I really appreciated that. I kind of expected him to say something earlier given his opinion about the topic, but better late than never I suppose.


Another highlight of the show was when Cedric addressed the two previous cancellations with a brief chat with the crowd that went something along the lines of this:

"You probably thought I was in the tour bus just smokin' weed...
But I was actually in the tour bus sick AND smokin' weed.
...Big difference
So, for that, we'll play an old one"
(*again, that's roughly what he said)

photo of me with 100% of the dinosaur population attending the show.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the photos, I thought they turned out pretty well. You can see my whole album here. In conclusion, from my experience, I'll leave you with this advice; see these guys when they are headlining, you will not regret it.

tony