Emo's
Missing True Art of Mars Volta
RECEIVED Mon., Oct. 2, 2006
Dear Editor,
I was shocked when I read Darcie Stevens' review of the new Mars Volta album [“Texas Platters,” Music, Sept. 29]. I urge readers to give the album a listen despite the two-star ranking. One thing that must be taken into account when listening to such a band is that they are not merely making music; they are painting with sound. Each song paints a picture, some larger than others obviously (with “Tetragrammaton” at 17 minutes), but each revolves around a central theme of fear and confusion derived from religious piety. They use sound to build and shape the listeners' experience much as Dalí used random images and realistic figures in surreal surroundings to create his masterpieces. When you're appreciating art you cannot just stroll through the gallery, you have to actually evaluate the symbols involved in the work. The song "Asilos Magdalena,” which got dismissed as cheesy, is actually a heartbreaking song told from the point of view of Mary Magdalene about the loss of Jesus. “Tetragrammaton” covers a true story of a woman thought to be possessed by the devil who was choked to death by a monk to exercise the demon. Each song uses lush and elaborate arrangements with cryptic, but beautiful, lyrical symbols. It's far more than “druggy boredom” or “brain-fried wankery”; it is epic musical painting. I think Darcie Stevens was just looking at pictures rather than enjoying the true art within the music.
I was shocked when I read Darcie Stevens' review of the new Mars Volta album [“Texas Platters,” Music, Sept. 29]. I urge readers to give the album a listen despite the two-star ranking. One thing that must be taken into account when listening to such a band is that they are not merely making music; they are painting with sound. Each song paints a picture, some larger than others obviously (with “Tetragrammaton” at 17 minutes), but each revolves around a central theme of fear and confusion derived from religious piety. They use sound to build and shape the listeners' experience much as Dalí used random images and realistic figures in surreal surroundings to create his masterpieces. When you're appreciating art you cannot just stroll through the gallery, you have to actually evaluate the symbols involved in the work. The song "Asilos Magdalena,” which got dismissed as cheesy, is actually a heartbreaking song told from the point of view of Mary Magdalene about the loss of Jesus. “Tetragrammaton” covers a true story of a woman thought to be possessed by the devil who was choked to death by a monk to exercise the demon. Each song uses lush and elaborate arrangements with cryptic, but beautiful, lyrical symbols. It's far more than “druggy boredom” or “brain-fried wankery”; it is epic musical painting. I think Darcie Stevens was just looking at pictures rather than enjoying the true art within the music.
Thomas Yarbrough