Band pushes limits but falters

George Orson Welles once said, "The enemy of art is the absence of limitations". The Mars Volta is certainly a band that knows no musical limitations. They recognize no conventions, and no image, word, note or instrument that isn't subject to its numerous artistic pursuits. The absence of limitations is the enemy of art in several cases, and when it comes to The Mars Volta, the enemy of its art is musical excess and overproduction.\nIt troubles me to admit this because I've been a fan from the start, but I've found that even among its loyal fans, there always seems to be discrepancies -- each fan interprets the music very differently. New listeners may find the music jarring or inaccessible at first, especially on this new album, but none can deny the musical talents that each band member possesses and demonstrates, as well as the dynamic forces that the band has provided on each distinct album.\nThe Mars Volta is one of two bands that spawned from At the Drive In, a band many people believed was destined to be the next big thing in rock, if not for its break up in 2001. The afro-sporting duo -- guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala formed The Mars Volta soon after At the Drive In broke up. Two years and three additional members later, the new group released its breakthrough debut, De-Loused in the Comatorium, which echoed influences from bands like Led Zeppelin and Yes to King Crimson and CAN.\nMuch of the band's music is a blend of rock that could be generally classified as progressive, featuring abstract concepts, lyrics, imagery and multilayered songs that could easily last more than 10 minutes. More significantly, they manage to achieve this while simultaneously including hints of genres such as punk, electronic, jazz and salsa. Corresponding to Omar's complex and often turbulent guitar work are Cedric's lyrics, which are sometimes delivered in Spanish, Latin or a combination of several English words, making them as obscure and surreal as the concepts they represent.\nOn the third studio album, which also features Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante, The Mars Volta does it all. The pace of each song is anything but predictable, and horns and saxophones blaze like never before. The lack of song structure and the amount of instruments, percussion, notes and effects make the songs seem very busy and convoluted and overwhelming. It's much different from the other albums, which flowed much more smoothly and coherently. And, unlike the other two albums, there seems to be less of a focus on a single concept or theme.\nOmar's persistent improv-guitar solo approach to the majority of the songs replaces song variety, and while technically impressive, becomes repetitive and boring. "Vermicide" is probably the only song on the record that contains the lingering sounds of last year's album, Frances the Mute. However, comparing Mars Volta albums is like comparing apples and oranges. I suppose for me it comes down to quality over quantity. I'm not disappointed, but I'm not pleased.