Track Listing

1. Since We've Been Wrong
2. Teflon
3. Halo of Nembutals
4. With Twilight as My Guide
5. Cotopaxi
6. Desperate Graves
7. Copernicus
8. Luciforms

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2910 in Music
• Released on: 2009-06-22
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 50 minutes

CD Description
Octahedron is the stunning new album from The Mars Volta. An album heady with the emotion and high-drama that has always been the band's trademark, their newfound simplicity and focus has delivered some of the most immediate and powerful songs in their discography. The album opens with the tender ache of "Since We've Been Wrong", Cedric's keening vocal establishing a mood that's deeply blue, powerfully melancholic, a suckerpunch that hits every bit as hard as Octahedron's unashamed rockers (the gleaming futuristic funk of "Teflon", the tense chase-music of "Cotopaxi"). Pulling back from the full-tilt experimentation of previous releases, the album invests its energies in Omar's gift for songcraft, for swooning guitar runs of high tension and emotive power ("Luciforms"' epic riffage), and for the nagging hooks and melodies that wreath the churning rhythms of "Desperate Graves".

Customer Reviews

Good, but not their best.
Having been a fan of The Mars Volta for some time (since Deloused in the Comatorium) , and after being blown away by their previous album, The Bedlam in Goliath, I was slightly disappointed by Octahedron. While still musically brilliant, some of the energy from their recent albums seems to be missing. If you like some of the slower, more ethereal songs from the previous albums, then this should be to your liking.

Chances are, if you are a fan, then you are fairly open to 'different' music, in which case, give it a go, but approach with and open mind.

Wow
I never thought they could record something as good as Frances the Mute again but they have and how. This album is quite different from others in that it is lighter in touch. Only three tracks are really trade mark Volta here. Lots of atmosphere and lots of keyboards, some great atmospheric Floyd sixties sounds in the background, great singing and one hell of a great solo towards the end of the album on possibly the best track they have ever recorded.

One great album by a brilliant and inventive band, I did miss the Saxophone but we have that on other albums and its really nice to hear a band willing to change.

Different to what went on before.
The album is full of nice songs, but does not excite. There are very few twists and turns and only glimpses of the past. The album is not bad by any means, but by The Mars Volta standards it is very ordinary fare. Maybe a few more listens may bring out that something that seems to be missing at the moment.