The Mars Volta

Strap yourself in, hold on, and feel free to scream. Few musical experiences match the roller coaster ride that is THE MARS VOLTA, and in 2010, they’ll loop the loop at BIG DAY OUT for the third time.

Since emerging from the ashes of El Paso’s lauded and lamented At the Drive-In (who also played BIG DAY OUT way back when) in 2002, composer and guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and incredibly dexterous vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala have followed their muse in whichever direction it takes them; so, far the journey has been the ride of the creative lifetime.

Their fifth album, Octahedron, takes all the energy, all of the furious invention that has characterized THE MARS VOLTA’s music so far, and distills it with a clarity they’ve never before achieved. “There’s still plenty of room for boundary-breaking,” said FasterLouder, “but it’s the quieter, more harmony-filled moments that truly establish Octahedron as a bold step forward for a duo who are always miles in front.”

The sound may be less aggressive than 2008’s The Bedlam in Goliath, but touring with a pared-down six-piece line-up of Bixler-Zavala, Rodriguez-Lopez, bassist Juan Alderete, keyboardist Isaiah Ikey Owens, Marcel Rodriguez-Lopez on percussion and synths, and drummer Thomas Pridgen, THE MARS VOLTA are still blistering, ferocious, and set the stage alight like no other.

“The only objective, throughout, has been to always move forward,” says Rodriguez-Lopez. “To always make the next album sound different to the one that came before it, to always be evolving.” The latest step in the evolution of THE MARS VOLTA will be on show at BIG DAY OUT this summer.