The Mars Volta, “Noctourniquet”
Noctourniquet, 2012
The Texas kings of prog-rock have finally thrown their fans a bone on which to gnaw with the release of their sixth record, Noctourniquet. And the title track is as beguiling as the name suggests.
Opening with robotic synths and arrythmic percussion, it soon develops into a warped vision of guitars and floating vocals.The synths are an interesting addition, a departure from their previous amp exploding, guitar heavy sound.
There are flashes of melody at about the 3 minute mark, when the drums enter and save us from the dislocating beats, but it takes a long time to get there. It’s a challenging song to listen to, and it won’t convert anybody that wasn’t already a die-hard fan.
