Understanding The Mars Volta - The Early Years

I help guitarists play their favorite songs from start to finish with accurate rhythm. Click the link below and fill out the form to book a free consultation call.

Send me a DM on instagram if you have any questions or inquiries:

Check out Paul Dumond's channels:

Check out Øyvind Lunde and his band Arata:

Buy The Mars Volta records at Clouds Hill Records

Background music:
Roullette Dares (The haunt of) Cover - Christian Lie and Paul Dumond.
Jeremy Korpas - Emergency On Level 3
Vans in Japan - Sonic pogo
VYEN - Dive Down
Track tribe - Dub gun
The Mini vandals - High Life
Bro Time - Nat Kefee and Beat Mover
Midnight north - Take me to the depths
Jeremy Korpas - Focus Object
Vans in Japan - Buckeye Bonzai
Steve Adams - Sleeper

Video info:
The Mars Volta is one of the most mind boggling bands that i’ve ever listened to. The modern prog-rock band from El Paso, Texas has its roots in previous bands like the short lived dub band De Facto and the post-hardcore band At the drive-in. With Cedric Bixler Zavala and Omar Rodriguez Lopez being the key members that eventually shaped The Mars Volta. Paper BG.

The band was formed in 2001 and has over the span of a little over a decade released some of the most genre-bending and other-worldly rock albums there is to find. De-Loused in the Comatorium their debut record from 2003 is their most successful one commercially and the one most fans look to as their most critical release. It also seems to be one of the more meaningful albums for the band because it was meant to preserve and honour the memory of their friend Julio Venegas, who sadly committed suicide at a very young age. Talking head.

But the album represents so much more than the homage to their friend. It’s also a punctuation in the story of their previous band At the drive-in. An opportunity to shamelessly showcase their latin-american roots. And on a grander scale, a documentation of what musicians are capable of doing when pushing themselves to the edge.

Timecodes
0:00​​ - Intro
1:38​​ - The break from ATDI
2:48​​ - Starting a new band
4:04​​ - The Mars Volta
5:20 - The band's musical influences
6:31​​ - Their new drum sound
8:15​​ - Shoutout time
8:41​​ - Honouring the dead
9:30​ - My first introduction to De-Loused
10:44 - The cover art
12:00 - Fun fact about the box set
12:33 - Landscape Tantrums
14:41 - La Realidad de los Suenos
15:31 - Roulette Dares riff review & playthrough
18:00 - End

Gear i use for creating videos (affiliate links):

[LieLikesMusic]

Thanks for suggesting The Mars Volta! Now what band or artist should be next? 🎸🎶

[ataraxiiaa]

I was fortunate enough to see The Mars Volta live in 2005* when I was 13, they opened for System of a Down. It was the best show I ever experienced. Their set was so impressive. I named my daughter Mars.

[TheDayisMineTrebeck]

As a drummer, The Mars Volta significantly changed how I play. Their use of dynamics is staggering and they really push the envelope of what's capable.

[nameless]

Didn’t know about the fela kuti part. As a Nigerian women who loves this band it just made me love them more

[LaceChaser]

Cedric is crying in the background doorway of the cover of Deloused. Something that wasn’t mentioned and that took me about a year to notice. Super glad you made this video. I’ve got my whole left arm dedicated to these guys with tattoos. They are the reason I started drumming.

[forthedoggiesguitars]

Saw Mars Volta back in the day at the Vegoose Festival in Vegas. They played one song. The song lasted 45 minutes.

[CT-Records]

"...The Bedlam in Goliath, their best album, " YES!

[dennismetin]

I never listened to prog rock, then I heard that Flea and John were a big part of The Mars Volta... Now I can play every single song on bass of them. Love them!!

[LaVerdad]

Mars Volta = King Crimson + Santana (if you haven’t heard early Santana, keep scrolling)

[MyToasterIsMoist]

I'd rip out my kidneys with a gravy ladle just to see TMV perform live for 10 seconds.

[captainzero]

This is a channel I stumbled upon today after your video "How At The Drive-in Changed Post-Hardcore". I did not know how BAD I NEEDED THIS CONTENT. LEGEND!

[eytrix]

Been listening to them fairly religiously for about 5 years, and I still hear new stuff when I listen to their songs.

[vollsticks]

Weirdly, I was introduced to The Mars Volta when I was homeless and would draw caricatures outside the local "strip" for money. Anyway I'd often shoplift Mojo or Q magazine if I couldn't get the former to keep up with the music scene (I had a Discman and an old Walkman with me). So I get to meet this bunch of cool kids who were studying in my town, one was this nice Irish kid and we got talking to music when I was drawing him, and he mentioned The Mars Volta. Now I'd recently read a review in Mojo that gave, iirc, Album Of The Month to De-loused, so I said I'd heard of them but not heard the album but it sounded really interesting. He was like "I'll do you a copy for Students Night" (the following Tuesday from the Fridays and Saturdays which were my main working nights where I'd make a decent chunk of change, and Tuesdays were good too). Anyway he came back to his word the following Tuesday and gave me a tape of De-Loused In The Comatorium and, well, that was that. I listened to it solidly for a couple of months...great LP and I'd argue one of the most epochal releases of the new millennium.
Great video man

[ragismrotzrochen]

Can't wait for the "Frances The Mute" treatment. Might be my favourite album of all time. Never meant to, but I know every second of it by heart. And of course nobody's jaw will not drop when the over thirty minute long hook monster ""Cassandra Gemini" is playing.

[thelaffingllama]

Deloused is easily one of my favourite albums

[jessemcintosh]

I think the covers of songs that you've been putting into your videos lately really help your understanding of the artist. It definitely shows when you're explaining your experience with their music.

[austins.]

Props for getting that box set, such an awesome product.

[CloudsHillMusic]

Incredible editing and such a well researched video. Glad to hear you're enjoying the box-set!

[didiMao]

I experienced TMV as they came out immediately. Saw them multiple times from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. With each album release I followed them and was obsessed with them for their entire run.

I love listening to people learn about them.

[DNFINST]

Deloused was playing in a record store when I walked in. I listened for maybe 40 seconds, went up to the guy working and asked who it was, he told me, I told him I needed this album.