The Mung Pie

So before you make any assumptions, I know that a lot of things can play into how good or bad a live show can be. I will say this, the venue I saw The Mars Volta in tonight was one giant box with a pathetic attempt for theater curtains encompassing the entire surface of the walls. Besides that there shouldn’t be many reasons why The Mars Volta sounded the way they did tonight, which is mediocre.

The touring mixer who used a Digidesign Venue D-Show was struggling to find a decent mix all night. I know, because I was standing next to him the whole time. Some of you might not know this but the best place in the house during a concert is right next to these guys. They are the ones mixing how it sounds, so naturally it will sound best if you’re listening from where they are. There were a lot of things I would have changed in the mix for the show. For example, I love The Mars Volta’s use of brass instruments. Their saxophonist tonight was way too low. This along with their organ/keys player (which was also too low) is what I feel gives some of the uniqueness to The Mars Volta. Another thing that probably needed a boost was Cedric’s delay send. Without the help of the many doubling and chorusing tracks he uses on their albums, he needed some help in certain areas. I don’t want to cut Cedric down too much however. He was able to hit all those great high notes with ease. It was the standard singing and mic technique that he needed to work on. His performance was off and on throughout the night. So from a mixing standpoint and the overall sound (not performance) of the show, I would say it was mediocre or just OK.

For the performance, well…it was amazing. Omar was a blast to watch. His solos were improvised and for the most part good. Omar is great at playing the guitar and making it look smooth, fun and in a weird way spiritual. He doesn’t look like your typical deustchbag having a guitargasm every time he takes the lead. Cedric was full of energy throughout the whole show. For all of the improved instrumental breaks he needed to get creative in order to fill the time while not singing. So during this time Cedric decided to jump off of guitar stacks, run into Omar, throw coats on the drummer, or carry mic stands around with his teeth. As far as performances go, it was one of the better ones I have seen. It’s just a shame it didn’t sound better.

Pies: 7.5/10

Thanks to Nic Bezzina for the photo: Nic Bezzina Photography