The Mars Volta & Radio Vago

After less than enthusiastically greeting the not unsubstantial crowd at last Monday's indie rock cred-fest at The Brick Works, The Mars Volta's frontman, Cedric Bixler, qualified his somewhat complimentary comments with a statement similar to "most of you are only here thanks to the power of television," followed by something to the tune of "no one in this town really supports underground music." Apparently still bitter about his former band At The Drive-In's last Chico appearance sometime last decade at the now-defunct Blue Room, where the crowd was less than satisfactory, Mr. Bixler, the icon to a foaming horde of exclusivist Spock-rockers, seemed to have a rather pointed perspective on a place he knows little or nothing about. Regardless, both his words and music were gospel to the majority of those in attendance Monday, the first date on The Mars Volta's West Coast tour in support of their recent Tremulant EP.
Buddyhead Records' Radio Vago occupied the sole opening slot for the show, bringing with them a weighty load of L.A. credibility and an air of mystique not uncommon amongst bands of their ilk. Unfortunately the band's musical output was somewhat less than impressive, at times bordering on horrible, but mostly maintaining a constant level of dispassionate unoriginality. Radio Vago reminded one of The Start, only without the somewhat diva-like presence of Aimee Echo, and without the pop-sensibility that make The Start tolerable. The all-girl lineup did an occasionally admirable job of pumping out their new-wavish indie-core, but the wailings of frontwoman Adrienne were enough to elicit looks of disdain from many within the growing audience. After a seemingly prolonged set, Radio Vago finally quit the stage in deference to the night's star attraction, The Mars Volta.
Mostly renowned for the fact that two amongst their ranks - frontman Cedric Bixler and guitarist Omar Rodriguez - are alumni of the seminal indie rock outfit At The Drive-In, The Mars Volta have nevertheless began to make a name for themselves in the international music scene, inking a deal with Universal Records for their upcoming full-length and garnering critical acclaim for their latest (and only) release, the Tremulant EP. But as The Mars Volta launched headlong into their set, both the absurd amounts of energy released upon the stage, musically and physically, and the music itself couldn't help but remind one in no small way of At The Drive-In. This was in no way bad, and in fact, quickly endeared the band to the majority in attendance. This doggish loyalty on the part of the crowd made the aforementioned comments by Mr. Bixler even that much more disparaging. A random act of hipster fascism. "I'm so cool, that I don't want you to come to my shows, unless you liked my band before they were even a band, and unless you only heard my music by accident somewhere, and not, gasp, through any form of mainstream media," Mr. Bixler seemed to say. The masochistically indie crowd seemed to pay little mind to the comments, focusing instead on the engaging nature of the music. And despite the ill-will swirling inside of me, I found myself caught up in it as well. "Concertina," off of Tremulant EP was all the more powerful in the live setting; the trademark chromatic guitar lines and caterwauling vocals that made ATDI the bellwether for the now fully functioning mainstream indie phenomena forced one to take notice of The Mars Volta. Simultaneously courting the masses with their undeniably appealing music, and driving them away with a holier-than-thou hipster façade, The Mars Volta presented themselves as a rather mixed message, leaving one wondering whether to hate them, or love them.
- Daniel Taylor
- Photos by D.C. Ramirez

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