Almost at the final stretch of 2003, The Mars Volta were starting to recover their energy with a lot of intensity. Right after the first period of the tour in promotion of their debut album, where they played the entirety of De-Loused front to back with Concertina as an encore, the band was starting to expand their improvisational and onstage performing skills. Their concerts started getting longer and more focused on creating coherent jam segments that extended the original ideas from the songs while presenting snippets of instrumental segments to be used on Frances The Mute. Overall, the shows were much stronger, since the band seemed to be recovering much better from the death of Jeremy, paying tribute to him, showing their love for him while also showing their full energy onstage. One example of that is the Emo's Austin recording on early October 2003.
The recording quality here is nice enough for the band to be appreciated clearly, without many problems caused by the crowd noise or the positioning of the group. Songs that are extended start to be implemented on the set, in this case with Cicatriz ESP and Take The Veil, performing them with double their original length, and they all flow on a very nice way. The band starts getting their energy and motivation back, playing their instruments on a much more lively tone, with their coordination being the key for all these improvisations to come into fruition. The charisma of Cedric, the importance that every single member has on every song, the talent that is displayed, it all makes up for a concert that starts showing the true potential of the band.
Jon's energetic and intense drumming, Juan's calm and precise bass, Ikey's complementary and subtle keyboard, Omar's use of pedals to give his guitar a very dynamic sensation, and Cedric's varied and fleshed out vocals, being playful in order to achieve various vocal chords, managing to give every song a unique feeling. All of these elements come together for impressive live renditions of the songs from their debut. Starting with a great version of Roulette Dares with the soft end segment extended in a very nice way in order to transition to the energetic and lively Drunkship of Lanterns with the early version of Facilis Descenus Averni as a middle section. Concertina, being the old song that is improved with the new characteristics of the band. Haruspex, the prelude of Cicatriz, is starting to be performed around this time, being a track that slowly builds up every element that will be used i the song in order to transition to the main event. Here, the extended version of Cicatriz ESP ends up being performed as a middle section, managing to be very diverse in the segments it presents, with every member having a key role in how it is pulled off in a coherent, energetic, and incredibly engaging way; making up for an outstanding version of the track that borders the forty minute length.
So far the band has given a lot to the audience, a very energetic and layered performance, where the long tracks still manage to feel light due to the way they are executed, despite the evident complexity that is being pulled of. But the concert doesn't stop there. Televators, being highly emotional due to now being a track associated with the death of a very close friend and band member, performed in a very sentimental and passionate manner. Eriatarka picking up the energy once again, expanding the middle section in order to take a short calm break from the more fast paced segments, but still showing the coordination and performance ability from all the members. And it all leads to the closer, the almost twenty minute version of Take The Veil, being as intense as ever, leading to a very energetic and intense closer, with multiple sections where the band gives their all. Juan's bass talent picked up on the solo section, Omar's frantic guitar, Ikey's energetic keyboards, Jon's explosive drumming, and Cedric's bleeding vocals. The performances are on point, and they are certainly very enjoyable, closing up such a concert in a fantastic way.
Not everything is perfect, but even then this is definitely much better than what was seen very early on during the first stretch of this tour after the release of De-Loused. The band is picking up the energy on a much better way, being more lively, much more charismatic with how they pull of their concerts. The sound quality allows for this to be appreciated on a clear way, with everything being noticeable, letting anyone that listens know why this band was really special on a live setting. This entire set is available on its entirety on youtube, and it is something recommended for anyone who wants to see what the band was doing at this stage of their career. Everything was building up towards their future projects, and the performances would keep on improving with each passing show, ending up on intense and worthwhile talent displays.
This setlist would end up being something common during this stretch on the De-Loused tour, with the band starting to expand their way of performing tracks even further, making up for concerts, or individual tracks, that could easily go on for a long time without feeling forced or rushed, with the members displaying their full instrumental ability. Marcel Rodriguez Lopez, Omar's brother, would also join the band mid October in percussion duties, expanding the possibilities of the band's sound and making the shows much more complete. And there are other bootleg recordings that prove that to be the case. Such is the case with this Ottawa recording taken just a couple of weeks after the Austin performance. The poor sound quality is the only thing that ends up affecting such an otherwise fantastic performance, with the band using all the elements they can in order to develop new elements that would eventually culminate into other things. In the almost forty minute rendition of Cicatriz ESP for example, elements from the Obelisk live jam are used, along side the Multiple Spouse Wounds section on an early stage, but it all makes up for an instrumental section leading into the final part of Cicatriz. Or in Take The Veil, where Juan gives an extended bass solo segment in order for the rest of the band to catch their breath, but still pulling it off in a fascinating way. It really is a shame that such a wonderful concert ended up being affected by the poor recording quality, where the crowd noise affects some segments and the band ends up feeling like if it were on the background, making up for a bootleg that doesn't make justice to such an outstanding show (even the video recordings available on youtube are not much better either).
This part of the tour would also extend to early 2004, one of the strongest years for the band regarding their live performances due to the elaboration of their new album, and this setlist would also be found there, with the same characteristics. This can be appreciated in the live bootleg of Live at Shibuya's Club Quattro in Tokyo, Japan. This has the same details as the Ottawa recording, but with the sound quality of the Austin concert. Everything can be appreciated clearly and without the crowd noise bothering to much in the recording. The entirety of the set is performed on a fantastic way, and it is possible to appreciate Cedric's growth as a vocalist and the instrumentals being much tighter and fleshed out than on previous performances. Haruspex is extended to being seven minutes long, leading into an explosive rendition of Cicatriz, or this version of Take The Veil, where parts of Ambuletz are vocally performed by Cedric. This bootleg is something to be checked out as well, with the band being practically on passionate fire for all the performance. The charisma from the band members, with Cedric speaking in japanese, their energy onstage, and the coherence found with the use of all the instruments, with Marcel playing a big role into making the songs much more complete and well rounded; it all makes up for a great concert, and a good sign of things to come in the future of this group. Every song has a reason to be there, and nothing feels like a waste of space, giving a very energetic, intense, and definitely enjoyable show. Along side Austin Texas, a gem that lets people appreciate once again how great these concerts were. Thankfully, the entirety of the bootleg can be found on youtube for anyone to appreciate along side the Emo's recording. Both being something that shouldn't be missed by any fan of this impressive band.
In the end, the Austin Texas recording from 2003 is nothing but a great recording from a band giving their best onstage. A great piece of audio, and video, that shows how impressive this part of the tour was, with a more than decent sound quality that helps us appreciate what this band was able to do with their coordination, charisma, and talent. It is something that absolutely all fans of the band should check out at one point, in order to appreciate the slow return to form and evolution of this wonderful band.
Without a doubt, what a wonderful performance.
Sound Quality: 7/10
Overall Rating: 8/10
Favorite Track: Cicatriz ESP / Take The Veil
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