De-Loused in the Comatorium
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De-Loused in the Comatorium is a concept album by the progressive rock band The Mars Volta. Based on a short story by lead singer Cedric Bixler Zavala, it is the hour-long tale of Cerpin Taxt, a man who tries to kill himself by overdosing on morphine. The attempt lands him in a week-long coma during which he experiences visions of humanity and his own psyche. Upon waking, he is dissatisfied with the real world and jumps to his death. The story of Cerpin Taxt is based on the death of El Paso, Texas artist (and Bixler Zavala's friend) Julio Venegas. Coincidentally, one month before the album was released, the band's sound manipulation artist, Jeremy Michael Ward, died of an apparent heroin overdose.
De-Loused became both critically and commercially their biggest hit, eventually selling in excess of 500,000 copies despite next-to-no promotion, but featured on several critics' "Best of the Year" lists
The music contained in De-Loused is distinguished by its enigmatic lyrics, Latin rhythms, odd time signatures, frequent tempo changes, and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez's frenetic guitar riffs, which are often harshly dissonant. The title of this album is taken from the lyrics of the song "Eunuch Provocateur" on the band's previous release, Tremulant.
Track listing
- "Son et Lumière"[1] – 1:35
- "Inertiatic ESP"[2] – 4:24
- "Roulette Dares (The Haunt Of)" – 7:31
- "Tira Me a las Arañas"[3] – 1:29
- "Drunkship of Lanterns" – 7:06 (incorrectly listed as 6:20 on jewel case inlay)
- "Eriatarka" – 6:20 (incorrectly listed as 7:06 on jewel case inlay)
- "Cicatriz ESP"[4] – 12:29
- "This Apparatus Must Be Unearthed" – 4:58
- "Televators" – 6:18
- "Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt" – 8:42
The Australian Tour edition and the UK release of the album contains an additional song, "Ambuletz".
Notes
- ^ French phrase meaning "sound and light."
- ^ Abbreviation of 'Ectopic Shapeshifting Penance-propulsion,' a phrase coined by the band (as opposed to the traditional 'extra-sensory perception')
- ^ Spanish, translates as "Throw me to the spiders."
- ^ Means "scar" in Spanish.
Personnel
- Cedric Bixler Zavala - Vocals
- Omar Rodriguez-Lopez - Guitar
- Jon Theodore - Drums
- Jeremy Michael Ward - Sound Manipulation
- Isaiah Ikey Owens - Keyboards
- Michael Balzary (Flea) - Bass
Contributing Artists
- Lenny Castro - Percussion
- John Frusciante - Guitar, Synthesizer on 'Cicatriz ESP'
- Justin Meldel Johnson - Stand-up Bass on 'Televators'
Charts
Album - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | The Billboard 200 | 39 |
See also
External links / Reference
- TheMarsVolta.com - official site
- Official storybook from Gold Standard Labs Free downloadable "storybook" explaining the story of the album. Spoilers ahead. PDF file. Originally sold from the site, but after enormous pressure from fans, as well as the improbability of more print copies being made, they released it online.
- The Comatorium - A big online fan community, with interpretations of songs, bootleg shows and much more
- The Comatorium De-Loused Forum - The Comatorium's De-Loused in the Comatorium forum, where story book interpretations and album interpretations can be found.
- The Mars Volta Lyrics - Lyrics for De-Loused in the Comatorium, as well as Tremulant and Frances the Mute, with translations and annotations where necessary.