Bedlam In Goliath, the latest CD from The Mars Volta gave me a headache the first time I listened to it.
There was just so much musical information flying out of the little silver CD, my ears and my brain just couldn't keep up. An astoundingly rich melange of styles, sounds, and harmonics, that borrows from many, yet isn't derivative, sounds fresh, and is crunchy like a shovel to the face. Zeppelin, Zappa, ELP, Santana, Jeff Beck, there are hints of each interwoven into a whirling dervish of musical sights sounds and colors. My favorite songs included "Abernikula", "Wax Simulacra", and "Goliath". These guys play like they all have bees in their pants. If the Tasmanian Devil played in a band, this would be it.
Track list under the jump.