The Mars Volta Album: “Via l'Viaquez [3 Tracks]”

Being a huge fan of TMV i bought this single for Bible & the Breathalyzer thinking it's some unreleased song. I had no expectations of it being as good as Fraces the Mute on the Widow single but wanted to check it out. I was pretty dissapointed to find that B&B is just a spoken word track, Cedric is an extremely unique writer, but i really was hoping for some new tasty licks. Other than that L'Via is a totally bitchin' song and the video is frickin' frackin' wild.

I bought this cd looking for some so called different music, and this turns outto be just that! The bible and the breathlizer is not very good because the guy is all blah blah blah. Its a spoken word song, so its a story. But la via is somthing else. Its so cool it has all the tempo shifts from rock to salsa english to spanish and it spans to over 15 minutes. But even though it is long, it seems to be over before you know it. Put the two together and it spans like a mimi epic.

L'via is one of the best songs written by TMV. IT is on the FRANCES THE MUTE, runs 12 minutes long. THe CD single (even though I don't own it) has the b-side called "The Bible And The Breathalyzer), which is a 15-minute song, but is not really great. One thing though- If you want the song in full, get the FTM album.

Most people who buy this single will have already bought Frances the Mute, which has "L'Via L'Viaquez" in its complete form. There won't be much appeal in owning the radio version that I can think of, unless you are a completist. The accompanying music video is definitely a trip, but not so much innovative as well-marketed. I don't see as much true creativity in it as I do in the videos of other progressive artists who have attempted to use music videos as a means of visual expression (for instance Tool). As for "The Bible and the Breathalyzer", it's essentially a spoken word piece. Interesting, but certainly not a true supplement to The Mars Volta's catalogue of studio recorded songs as it doesn't seem to occur in the context of a particular theme, even that of "L'Via" (although this is arguable).

In short: collectors and die-hards only. This is not essential material unless you absolutely must see the music video.

L'VIA L'VIAQUEZ SHALL BE ONE OF THE GREATEST SONGS EVER. IT'S AWESOME.