Landscape Tantrums
| Landscape Tantrums | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Demo album by | ||||
| Released | April 23, 2021 | |||
| Recorded | 2002 | |||
| Studio | Mad Dog Studios | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock, experimental rock | |||
| Length | 46:29 | |||
| Label | Clouds Hill | |||
| Producer | Omar Rodríguez-López | |||
| The Mars Volta chronology | ||||
| ||||
Landscape Tantrums is a demo album of De-Loused in the Comatorium by the band The Mars Volta. It was released on April 23, 2021, as part of the La Realidad De Los Sueños box set. Because Landscape Tantrums was the first attempt at recording what would become De-Loused in the Comatorium, the tracks differ in various ways from the finished versions. The band recorded the album themselves before enlisting the help of producer Rick Rubin who went on to co-produce their first album along with guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López.[1] The name, Landscape Tantrums, is taken from a lyric in "Cut That City", their first officially released song from Tremulant.
Overview
[edit]Landscape Tantrums is The Mars Volta's first recording of their debut album De-Loused in the Comatorium. It was recorded in 2002 and features a collection of unmastered demo tracks.[2] Released on April 23, 2021, it was included in the La Realidad De Los Sueños box set that was published on the same day. Rick Rubin, who co-produced the band's first album, is absent from this recording. The description of the album given upon its release states that the tracks were lost for two decades and that Rodriguez-Lopez didn't merely view them as demos or a "dry run" at the time.[3] The statement also mentions the band's turmoil upon the album's recording and that its completion was nothing short of a miracle of which the group "sketched out the peaks" of what would become their debut album in half a week.[4]
Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt is lacking vocals in this version and is purely instrumental. The tracks Tira me a las arañas and Cicatriz ESP are notably absent from the album. The latter of which is especially intriguing considering an earlier version of the song, then titled "Cicatrix," was recorded during the Tremulant EP era.[5] Other primitive versions of certain tracks of the album have also been circulating online for years under the name "Summer Demos."[6][7]
Reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Sputnickmusic | (3/5) [8] |
Landscape Tantrums was reviewed by only one professional critic, that being Sputnickmusic, who gave a below average review of the album. They described the demos as "inferior [to De-Loused in the Comatorium] in almost every conceivable way. The tracks in this state lack meat and weight. Instruments seem to float in the sonic vacuum with a lack of immediacy and purpose. Cedric in particular is drowning in vacuous vocal effects for the majority of these demos, which in turn has a detrimental effect on the emotional trajectory of various crescendo-building moments. . ."[9]
Mxdwn.com gave a more positive review stating that the album is a novelty for its place in the history of the band and the post-hardcore scene and that it is an album meant to be enjoyed by fans of the group. The site also acknowledges the unpolished state of some of the tracks.[10] However, Spin.com suggests the unpolished state and abrasiveness might actually be more appealing to listeners.[11]
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Roulette Dares (The Haunt of)" | 6:37 |
| 2. | "Son Et Lumière" | 2:17 |
| 3. | "Inertiatic ESP" | 3:58 |
| 4. | "Drunkship of Lanterns" | 5:57 |
| 5. | "Eriatarka" | 5:35 |
| 6. | "This Apparatus Must Be Unearthed" | 4:38 |
| 7. | "Televators" | 4:56 |
| 8. | "Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt" | 12:31 |
| Total length: | 46:29 | |
Personnel
[edit]The Mars Volta
[edit]- Omar Rodríguez-López – guitar
- Cedric Bixler-Zavala – vocals
- Jon Theodore – drums
- Ralph Jasso – bass
- Linda Good – keyboards
Recording personnel
[edit]- Omar Rodriguez-Lopez – recording
- Jonathan DeBaun – recording
References
[edit]- ^ Blistein, Jon (March 12, 2021). "Mars Volta Plot Digital Release for Original 'De-Loused in the Comatorium' Recordings". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
- ^ "The Mars Volta's Landscape Tantrums Deepens Mysteries of Debut LP". Yahoo Entertainment. April 19, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
- ^ "Clouds Hill | Landscape Tantrums". Clouds Hill | Landscape Tantrums (in German). Retrieved May 2, 2025.
- ^ "THE MARS VOLTA TO RELEASE INDIVIDUAL NEWLY PRESSED VINYL FROM DISCOGRAPHY INCLUDED IN THE LIMITED EDITION SOLD-OUT 18-LP BOX-SET "LA REALIDAD DE LOS SUEÑOS" | Spotlight E.P. News". spotlightepnews.com. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
- ^ MMMusic & Coffee (January 31, 2016). The Mars Volta - Roulette Dares & Cicatrix (Rare first demo versions). Retrieved May 2, 2025 – via YouTube.
- ^ Reed, Ryan (April 19, 2021). "The Mars Volta's Landscape Tantrums Deepens Mysteries of Debut LP". SPIN. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
- ^ N. Senada (April 29, 2020). The Mars Volta - „Summer Demos“ (2002). Retrieved May 7, 2025 – via YouTube.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Review: The Mars Volta - Landscape Tantrums | Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
- ^ "Album Review: The Mars Volta - Landscape Tantrums -". mxdwn Music. May 13, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2025.
- ^ Reed, Ryan (April 19, 2021). "The Mars Volta's Landscape Tantrums Deepens Mysteries of Debut LP". SPIN. Retrieved May 2, 2025.