SCAB DATES

This is only partially a live release. For this album, Omar took some of the bands live recordings, and put them together with some of his own studio experimentation, made up of other recordings he found and made while touring.

So what we have here is three excellent live tracks. Take The Veil Cerpin Taxt (which is divided into three parts for no real reason), Concertina, which is faster and far more energetic than the studio version, and Cizatriz. The first four (3?) parts of Cizatriz are the only parts worth listening to. Part IV of the so called 40 minute jam is just 20 minutes of studio experimentation by Omar.

The other tracks on the album are interesting, but very skippable, and probably only worth a few listens. The live material is excellent, though the Live EP is probably more representative of their sound in concert.

Until the band releases a full live album, or a DVD of a full concert, Scab Dates, the Live EP, and bootlegs are all we have of Mars Volta recorded live. This is probably the weakest of the three, but still has enough great moments to justify a purchase from hardcore Volta fans.