Reuniting after a decade-long hiatus/breakup, prog-pop adventurers
the Mars Volta
arrive at a distinctive new juncture on their eponymous seventh album. Less overtly wild than 2012's spacey
Noctourniquet
, this new set benefits from a more cohesive, though still progressive, sound that leans into jazz, funk, Latin, and soft rock. Joining co-leaders
Omar Alfredo Rodriguez-Lopez
(guitar/producer) and
Cedric Bixler-Zavala
(vocals) are longtime keyboardist/percussionist
Marcellus Rodriguez-Lopez
and, for the first time since 2002, founding bassist
Eva Gardner
. Completing this retooled lineup are newcomers
Leo Genovese
(keyboards, saxophone) and
Linda-Philomene Tsoungui
(drums), each of whom adds a bright, almost-tropical pop flair to parts of the set. From the cumbia-inspired opener, "Blacklight Shine," and the skittering "Flash Burns from Flashbacks" to the power ballad "Vigil," the veteran band sound confident and invigorated, adding another surprising chapter to a consistently eclectic career. ~ Timothy Monger