Amputechture
by The Mars Volta
User Score
8.3

Universal acclaim- based on 130 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 112 out of 130
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 130
  3. Negative: 11 out of 130

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  1. Einar1J.
    Apr 10, 2008
    10
    Truly beautiful. Amputechture is TMV's most mature work, often flying between rock, jazz and soul. Don't get me wrong, this album sounded awful at first, taking perhaps 15 proper listens to realize its immense beauty. From start to finish I feel the amazing composition and praise cedric's vocals. Of course, this album is far from De-Loused on terms of accessibility, but it Truly beautiful. Amputechture is TMV's most mature work, often flying between rock, jazz and soul. Don't get me wrong, this album sounded awful at first, taking perhaps 15 proper listens to realize its immense beauty. From start to finish I feel the amazing composition and praise cedric's vocals. Of course, this album is far from De-Loused on terms of accessibility, but it shines through in the end. 'Vicarious Atonement' is jaw-dropping perfection, with 'Tetragrammaton' bringing the listener to rollercoasters of sound and distortion. 'Vermicide' is one of those oddly placed accessible songs in an album of distortion, fulfilling its place with simplicity. Next, 'Meccamputechture' sounds great then lags, but mainly due to its immense length. However, you fall in love with any flaws. 'Asilos Magdalena' is a stunning near-acoustic spanish ballad, totally crushing any typical mind-set. 'Viscera Eyes' is jazzed-up for action, crushing the listener with sound. 'Day of the Baphomets' is mind blowing and jammin' fun. The finale, 'El Ciervo Vulnerado' leaves you feeling like you just listened to a materpiece, without knowing what on earth, besides amputation, cedric has been taking about. Takes multiple listens, please take your time with this record, and don't rate a record you've never listened to.… Expand
  2. BrettW
    Feb 10, 2007
    10
    Oh my god, what the hell is wrong with you people?? TMV is THE most progressive and complex groups to hit the scene ever! Amazingly poetic, musically intricate. What more could you ask for?
  3. ManuelB.
    May 30, 2007
    10
    podria escribir esto en inglés pero al carajo... Me molesta mucho las críticas estúpidas de tan Baja Nota de 9 hacia abajo en esta OBRA MAESTRA. Solo demuestra la ignorancia y la escasa apreciación de arte que tienen los críticos de esta página. Si no logran VER que este album es una obra maestra de plano ponganse a criticar cosas mas sencillas podria escribir esto en inglés pero al carajo... Me molesta mucho las críticas estúpidas de tan Baja Nota de 9 hacia abajo en esta OBRA MAESTRA. Solo demuestra la ignorancia y la escasa apreciación de arte que tienen los críticos de esta página. Si no logran VER que este album es una obra maestra de plano ponganse a criticar cosas mas sencillas que no requieran talento alguno, como por ejemplo su Culo.… Expand
  4. KennethA
    Oct 1, 2006
    9
    great cd.
  5. MitchM
    Jul 27, 2006
    10
    This album is the definition of insanity.
  6. fd
    Aug 8, 2006
    10
    muy buen disco la cago el mejor en mxo tiempo
  7. SalP
    Sep 12, 2006
    8
    one of the best prog rock album have heard recently.
  8. marsvolta
    Sep 12, 2006
    10
    I love this album! Maybe even more than De-Loused
  9. AdamF
    Sep 18, 2006
    10
    Eat the baby!!
  10. NelsonD
    Dec 5, 2006
    7
    The songs 6 and 7 are the best. The others songs are less. Not so good than the 2 first album.
  11. SethD
    Oct 4, 2006
    9
    The melody dosen't present itself until your almost done being patient. Then like a magic eye book, remember them? It suddenly becomes undeniable. This is a grower, but goodness is it worth it! the sonic explorations, the frenzied jazz, the hooks, yes there are some great hooks. I feel like I'm enjoying some important music. So so reviews, but take it from me because I'm a The melody dosen't present itself until your almost done being patient. Then like a magic eye book, remember them? It suddenly becomes undeniable. This is a grower, but goodness is it worth it! the sonic explorations, the frenzied jazz, the hooks, yes there are some great hooks. I feel like I'm enjoying some important music. So so reviews, but take it from me because I'm a genius, this album is great.… Expand
  12. Pavers
    Sep 12, 2006
    10
    Another Mars Volta album filled with passion, energy and attitude.
  13. JuanR
    Sep 22, 2006
    10
    This album doesn't deserve a 10. It's probably somewhere in the 8-9 range for me, but with every mouth-breather that drops by to leave a 0 rating with a three word review, this should help even it out. Here's the deal, folks. For every seriously informative and imaginative critic, there are thousands of slacker, juco-dropout "writers" with a keyboard in one hand and a This album doesn't deserve a 10. It's probably somewhere in the 8-9 range for me, but with every mouth-breather that drops by to leave a 0 rating with a three word review, this should help even it out. Here's the deal, folks. For every seriously informative and imaginative critic, there are thousands of slacker, juco-dropout "writers" with a keyboard in one hand and a thesaurus in the other. These men and women stand ready to clumsily wield large words to convince you that a completely subjective art form is rigidly graded according to an arbitrary system they came up with while listening to Kid A. Amputechture is like any other piece of challenging music: some will love it, some will hate it. Find out for yourself instead of letting someone decide for you.… Expand
  14. brianK
    Jan 2, 2007
    8
    Good, but not amazing. The most glaring issue with this album is that it is no where near as good as Deloused in the Comatorium and Frances the Mute
  15. Crabsody
    Nov 11, 2006
    7
    Not so good as previous albums of the band but still one of the best of this very mediocre year. Viscera Eyes is great
  16. TomS
    Oct 1, 2006
    10
    Excellent Album by The Mars Volta as always, my favourite song by them has to be Cicatriz in the Scab dates album. Anyhoo... yes great album favourites songs being Tetragammaton and Meccamputechture, bass lines are supreme with a mental drummer, what more do you want
  17. danf
    Nov 2, 2006
    9
    Not as good as Frances, much better than deloused, the volta start out weak with Vicarious Atonement. They then launch into the amazing tetragrammation and dont burn out until the final track... which is just kind of random noises and a guitar solo. Fantastic album for those willing to give it a shot, for those who aren't... i dunno go listen to yellowcard or something you wankers.
  18. Jack
    Sep 11, 2006
    9
    Thanks to all the gods that exists someone who tries something diferent and new.TMV with Amputechture doesnt beat the greatness of De-Loused, but creates another mark in experimental music, another great album
  19. truewheel
    Sep 13, 2006
    10
    This is not an easy album. I didn't begin to fully appreciate it until 5 listens in. Which just makes it all the more rewarding. Complex time signatures; unconventional song structures; non-narrative lyrics. If you like your rock to be a junk food fix then leave this alone....however if you prefer a 3 course meal - start with their debut "De-Loused in the Comotorium", main course This is not an easy album. I didn't begin to fully appreciate it until 5 listens in. Which just makes it all the more rewarding. Complex time signatures; unconventional song structures; non-narrative lyrics. If you like your rock to be a junk food fix then leave this alone....however if you prefer a 3 course meal - start with their debut "De-Loused in the Comotorium", main course "Amputecture" and then dessert with the somophore "Francis the Mute". And then just when you think your musical belly is ready to burst....go see them live. Mr Creosote. Period.… Expand
  20. TedJ
    Sep 15, 2006
    8
    good album with great moments. live, it's even better. pitchfork bugs the fuck out of me. phrases like "piss-soaked indulgence," "hodgepodge of ADD prog trope noodles," "wavy gravy," "heady hand drums," "weirdo Crimson King corn-dogging," "'Been Caught Stealin'-on-DXM shower ballad"... wow. such writing embodies the very excesses and self-satisfied inanity that writer good album with great moments. live, it's even better. pitchfork bugs the fuck out of me. phrases like "piss-soaked indulgence," "hodgepodge of ADD prog trope noodles," "wavy gravy," "heady hand drums," "weirdo Crimson King corn-dogging," "'Been Caught Stealin'-on-DXM shower ballad"... wow. such writing embodies the very excesses and self-satisfied inanity that writer Brandon Stosuy TRIES to decry within the cloying verbiage of his review. Like many Pitchfork reviews, the writer panders to the pretentious philistines, attempting to impress us and deflect any potential rebuttal by stuffing his review with as many SAT vocabulary words and "oh-look-at-how-much-i-know-about-music" references as possible. over it.… Expand
  21. Blakey
    Sep 24, 2006
    10
    james C Im an aussie and am ashamed that people relate australian music to ACDC, unlike mars volta whom produce the most out there and unique music of this era ACDC produced the same sound their entire career and fair to say cedrics voice is a lot more breath taking than bon scotts wasted breath, Amputechture is easy to critcise on its first few listens but let it grow on you and it only amazes.
  22. MiguelM
    Sep 25, 2006
    8
    The mars volta come back once again, witrh a piece of modern art transfigurized in music. Their progressive rock sounds stronger and more cohese then ever, with Omar's amazing riffs assaulting my senses in the best possible way. Cedric's Lyrics continue with his unique terminology that reminds me the surreal writtings of William S Burroughs, transforming our very own reality. The mars volta come back once again, witrh a piece of modern art transfigurized in music. Their progressive rock sounds stronger and more cohese then ever, with Omar's amazing riffs assaulting my senses in the best possible way. Cedric's Lyrics continue with his unique terminology that reminds me the surreal writtings of William S Burroughs, transforming our very own reality. One thing that i had against Frances the mute was the long electronic skits, a problem that was corrected in this current album, with the electonic "riffs" complementing Omar's raging guitar. Its a really GREAT album, more cohese and thoughtfull then their previous works. I'm sorry for the bad english, but, fuck man, i'm portuguese, and my english is much better then your portuguese. Peace out! One last thing: i compare listening this album with listening john coltran's kulu se mama. Dysfunctional melodies, a concept that i never thought possible.… Expand
  23. JuliaA
    Sep 26, 2006
    9
    woah! they really turned 180 degree over the previous 'Frances...'.this album isn't as gloomy as before, but still got the magical charm of cynical lyrics and the salsa-tropica-mexicana vibe (hahaha,mind the term). I love 'Vermicide' and 'Asilos Magdalena' the best,but the whole album is great.for the new fans,this might be the right pick before going to woah! they really turned 180 degree over the previous 'Frances...'.this album isn't as gloomy as before, but still got the magical charm of cynical lyrics and the salsa-tropica-mexicana vibe (hahaha,mind the term). I love 'Vermicide' and 'Asilos Magdalena' the best,but the whole album is great.for the new fans,this might be the right pick before going to their pervious two albums.… Expand
  24. JohnB
    Sep 30, 2006
    9
    Amputechture takes Omar's talent and ear for music to new and different heights that years ago no one would have thought possible. It's easy to start comparing to Frances the Mute and Deloused in the Comatorium and when I did I found amputechture seemed to lack the same qualities that made the Mars Volta what it was. However, jump ahead and pretend you never heard of this band Amputechture takes Omar's talent and ear for music to new and different heights that years ago no one would have thought possible. It's easy to start comparing to Frances the Mute and Deloused in the Comatorium and when I did I found amputechture seemed to lack the same qualities that made the Mars Volta what it was. However, jump ahead and pretend you never heard of this band and I am sure there would be far more praise for this amazing piece of work. Sometimes I found difficulty in getting a good feel for Amputechture like I had some preconceived idea of what I wanted to listen to. In that sense it was one of the band's most challenging work to date but once I started listening to the songs in a variety of ways I came to realize what I was supposed to get out of this album. Most of amputechture is very accessible yet some of the album still retains the complexity that set the Mars Volta apart from other bands. There's no doubt the album is still very much progressive but in a different way compared to the previous two albums and to be honest it is probably their least original album yet, but I would definitely recommend amputechture to anyone who enjoys challenging music. You just have to listen to it with an open mind.… Expand
  25. LoganK
    Sep 8, 2006
    10
    Holy Shit! It's TMV's overindulgence that makes them so good. It's called art not entertainment (even if it is entertaining).
  26. V.J.S
    Oct 10, 2006
    9
    While I understand that The Mars Volta will never be easy to listen to for the common ear and that others claim to like them for pretty contrived reasons, this album shouldn't be judged by those standards, since its a brilliant mixture of sounds that somehow, someway, make sense. One of the problems with their previous albums in my view, was that sometimes they seemed to drift away While I understand that The Mars Volta will never be easy to listen to for the common ear and that others claim to like them for pretty contrived reasons, this album shouldn't be judged by those standards, since its a brilliant mixture of sounds that somehow, someway, make sense. One of the problems with their previous albums in my view, was that sometimes they seemed to drift away from the basic instruments (guitar, bass, drums) and went with looping electronic sounds that were hard to get into unless you were in some sort of trance. But with Amputechture, they have seemed to strike a perfect balance of musicality. This album is just a lot more instrumental than their previous ones and because of that, it seems a lot more well balanced. Still, this is not for everyone. The lyrics are hard to appreciate and the blend of sounds can be chaotic at times, but it's that same blend that makes them so unique and powerful. People still waiting for the rebirth of At The Drive In should stay far away from this, but for people looking into something much more different, it will captivate them from start to finish.… Expand
  27. janaef
    Nov 28, 2006
    10
    This is the great album. What more can i say
  28. AliceR
    Nov 3, 2006
    7
    As intense and as polished as always - it gets better and better with every listen.
  29. JonL
    Nov 4, 2006
    9
    It's not a perfect album, and it is somewhat inferior to Frances and De-Loused. But who cares? There are still tons of enormously jaw-dropping sections here (see Day Of The Baphomets, Meccamputechture) and you will not find another album this year with this amount of attention paid to the composition (something severely lacking in most prog-rock bands who deliver wankery, but not It's not a perfect album, and it is somewhat inferior to Frances and De-Loused. But who cares? There are still tons of enormously jaw-dropping sections here (see Day Of The Baphomets, Meccamputechture) and you will not find another album this year with this amount of attention paid to the composition (something severely lacking in most prog-rock bands who deliver wankery, but not music that actually goes anywhere). Is it self-indulgent? Yes. Difficult? Certainly. Cheesy? A bit. Does everything work? No. But if you are willing to just sit down and listen to where most of the album goes, you'll be pleased.… Expand
  30. YourBoss
    Nov 4, 2006
    10
    Omar Rodriguez-Lopez is a musical Orson Welles. This is what mastery, artistic integrity, and real passion can produce, in a world of celebrated clones playing the game of who is the best clone? (My Chemical Romance seems to be the current leading contender, with Panic! At the Disco and Fall Out Boy catching up). The Mars Volta are playing games with The Doors, Pink Floyd, Joy Division, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez is a musical Orson Welles. This is what mastery, artistic integrity, and real passion can produce, in a world of celebrated clones playing the game of who is the best clone? (My Chemical Romance seems to be the current leading contender, with Panic! At the Disco and Fall Out Boy catching up). The Mars Volta are playing games with The Doors, Pink Floyd, Joy Division, The Pixies, and all the great bands that never cared about what was expected of them, just about thier art and refused to comprimise.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

33
#33 Most Discussed Album of 2006

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
61

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 28
  3. Negative: 3 out of 28
  1. Observer Music Monthly
    100
    This early-Roxy-Music-meets-late Led-Zep-style third studio album finds the band stepping back from total impenetrability with a pithy, eight-song, 76-minute set, guaranteed to restore the faith of those whose confidence in this grand enterprise was waning.
    Read full review
  2. Uncut
    60
    It initially seems as if the moments of inspiration between self-indulgences are becoming scarcer. A bracing middle section resuces Amputechture. [Sep 2006, p.89]
  3. Blender
    80
    It’s epic, mercurial, high-impact progressive rock that moves like a whirlwind.
    Read full review
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