(http://www.galeon.com/allmusic/caratulas/a/At_The_Drive_In_-_Relationship_Of_Command_-_front.jpg)
(a quick note: I am not trying to convince you that this should be your favorite album. I am not stating that this album is should be concretely heralded in front of any of ATDI's other releases (Vaya) or their future bands' albums [Deloused, Frances, Wiretap Scars] so lets not get technical)
1. I discovered this album simultaneously with TMV's De-loused in the Comatorium during the fall/winter of 2003-4. These albums were being played when I was beginning to become the person that I am today, helped me get into a different vein of music and music appreciation, and really became the soundtrack to 2004, what I consider the golden age of T.S. (my friends and I). However, I always favored and still favor Relationship of Command because it just seemed to always be playing where the parties were at. Just a wonderful feeling I get when I listen to it, brings back all awesome memories and creates good moments still to this day.
2. This was the first album in which I could listen to the whole album and enjoy every song. There are some weaker songs (Mannequin is my least favorite) but the album has so many extremely strong songs (Pattern Against User, Quarantined, Cosmonaut, Enfilade, Invalid Letter Dpt.) that every time I listen to it I never want to skip to any tracks, I just want to be stunned time and time again of the brief interlude from One-armed Scissor to Sleepwalk Capsules, the atmospheric storm brewing at Quarantine's start, and the final cathartic explosion at the end of Cosmonaut (not to mention a phone call from a certain cub-kidnapper).
3. People always complain about Cedric Bixler Zavala's lyrics, but seriously, they are at their height here. Free to not focus on one universal concept like his future band would, Cedric focuses on politics using cryptic language that hmmm...ACTUALLY MAKES YOU THINK (LITERALLY). You really have to try to figure out what he's saying and why he's saying it, and when it all comes together you get that "ahhhh" feeling in your brain. Many accuse him of being "scientific" or "cold" because of the language he chooses to use but this is all bullshit. Cedric's heart explodes every note he sings...
4. ....which brings me to vocals. Cedric's vocals do not have a particularly great range (something he would soon fix later on), yet his combination of shrieking like a maniac and slow curling notes really combine to create a one-of-a-kind voice (Well until people like Geoff Bickley show up later on). BUT a huge part of the success of vocals on this albums comes from the combination of Cedric and fellow bandmate Jim Ward. I can't think of At the Drive-in without Jim's melodic shouts that echo throughout their discography, and it's no exception here. Jim doesn't have a great range, but man can the dude sound good when he's singing/yelling up against those accompanying layers.
5. When critics are always citing problems with The Mars Volta, they always point at excessiveness. That is, self-indulgent ambiance and extended instrument parts that wraps each song in a dense blanket which may sometimes make the impatient listener cover his face and cry. However, Relationship of Command is an excellent balance between melodic pop/punk songs and straight-up progressive rock. The songs are catchy yet they never sacrifice integrity or originality.
6. Iggy Pop is on the album.
7. The album really does a great job of bottling up At the Drive-in's creative rage. They had on previous albums had some trouble converting music from the concert stage to the recorder. They wanted to turn this...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=kBUtkPrANRs (http://youtube.com/watch?v=kBUtkPrANRs)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=0_lXPrCpSVE&feature=related (http://youtube.com/watch?v=0_lXPrCpSVE&feature=related)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=KSSx15qm4A8 (http://youtube.com/watch?v=KSSx15qm4A8)
...into a comparable medium. In my opinion, they succeeded.
Ok I can't think of 10 reasons like I thought I was going to...but seriously guys. At The Drive-In rules, go listen to this album.
I completly agree.
It's a must-buy album.
This is by far my favorite album after some Deftones albums.
arcarsenal makes me wanna flail my arms clean out of their sockets!
someone gave this to me a long time ago. i threw it away after a couple of listens.
What a fucking album! I love it!
Quote from: blondie on Apr 04, 2008, 11:50 PM
someone gave this to me a long time ago. i threw it away after a couple of listens.
you're a hooker. no one cares. go suck a deceased cock.
anyways, awesome album.
to say least, yeah, i liked this cd
Quote from: blondie on Apr 04, 2008, 11:50 PM
someone gave this to me a long time ago. i threw it away after a couple of listens.
you are seriously pathetic. hanging around on a forum, acting like you hate the band the forum is about and pretty much everything anyone else here likes, no matter what it is... does that make you feel good? I don't even care if you like Deftones or anything else we discuss here, it's besides the point. because no matter if you like them or not, spending a lot of time on here (which you obviously do considering you reply to a lot of threads in pretty much all different categories of the boards) making the kinds of posts you do is simply laughable. and I guess you get a kick out of me spending the time to make this post, because it's the kind of reaction you're looking for, but it's really not because I'm upset about your posts. I just hope you somewhere deep inside see how fucking ridiculous it is to do what you're doing. seriously. no matter how I look at it, you come across as a really lonely guy with nothing better to do than hanging around on a board for a band you don't even like or hanging around on a board for a band you like but act like you don't. either way, it's just fucking sad.
Quote from: aenemic on Apr 05, 2008, 12:56 AM
Quote from: blondie on Apr 04, 2008, 11:50 PM
someone gave this to me a long time ago. i threw it away after a couple of listens.
you are seriously pathetic. hanging around on a forum, acting like you hate the band the forum is about and pretty much everything anyone else here likes, no matter what it is... does that make you feel good? I don't even care if you like Deftones or anything else we discuss here, it's besides the point. because no matter if you like them or not, spending a lot of time on here (which you obviously do considering you reply to a lot of threads in pretty much all different categories of the boards) making the kinds of posts you do is simply laughable. and I guess you get a kick out of me spending the time to make this post, because it's the kind of reaction you're looking for, but it's really not because I'm upset about your posts. I just hope you somewhere deep inside see how fucking ridiculous it is to do what you're doing. seriously. no matter how I look at it, you come across as a really lonely guy with nothing better to do than hanging around on a board for a band you don't even like or hanging around on a board for a band you like but act like you don't. either way, it's just fucking sad.
that just made me lolz big time.
notice how i didn't bash the band at all. i simply didn't like the album and disposed of it.
thanks for the psycho analysis though. i feel like a new person now.
(at blondie)you are a penis head. but i must admit. you didnt say anything that bad in your post
as far as ATDI
i love relationship of command... to say that it is the best album ever is a good laugh for me.. but its definitely one of my all time favorites. from beginning to end every song is good. and they all stand out..
i love this album a lot. holds a deep place in my soul.. its certainly not the best album ever. but its by far the best thing that omar and cedric will ever be involved in..
oh and one more thing.
not to shatter you ben.
but they arent getting back together.
and even if ATDI did get back together they wouldnt be all shooting heroin like they were in the good old days.. thats where all that crazy music came from. their drug addictions
Quote from: Fireal1222 on Apr 05, 2008, 06:07 AM
not to shatter you ben.
but they arent getting back together.
and even if ATDI did get back together they wouldnt be all shooting heroin like they were in the good old days.. thats where all that crazy music came from. their drug addictions
i read in an interview with cedric a few months ago that if ATDI were ever to get back together, he'd be doing it simply for the money and would be putting it all back into TMV
it was in this magazine, its called Geek
(https://www.pubservice.com/PYStore/IMAGES/BIG/GKI-020108.JPG)
i was able to find the article online, here is a quote
Geek: There's a lot of pressure on you and Omar to reunite At The Drive-In. Do you grow frustrated with that, or do you feel honored?
Cedric: I can't really say I feel honored. It's great to have the attention, but I really feel that was a band that pulled the wool over a lot of people's eyes. We got credit for a sound that we were pretty much the 20th generation of. I would have no problem with reuniting and doing a show personally just because I would honestly do it for the money. If I got money from it I could put it back into The Mars Volta. I could get better production without the use of the label. How could that benefit TMV or me artistically? It wouldn't be about the performance or the nostalgia. To me, it would just be getting into bed with someone who wanted to lend me money, pretty much. I'm not interested in the music really and all the kids who are really into that band, if they would just do the math, they would realize that people like Drive Like Jehu, The Jesus Lizard and even Fugazi, who everyone does know, did it first and they did it better.
http://marsvoltasweden.wordpress.com/2008/01/18/cedric-i-geek-magazine/
Quote from: neurotic on Apr 04, 2008, 09:56 PM
I completly agree.
It's a must-buy album.
it is
must-buy, must-download, must-listen-no-way-to-dislike
I remember being at school when this album came out, and me being naive I simply put off listening to it simply because of the band name, At The Drive-In lol. Then I was in my local record store and it was on special offer so I brought it to see what all the fuss was about... Put it on my stereo and boom!! Never had I heard anything like it, never had an album before this one left me speechless upon the first song! This is an album that ALL people should own regardless of your musical taste as I can guarantee that there are only a handful of albums out there that are as good and as powerful as this one...
enfilade to the end is just nutz
the album from beginning to end is like one dark acid trip.. especially the last song.. non-zero possibility...
it seems like i only listen to relationship of command on a gloomy day. or if its raining
its the perfect fit
Quote from: Starz on Apr 05, 2008, 03:09 PM
Never had I heard anything like it, never had an album before this one left me speechless upon the first song!.
Never heard a man speak like this man before ;)
oh
deffinetly a must have.i bought when it first came out,it didnt leave my cd player for three months.i was though these days i perfer to listen to acrobatic tenament.r.o.c. is one of the greatest albims ever created.no misses just pure greatness in every way possible.even over time this album has aged very well,still as good everytime.
RoC > every The Mars Volta album.
i dont know.. i think i place de-loused in the comatorium a little ahead of relationship of command
actually. the more i think about it.. i definitely like de louse in the comatorium. more than i like relation of command
de loused > ROC
really think about it.. or just listen to the 2
yessir i will do that right now.
deloused in the comatorium > relationship of command.
just because i love every song in deloused and there are few songs in roc that are not THAT good (but all the others are still amazing)
Quote from: bored on Apr 13, 2008, 09:12 AM
deloused in the comatorium > relationship of command.
just because i love every song in deloused and there are few songs in roc that are not THAT good (but all the others are still amazing)
TRUISM.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=xjBwYzSVKTc
remember when the mars volta were the best band ever.
the keyboard around the 1:50 mark is so great
Quote from: Fireal1222 on Apr 14, 2008, 03:21 AM
remember when the mars volta were the best band ever.
bullshit.
they still are.
WTF? LOL
RoC > De-Loused
Calibration > Frances > Bedlam > DITC > everything else
Quote from: whodunit? on Apr 14, 2008, 09:10 PM
Calibration > Frances > Bedlam > DITC > everything else
ahahahaha, no fucking way.
and what the hell is calibration?
Quote from: Azwethinkweiz on Apr 14, 2008, 09:30 PM
Quote from: whodunit? on Apr 14, 2008, 09:10 PM
Calibration > Frances > Bedlam > DITC > everything else
ahahahaha, no fucking way.
and what the hell is calibration?
Omar Rodriguez solo project/album
yeah okay, thought so.
but for real, his solo stuff is terrible.
anything cedric or omar put out = fail.
lol
Quote from: Azwethinkweiz on Apr 14, 2008, 09:42 PM
yeah okay, thought so.
but for real, his solo stuff is terrible.
that's so pathetic.
it's like "no I haven't heard the album but it's terrible".
pfff...
Quote from: blondie on Apr 14, 2008, 09:48 PM
anything cedric or omar put out = fail.
Quote from: Chino
There is also some of that good old "fuck you, i hope you die!" aggression I know a lot of you love and miss from us.
oh, that will be something ambitious.
i haven't heard his entire albums but a lot of the different songs from his albums. and it sucked.
after listening to De-Loused, i forgot how great that cd really is
but i still think RoC is even awesomer. something about it is just brilliant. my opinion tho.
i don't think that Calibration can even come close to RoC or De-Loused, but it's definittely the best thing Omar ever did alone.
And as for RoC vs. DLITC battle... I'd vote for The Mars Volta. de-loused beats relationship... technically, conceptually and in many other ways. It's just different kind of energy, and it's even stronger
i agree. de-loused is a very dark album... ROC is very dark as well. but you feel as though there is some chance of escape with ROC. where de loused it feels as though your trapped and you just need to wait for your impending doom
de loused is much better tho. i personally dont even think its a contest... but its a damn shame that amputechture and the bedlam in goliath are fucking garbage. y ep i said it
bedlam > frances (and amputechture, of course)
i'm one of the people who actually love frances the mute
again. i was tripping the first time i heard it. so u can imagine the journey it took me on
I love frances. I think it's epic. Shame "the widow" is there instead of "frances the mute" (the song).
do you listen the record with additional tracks?
I made 2cd version of FTM.
CD1
01. frances the mute
02. cygnus... vismund cygnus
03. the widow
04. l'via l'viaquez
05. miranda
CD2
06. bible and the breathalyzer
07. cassandra
no. i bought the album the day it came out.. so i have the tracks that are on the cd.. i think the album was only 6.99$ thanks to the band saying it was an EP since there was only 5 tracks.. great strategy to sell records for cheaper
Quote from: Fireal1222 on Apr 15, 2008, 08:01 PM
no. i bought the album the day it came out.. so i have the tracks that are on the cd.. i think the album was only 6.99$ thanks to the band saying it was an EP since there was only 5 tracks.. great strategy to sell records for cheaper
well, I bought the album too but ripped it and added those two tracks when they were released.
As much as I like the 'Volta, there was an urgency about ATD-I, and Relationship of Command in particular. Immense album. Take Cosmonaut for instance - what a fucking song. Emotional (in the good sense) and cathartic. Amazing.
Cosmonaut is epic.
Damn right. The final breakdown is the most epic I reckon.
great album, pure energy
In Casino Out was better the RoC in my book. OH WAIT, THATS BECAUSE I WAS TRIPPING.
Quote from: whodunit? on Apr 15, 2008, 09:08 PM
Quote from: Fireal1222 on Apr 15, 2008, 08:01 PM
no. i bought the album the day it came out.. so i have the tracks that are on the cd.. i think the album was only 6.99$ thanks to the band saying it was an EP since there was only 5 tracks.. great strategy to sell records for cheaper
well, I bought the album too but ripped it and added those two tracks when they were released.
I did the sane thing but I realized FTM belongs after cassandra, not at the beginning. it doesn't really matter because it comes full circle but plot wise, yeah.
Oh snap! I totally forgot about VAYA! The greatest ATDI album.
vaya ep is really really good.. but i must admit. i think i like tremulant even more
im gonna have to listen to both
can somebody please upload vaya ep for me
in 2001, this album was sweet. so was napster, thursday, glassjaw, clutch...
Quote from: endoeleven on May 01, 2008, 10:56 PM
in 2001, this album was sweet. so was napster, thursday, glassjaw, clutch...
i still like clutch...
and glassjaw...
Quote from: bright lights, big city on May 02, 2008, 12:50 AM
Quote from: endoeleven on May 01, 2008, 10:56 PM
in 2001, this album was sweet. so was napster, thursday, glassjaw, clutch...
i still like clutch...
and glassjaw...
Whats happened with GlassJaw
didnt know where else to post this, but i just heard that 'one armed scissor' is gonna be on guitar hero 4. that excites me.
Quote from: bright lights, big city on May 09, 2008, 03:13 AM
didnt know where else to post this, but i just heard that 'one armed scissor' is gonna be on guitar hero 4. that excites me.
if its omars part your all dooooooooomed
Wow immense, that song will kick people's asses...
Quote from: Fireal1222 on May 09, 2008, 04:37 AM
Quote from: bright lights, big city on May 09, 2008, 03:13 AM
didnt know where else to post this, but i just heard that 'one armed scissor' is gonna be on guitar hero 4. that excites me.
if its omars part your all dooooooooomed
Hahaha. Guitar hero sucks when you can play the songs on a guitar. You want to strum/pick the song but thats when you fuck up
fuck guitar hero
what is wrong with you guys?
alcohol + guitar hero = good fuckin' times
Quote from: Azwethinkweiz on May 13, 2008, 05:58 PM
what is wrong with you guys?
alcohol + guitar hero = good fuckin' times
Yeah, I agree. I've had better times on guitar hero than I have on stage.
Quote from: indychinoluv on May 13, 2008, 06:58 PM
Quote from: Azwethinkweiz on May 13, 2008, 05:58 PM
what is wrong with you guys?
alcohol + guitar hero = good fuckin' times
Yeah, I agree. I've had better times on guitar hero than I have on stage.
hahahahaha.......
Quote from: Azwethinkweiz on May 13, 2008, 05:58 PM
what is wrong with you guys?
alcohol + guitar hero = good fuckin' times
i can see how it'd be fun for people who don't like play guitar, but it's so goddamn unintuitive for people who do. i've tried playing it on multiple occasions, but i just end up getting fuckin frustrated because if you play on medium, then you have to coincide with the buttons passing the bottom rather than the actual rhythm. ahhh and there's no positions, like fuck that, nobody plays five notes on the same string. the worst part is having to press buttons to palm mute.
guitar hero promotes laziness and and not pushing your mental
i understand its just a video game.. but its soul-less.. as is just about everything in the mainstream
a real guitar is a machine that takes your emotions and puts them into sounds
guitar hero takes your emotions to a whole new level of nap
but i love playing Slayer on there. i cant play that shit on a real life guitar!!
i am a judgemental prick. i bash everything i dont like. and make everything i like seem like the greatest.
i just had a realization while reading my posts. sorry for my arrogant bastardness.
hahaha thats cool to admit, but pretty much everybody does that in a sense, man
Quote from: alvarezbassist17 on May 13, 2008, 10:27 PM
Quote from: Azwethinkweiz on May 13, 2008, 05:58 PM
what is wrong with you guys?
alcohol + guitar hero = good fuckin' times
i can see how it'd be fun for people who don't like play guitar, but it's so goddamn unintuitive for people who do. i've tried playing it on multiple occasions, but i just end up getting fuckin frustrated because if you play on medium, then you have to coincide with the buttons passing the bottom rather than the actual rhythm. ahhh and there's no positions, like fuck that, nobody plays five notes on the same string. the worst part is having to press buttons to palm mute.
i play bass.
i don't really look at guitar hero as a substitute for a guitar or bass... it is just a fun game... especially when your'e drunk and competing against your mates.
cant fucking wait, although,......
gutiar hero is the worst drunken game ever. stoned its amazing but drunk is really really hard
u know i think us bass players love guitar hero more than guitar players
back to topic ::)
I've listened to ATD-I few weeks ago but I got bored very fast.
Quote from: Fireal1222 on May 14, 2008, 04:55 AM
i am a judgemental prick. i bash everything i dont like. and make everything i like seem like the greatest.
i just had a realization while reading my posts. sorry for my arrogant bastardness.
Hey, you could be french actually...
A seminal psychedelica-laced post-hardcore atom bomb...