De-Loused in the Comatorium

De-Loused in the Comatorium is a concept album by the band The Mars Volta. Based on a short story by lead singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala, it is the hour long tale of Cerpin Taxt, a man who tries to kill himself by overdosing on morphine. The attempt lands him in a week long coma during which he experiences visions of humanity and his own psyche. Upon waking, he is dissatisfied with the real world and jumps to his death. The story of Cerpin Taxt is based on the death of El Paso artist--and Bixler-Zavala's friend--Julio Venegas.

The music contained in De-Loused is distinguished by its enigmatic lyrics, unusual time signature and tempo changes, and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez's frenetic riffs, which sometimes conform to no definable musical scales.

Track List

1. Son et Lumiere¹ – 1:35
2. Inertiatic² ESP – 4:24
3. Roulette Dares (The Haunt Of) – 7:31
4. Tira Me a las Arañas³ – 1:29
5. Drunkship of Lanterns – 7:06 (incorrectly listed as 6:20 on jewel case inlay)
6. Eriatarka – 6:20 (incorrectly listed as 7:06 on jewel case inlay)
7. Cicatriz⁴ ESP – 12:29
8. This Apparatus Must Be Unearthed – 4:58
9. Televators – 6:18
10. Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt – 8:42

The Australian Tour edition and the English release of the album contains an additional song, "Ambuletz," which has a strikingly different sound from the other songs of De-Loused, more like the band De Facto (which also included Bixler-Zavala and Rodriguez-Lopez).

Notes

¹ French phrase meaning "sound and light."
² Refers to the physical property of inertia.
³ Spanish, roughly translates to "Throw me to the spiders."
⁴ Means "scar" in Spanish.

Contributing Artists

• Lenny Castro – Percussion
• Michael Balzary (Flea) – Bass
• John Frusciante – Guitar, Synthesizer on 'Cicatriz ESP'
• Justin Meldel Johnson – Stand-up Bass on 'Televators'

External Links / Reference:

• TheMarsVolta.com – official site
  
• Official storybook from Gold Standard Labs Free downloadable "storybook" explaining the story of the album. Spoilers ahead. PDF file.