At the Drive-In

Anyone else love these guys? Relationship of Command has to be one of the best albums of the past decade. Their earlier stuff is fucking awesome too but slightly less cohesive as a whole IMHO. Tons of energy, nice mixture of Fugazi ish post-punk with the real emo (you know, before emo meant Dashboard confessional and other stupid shit).

I know Ive seen a lot of love for Mars Volta on here in the past, anyone a fan of the first band that started it all?

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Personally they are emblematic of the last of the real post-punkers that meant anything at all. After they dropped off it turned into a distinct scene that though there were brief flashes of awesome bands, they sputtered out within a year or two and replaced by something far hollower and so lyrically abstract that it becomes a meaningless nihilistic mess.

I think your statement makes sense if I replace "post-punk" with "post-hardcore" but only because they're very different genres. I agree that after them, "emo" and hardcore went corporate and a lot of shit came about (with some good stuff).

Anyway yes I'm a fan, and agree that Relationship of Command is an awesome album and their others are a bit less cohesive. Would have been nice to see another album from them following this but I'm also happy to have The Mars Volta. Sparta had a decent debut but I never cared enough to keep up with their career.

Hell yeah! I've actually been seeing their name all over the place with their reunion tour going on. Unfortunately was unaware of them when they were actually a band. I never really got into Mars Volta, especially now with all the albums they've put out, and while I enjoyed Sparta I was never a huge fan. I did see Sparta live in 2004/2005 (can't remember exactly) and it was a great show.

When I first heard ATDI in 2004 and asked my friend why they broke up, he said, in a very slow manner (as if being filmed for a documentary), something like "You know, one day Jim was like 'Well, I'm in Sparta now' and so Cedric was like ' WELL I speak Spanish now' and uh...that's that."

I believe sidewider is right, they're post-hardcore (post-punk was late 70's & early 80s and it's 'revival' includes bands like Interpol) but otherwise I absolutely agree, they were among the last to exist and break-up before "emo" became a term for whinecore and poppy screamo and all that other meme-inducing shit in the mid-2000s. I always liked how they were from El Paso, I really can't think of another major band to come out of that city.

Relationship Of Command is in the top 10 most ass kicking things that have happened in human history.

definitely not a post punk band. post hardcore, maybe. and a good enough band as well, saw them live a long time ago. his lyrics are godawful though.

alright christ, post-hardcore then.

fucking genres.

the rant at Big Day Out was pretty funny.

The lyrics are batshit and great.

Yeah. I find that they are far more effective with the energetic songs though. Invalid Litter Dept. has a great refrain (dancing on the corpses ashes), but the rest of the spoken word did seem out of place and a little overwrought....sorta like a foreboding "things to come" for post-hardcore.

can you guys recommend any other really good "post-hardcore"? I never realized how close ATDI were to my other tastes....stuff like Saetia, Orchid (prolly my other favorite)

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well, the blood brothers are genius. but the vocals are so out there and abrasive. probably the most extreme end of that sound.

You should ask pen expers - he was a huge fan.

But I dunno isn't stuff like Helmet, Queens of the Stone Age kind of similar?

Maybe too "mathy" but you should give Polvo a try.

oh no I love mathy.

Even though I don't much care for their later albums, Hella's Hold Yer Horse Is is fucking amazon

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  On 4/11/2012 at 6:34 PM, Smettingham Rutherford IV said:

can you guys recommend any other really good "post-hardcore"? I never realized how close ATDI were to my other tastes....stuff like Saetia, Orchid (prolly my other favorite)

Fugazi (duh), Drive Like Jehu, Hot Cross, Refused, Unwound, On the Might of Princes, Bear vs. Shark, City of Caterpillar, etc

Massive fan, never had the chance to see them, so if they do any non-festival touring in this reunion I might hit it up. Not sure what they're going to be like nowadays, Omar is so serious now...

I'd agree that Relationship is probably their 'most coherent' album but I actually rate in/CASINO/OUT the highest - it has some of the best songs they ever wrote IMO, and I love how it's recorded live in the studio.

They're so sloppy live, very similar to Pavement in that respect, but I love it. There are some great live vids on YouTube - I recommend finding the Channel V ones, especially Quarantined and 198d - really spot on performances. Compare One Armed Scissor on Jools Holland, which is almost comical.

Drive Like Jehu are amazing and I wholeheartedly recommend them. If anyone is into the earlier more emo-ish ATDI stuff, the early EPs and Acrobatic Tenement, then check out Cap'n Jazz.