Sparta contains 3/5ths of the now defunct At The Drive-In. This is Sparta's debut full length record on Dreamworks. Catch Sparta on tour with Cave In and labelmates Jimmy Eat World in September.
I was always curious what both post At The Drive-In bands sounded like. Then not too long ago I heard an mp3 of the Mars Volta (featuring Cedric and Omar of ATDI)...I wasn't really impressed. I know a lot of you may like them, but to me it sounded like ATDI without the oomph. Because of this, I was reluctant to check out Sparta. Fast-forward to last night when I saw the new Sparta full length on sale at Walmart (How punk rock is that?) for 6 bucks. Hmmm...only 6 bucks? Just the other day I had read a pretty favorable review of the long player in question. So I figured "why not?" Boy am I glad I decided to pick this puppy up. Sparta, while not terribly original, play energetic rock and roll on the "post punk" side of things with a bit of atmospherics ala Hum or early Radiohead thrown in. Frontman Jim Ward's vocals bring to mind a mixture of Quicksand and a "more rock" sounding Piebald or Promise Ring. That might sound weird, but go with me on this. It should also be noted that while Ward may not have quite the vocal range of his former ATDI bandmate, the Sparta frontman's vocals are more melodic and accessible at times when he's not just screaming his lungs out. The more and more I listen to "Wiretap Scars" the more I like it. These Texans know how to lay down some phat riffs with groove. See "Air" and "Red Alibi" for prime examples. And speaking of guitar licks, there's a riff in "Cataract" that seems awfully similar to At The Drive-In's "Invalid Litter Dept.", which is kind of cool if you think of the possibility that Ward or one of the other members of Sparta may have been the one that was responsible for the lick in their former rock band. At any rate it's a cool throwback to the past. Or I could just be on crack and the two riffs sound nothing alike. Bottom line is I like Sparta. They are a good rock band with lots of energy and flowing "spacey" guitars at points. There's even some tasty piano thrown in the song "Echodyne Harmonic". All the musicians on this disc are exceptional at what they do and this makes for a cohesive, solid rock-n-roll record. Like I said, not necessarily groundbreaking...but I'll take well executed controlled aggression over artsy-fartsy any day!
B+
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by Jon SingerWiretap Scars, the first full-length release from Sparta, fights hard to grasp its lofty expectations. As one of two offspring of At the Drive In, a band that won critical praise in the late 1990s, Sparta is looking to expand on their former success. At times, Wiretap Scars lives up to this goal. Most of the album, however, falls short. Wiretap Scars is characterized by weaving guitar and…Similar sounding releases
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