"Xenophanes," Omar Rodriguez-Lopez

The 12th solo studio release (and the fourth to come out this year) from Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, the lauded prog-rocker from At the Drive-In and Mars Volta, is a relief from the unrelenting, labyrinthine mess that was his last record, Cryptomnesia. In fact, Xenophanes is actually quite pleasant to listen to. Rodriguez-Lopez sails drifty Spanish vocals over complex landscapes of meandering guitar and keyboards, but he also roots the record firmly with sensible drum and bass lines.

XENOPHANES
Omar Rodriguez-Lopez
Rodriguez Lopez Productions

The album is still littered with the wonderful weirdness that’s characteristic of Rodriguez-Lopez’s music: bizarre guitar effects, strange noises, creepy baritone vocal overdubs and occasional psychedelic freak-outs. At times, the structure of Xenophanes seems a bit formless standing next to the musical Lament Configuration that came before it, but it’s still good — even easy — to crack open. Maybe just a little too easy.

DOWNLOAD: “Asco Que Conmueve los Puntos Erógenos” (Nausea That Moves the Erogenous Zones)