Mars Volta alter

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DON'T be fooled when Mars Volta say that Octahedron is an "acoustic" album.

After the migraine-inducing blowout that was 2007's Bedlam In Goliath, it's only fair that the band might want to tone it down a little this time around.

But Octahedron, although quieter by their own standards, is still very much a prog metal affair - with barbed wire guitars, experimental electronic flecks and distinctive Mars Volta vocal shrieking.

For every reflective moment like Copernicus, there's a rocker such as Cotopaxi to match - although the experimental, self-indulgent 15-minute tracks are absent here.

So while there's no strong theme running through the LP - which for me made previous efforts such as De-Loused In The Comatorium must-haves - Octahedron does give the group the opportunity to show a variety of sides.