THE MARS VOLTA Returns With First New Single In Over A Decade, Announces Fall 2022 North American Tour

June 21, 2022

THE MARS VOLTA has reawakened from its lengthy hiatus with the release of a new single and short film for "Blacklight Shine".

"Blacklight Shine" pulses with subtle brilliance, Caribbean rhythms underpinning sophisticated, turbulent songcraft. The song showcases guitarist/composer Omar Rodríguez-López and singer/lyricist Cedric Bixler-Zavala at their most accessible with pop melodies driving Bixler-Zavala's story.

The lyrics of "Blacklight Shine" help to illuminate the idea of "a wave of rolling blackouts washing memories onto shore, a heartbeat that still remembers everything," explains Bixler-Zavala.

On June 19, a mysterious cube appeared in Grand Park in Los Angeles, California. "L'ytome Hodorxí Telesterion", an audio-visual art installation, was erected to tell the story of the return of THE MARS VOLTA. Inside of the cube, visitors were taken on a full, immersive journey to outer space, and where "Blacklight Shine" was heard for the first time by the public. The experience inside of the cube was intended to provoke self-reflection, with the single guiding fans on a journey through endless galaxies and back down to earth, to oneself. Those who were unable to witness "L'ytome Hodorxí Telesterion" in person can look forward to a digital experience on July 1.

Today, the band also announces upcoming tour dates kicking off September 23 at The Factory at Deep Ellum in Dallas, Texas and closing in Los Angeles, California at The Palladium with special guest TERI GENDER BENDER. The dates mark the first time the band has performed live since 2012.

Tickets go on sale this Friday, June 24 at 10 a.m. local time.

Tour dates:

Sep. 23 - The Factory in Deep Ellum - Dallas, TX
Sep. 25 - Tabernacle - Atlanta, GA
Sep. 27 – The Metropolitan Opera House - Philadelphia, PA
Sep. 29 - Terminal 5 - New York, NY
Oct. 01 - MGM Music Hall at Fenway - Boston, MA
Oct. 03 - The Anthem - Washington, DC
Oct. 05 - Massey Hall - Toronto, ON
Oct. 06 - Royal Oak Music Theatre - Detroit, MI
Oct. 08 - Aragon Ballroom - Chicago, IL
Oct. 11 - The Mission Ballroom - Denver, CO
Oct. 14 - Moore Theatre - Seattle, WA
Oct. 18 - The Warfield - San Francisco, CA
Oct. 21 - Hollywood Palladium - Los Angeles, CA

Formed by guitarist/composer Omar Rodríguez-López and singer/lyricist Cedric Bixler-Zavala, THE MARS VOLTA rose from the ashes of El Paso punk-rock firebrands AT THE DRIVE-IN in 2001. On a mission to "honor our roots and honor our dead," THE MARS VOLTA made music that fused the Latin sounds Rodríguez-López was raised on with the punk and underground noise he and Bixler-Zavala had immersed themselves in for years, and the futuristic visions they were tapping into. The albums that followed were one-of-a-kind masterpieces, their songs of breath-taking complexity also possessing powerful emotional immediacy. After the group fell silent, a legion of devotees (including Kanye West) kept up an insistent drum beat for their return.

Now — a year after "La Realidad De Los Sueños", a luxurious 18-LP box-set compiling their back catalog, sold out its 5,000-print run in under 24 hours — THE MARS VOLTA is back.

Photo credit: Fat Bob

Find more on The mars volta
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).