Weekly Nostalgia: At the Drive-In
 

Situated just North of the Rio Grande, dusty El Paso, Texas, seems like the kind of place likely to give rise to Western and Latin-influenced sounds, but in the early 1990's a different kind of storm was brewing. With their first live performance in October 1994, the post-hardcore juggernaut known as At the Drive-In was unleashed on the world, and on the strength of two early EPs and enthusiastic word-of-mouth, the quintet drew the attention of Flipside Records, who released their 1996 debut full-length Acrobatic Tenement, a work of volatile and shapeshifting intensity, a harbinger of things to come. They followed it up with the equally forceful In/Casino/Out in 1998 and the also-essential 1999 EP Vaya, paving the way for their magnum opus (and unfortunately, their swan song). At the Drive-In's 2000 masterpiece Relationship of Command is a pure adrenaline rush of an album, opening with the blistering "Arcarsenal" and never looking back, also producing one of the decade's most memorable punk singles, the flawless exercise in tension and aggression, "One Armed Scissor". And I can't not mention "Cosmonaut", whose direct fury gave me my pre-staff AP.net username. The band broke up in 2001 and its members went on to record with other projects. As good as Sparta and The Mars Volta are, though, nothing quite compares to the raw energy of ATDI. If you've missed out on this highly influential band's work thus far, there's no better time than now to check them out. We'd also love for you to share some of your stories and memories with us in the replies.

"Initiation" (from Acrobatic Tenement)


"Alpha Centauri" (from In/Casino/Out)


"Arcarsenal" (from Relationship of Command)


"One-Armed Scissor" (from Relationship of Command)


"Cosmonaut" (from Relationship of Command)

Refreshing to see this. Phenomenal band. Totally agree about volta and sparta.

Relationship of Command is a flawless album.

hate that I never saw them live....love Wiretap Scars but don't listen to much of Sparta or MV anymore

If/When this band gets back together, I'll fly anywhere to be at that show.

It's absolutely amazing the amount of creativity that the individual members of this band had. Put these guys together now, and it's a clear supergroup. Amazing how they started out.

one of the best!

I'm a million miles away when you get this letter.

Must put this on after classes are over. Then I can say: Let's rage.

Gotta love ATDI. Relationship of Command is one of my top 5 favorite records of all time. Deloused is also, actually. Cedric and Omar can do very little wrong in my mind. Truly incredible musicians.

Yessssss!!!! Fucking Yesssssss!!!!

Given my username I had to chime in. Relationship of Command to me is pretty much the perfect album. I can never get over how powerful the screams in Invalid Little Dept. are. Just amazing.

ATDI were an INCREDIBLE band. I only wish i could have seen them live in their hayday. Such an entertaining live show they put on too (having only seen youtube videos tho) . Theres not too many bands that come along with this kind of originality these days.

will go anywhere, pay any amount to see them play again.

I wish this weren't just nostalgia and they were still around. I love the volta but ADTR was brilliant for their time. Come baaaack!

I think their break-up hurts me more then any other band just because it is very unlikely they will have a reunion show. I can't even express how much I love Relationship, Vaya, and in casino out. Still have yet to find a band that uses as many metaphors in their lyrics.

One of the best, an incredible band.

Best band in the last 20 years. Watching these videos make me so happy. Vaya!

Never really got into them, but I fully respect their influence on music. Also: wished I had seen them back in the day. My God, the energy in those videos is absurd.

they inspired me to become a freight train engineer.

Relationship of Command is my favorite album ever

One of my favorite bands.

Relationship of Command is definitely one of my all time favorite albums. so horrible to realize i'll never get the chance to see them live...

loved them

My #1 reunion that I pray happens one day.

The 11 songs on Relationship of Command were the highlight of the 00''s post-hardcore/punk explosion.

one of the craziest shows ive ever seen.

This band is legendary. Relationship of Command is such a good album.

I recently got "Relationship of Command" as a christmas gift. It's good, only gave it one listen so far. Shame on me.

I can listen to "Pattern Against User" and "Catacombs" all day long.

Such an awesome band. Glad their legacy is still strong.

Invalid Litter Dept. ftw.

what more can i say that hasn't already been said about this band?

i remember being in 7th grade and the only one to ever listen to them at that time. such an amazing band.

They're so all time. I miss them.

Great band but these guys were a pain in my ass at the label.

A Day To Remember is still together =P

one of my top 10 fav bands of all time for sure! I really hope they are still considering a reunion. the mars volta bore the shit out of me

Conan + Adti
 

This video solidified my love for ATDI. I've never seen a band on television pour such intensity into one song EVER!

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fu...ideoID=2355831

Will always be among my favorite bands. Love them, very raw.

Dancin' On The Corpses Ashesss

Danananananana

"arcarsenal" is still one of my top favorite songs. I'm still kicking myself over never seeing them live. Glad too see this post.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA










I secretly like ADTR though. shh don't tell anybody

One of the best ever.

I remember 4 years ago I was on a phone call with Bob Becker and he told me the story of how he signed these guys after seeing them in a small bar with little to nobody there. Awesome story and incredible band.

It's truly one of my greatest regrets that I'll likely never see this band live.

One of those few bands that really changed how I listen to music. Sucks I never got to see them live.

Great great band

There Are Bands... Then There Is At The Drive-in -ross Robinson

As much as I love At The Drive-In, I would like to see what The Mars Volta could do if their songs had to be within 3:30 to 4 minutes.

Relationship of Command is classic