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.
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.
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.
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.
View Similar News Articles
View Blog
View Signature
Posts: 1,986
View Profile Picture
Currently Playing
Follow This Article