Sparta
Moving out of the Drive-in
'Not all things from Texas are bad. Although the state has been plagued with less-than-uplifting press, ranging from the depressing searches across the state for the remains of Columbia, to the mere existence of George W. Bush, the music scene is the state's redemption for many.
Smaller labels, such as Has Anyone Ever Told You? records, help provide unique sounds that distinguish the state as the home of an unspoken sub-genre all its own: The Texas punk scene. No part of Texas shines more than El Paso, bordering on the southwestern tip of the state.
The El Paso music scene, like Gainesville, is small and also incestuous.
"The music community is so small that everybody knows everybody. If you play an instrument, everyone knows you," said Paul Hinijos.
Guitarist Paul, alongside of guitarist/vocalist Jim Ward and drummer Tony Hajjar, were the heart and soul of At the Drive-in. Currently, with bassist Matt Miller, originally of the El Paso band Belknap, they comprise Sparta.
Whether or not they have experienced "Sparta," the Japanese word meaning "harsh training," is another matter all its own. They had an instant fan base built in due to the success of ATDI. They had been put through the wringer and are now coming out on the other side, rejuvenated and ready to tackle the project of Sparta.
"We are just forming as a band," said Paul. "With the 'Austere' EP, we didn't know what we wanted to do or what way we were headed. We became a band writing 'Wiretap Scars.' We took a lot of time writing the songs and spent a lot of time together and the project solidified into a band during those two months.
The presence of keyboards and experimentation is a bit less obvious in the current full-length disc, but will be coming into full bloom for the next release.
"For our next album, we had this idea to put everyone on their weakest instruments and just see what happens," said Paul.
Interesting concept, to say the least.
"I guess we're all just really inspired by the last Wilco album ("Yankee Hotel Foxtrot"). On the movie they made about the album, you see how they weren't afraid to experiment. Even after they had established songs, they weren't afraid to ask 'What if we tried this?'"
At the Drive-in established their basis for experimental songwriting as the band grew with each album, and Sparta is continuing in this vein.
After ATDI broke up, frontmen Omar and Cedric formed the Mars Volta, which is heavily influenced by electronic sounds, while the rest of the band returned to their rock roots with Sparta.
Many people have sung the praises of the Sparta musicians for having their heads and hearts dedicated to truly caring about the music and musicianship involved in being in a band, while the Mars Volta has been criticized for their intent to garner fame.
"At the Drive-in was way more aggressive than Sparta is. We are the same people from the band and you can totally draw lines to At the Drive-in, but we're getting older and our music is changing. I don't think it sounds like At the Drive-in at all."
The music is obviously different, but the writing sounds like a missing link between "Acrobatic Tenement" and "Relationship of Command." The guitar writing has progressed and congealed into a style that is becoming the Sparta sound.
In the first seven days together, the band wrote 10 songs. It is obvious that the music was itching to get out and Sparta needed to be formed.
Good musicians are like sharks, never able to stop. The best musicians come from small scenes that they remain close to and help support, and Sparta is no exception to this dictum.