On January 9th the tweet went out: “¡ ATTENTION ! To whom it may concern: AT THE DRIVE-IN will be breaking their 11 year silence THIS STATION IS …NOW…OPERATIONAL.” The Internet collectively lost it’s shit. Facebook burned, phones melted, teeth were lost. The most enigmatic, energetic, and romanticized band of the late 90’s- early 2000’s post-hardcore movement was back.
Almost eighteen years earlier, Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Jim Ward formed the group and performed the first show as At the Drive-In at Loretto High School. The legendary Hell Paso EP was released November of the following year, and was the first issue from the group. After three LPs, numerous tours and escalating tension, Bixler-Zavala and guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez left the group to form The Mars Volta, while Ward, bassist Paul Hinojos and drummer Tony Hajjar made up the group Sparta.
Rumors of a reunion echoed for over a decade with fans’ hopes alternately lifted and dashed by cryptic (And sometimes not-so-cryptic…) statements by Bixler-Zavala and Ward, with Ward being of a there-will-be-no-reunion-no-more-questions-thank-you state of mind and Bixler-Zavala being of the maybe-I-don’t-know-let’s-see-how-things-go school of thought. In a July, 2009 interview, Rodriguez-Lopez stated that the once-bandmates had settled their differences at a summit at the guitarist’s home, but denied the possibility of a reunion.
The rumors turned into reality. Since January, the group has announced plans to perform both weekends of the 2012 Coachella Music and Arts Festival. They recently confirmed to play Lollapalooza Music Festival as well.
Now, the dangerous business of speculation: On April 1st, the group tweeted a map of Texas. As the week progressed, stars indicating the locations of Austin, Marfa, Dallas and El Paso were added to map, leading fans to believe that these were to be the sites of the first AtD-I shows in eleven years. To put everyone’s speculation to rest, the band confirmed their Texas shows. Ticket sales were announced and fans rushed to purchase them. All four Texas shows sold out within minutes of being announced.
This year’s Neon Desert Music Festival has a several AtD-I-related acts, including Sparta, Le Butcherettes, Zechs Marquise and Eureka the Butcher+Sadah Luna leading to conjecture among fans about a possible appearance. For anyone who missed the opportunity to see them during the handful of Texas shows, we can only hope they play Neon Desert Music Festival.
Txt: Tyler Dudley
Photo: ©David Dominguez