Debut album Wiretap Scars released

In August 2002, Sparta released their debut full-length album, Wiretap Scars . The album, although not well received by all of the mainstream post-hardcore audience, brought well-earned respect and relieved some of the pressure brought on by the shadow of At The Drive-In. The record was deemed a cleaner, more accessible sound than ATDI’s distortion-fueled offerings. True to their roots, the opening song, “Cut Your Ribbon”, was described as “splintering, power-hungry rock”, and other tracks such as “Cataract”, “Glasshouse Tarot” and “Mye” were noted for their emotion and “absurdly exuberant melody”. Sparta maintained its underground following with shows at smaller venues throughout North America and Europe. They were also exposed to a wider audience in April and May 2003, opening several shows for Pearl Jam . While on tour for Wiretap Scars , Sparta employed the help of their friend Gabriel Gonzalez to play third guitar and keyboards; he can be seen in the music videos from 2003’s Big Day Out festival, among other videos circulating online. Gonzalez now performs with his own band, Volador, and is a member of Ward’s side project Sleepercar . Gonzalez rejoined Sparta in 2017. On May 25, 2003, Ward’s cousin, Jeremy , died of a heroin overdose . Jeremy was at the time the sound manipulator for The Mars Volta , created by former At the Drive-In bandmates Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodríguez-López , and frontman of De Facto . The loss of his cousin would have a profound and lasting impact on Ward.