Once More 'Round The Mastodon

Fair warning before I start: I don't like, I fucking love Mastodon. With that said, I am probably going to be just a tad bit biased in this post-review blog. If you hate them, I wouldn't recommend reading beyond this sentence. If you like them, I recommend at least glancing over this post. If you fanboy (or girl) over them such as I, I recommend you read this entire thing. We clear ? Moving on......

The issue that introduced me to the almighty
Mastodon.

I first became aware of these Atlanta proggers in 2009. They were getting a ridiculous amount of press over their album "Crack The Skye". Aside from how this album came to be, I was also intrigiued of how every media outlet considered them to be "Progressive Rock" and or "Prog". Being somewhat of a prog connoisseur, I thought prog was a thing of the past; it does not exist anymore. Yeah we had Dream Theater and Queensryche, but when was the last time you seen them Rolling Stone or Revolver ? When was the last time they released an album with so much hype from the media ?

The one last thing that really grabbed my attention; they were mentioning Rush, Genesis, and Frank Zappa in their articles. My curiosity is at a all time high: I had to hear this album.

At first listen, I was just completely blown away. I was completely aware of musicianship and song structure of that magnitude still existed. Prog is back in a bold, new, aggressive way. Their metal but at the same time they are so much more. The musical diversity in this band is unreal. One track is metal, the other is sludge, and the other is something that Genesis would've done if they where a progressive metal act. After several listens of this album, I immediately obtained their entire back catalog and became a huge fan.

I pre-ordered this bad boy the first day they were available.

 My patience was tested a week prior to the release. Why ? Because I think I am the only one in my inner circle that actually waited to listen to this album on it's release date. Everyone of my peers who dig this band listened to this album a week prior via streaming. Me, I wanted my first listen to be on vinyl on the release day. I hate how we have options now, I miss the days where the only option to listen to a new album was on the release day. Sometimes, I hate the internet.

1. Tread Lightly: A very calm before the storm kind of opening for the album. Doesn't leave any clues of what your in store for the rest of the album. I love listening to albums with that kind of mystery.
2. The Motherload: A very uplifting tune.
3. High Road: I cannot stop listening to this song ! Do I have a legit problem or is this song that good ? The riffs are just chugging and heavy as fuck. The chorus is catchy. What's not to love about this song ? I am happy to announce that I have heard this song on the radio !
4. Once More 'Round The Sun: The third title track in the Mastodon catalog. After a complete listen of the album, I think it represents the album pretty well.
5. Chimes At Midnight: After hearing "High Road", I wasn't too crazy about this song at first listen. After repeated listens of this album, I grew to like it.
6. Asleep In The Deep: A pretty mellow tune.
7. Feast Your Eyes: A typical Mastodon tune.
8. Aunt Lisa: Love that "Hey Ho, Let's Fucking Go !" chant.
9. Ember City: I really dig Brann's vocal work on this album. Granted, he's only singing doing the chorus on this one. He's becoming the Phil Collins of metal.
10. Halloween: I just imagine this becoming a really wicked, crazy, visually entertaining music video.
11. Diamond In The Witch House: This one reminded me a lot of "Sleeping Giant". The song's pretty grand in scale. What a great track to end the album on.

"Once More 'Round The Sun" is very reminiscent of all of their previous albums. Which as a huge fan tells me that they haven't forgotten where they came but at the same time their moving forward. Too many bands fall victim to trying to recapture a certain sound they once had. Some call it "selling out". It's not selling out, it's called progress. You can't make that one defying album over and over again. For one, it gets boring. Two, your telling people you've reached your peak and you have nothing better to offer. They could have easily tried to do another "Crack The Skye" or "Leviathan". But they didn't because they are hellbent on progressing forward.

It'll probably be another 2-3 years before the next Mastodon opus. As with this record, the wait will be well worth it. In the meantime: they'll be touring, making crazy music videos, and even putting things out here and there. I'd read somewhere that they have leftovers from this album which they plan on releasing later on. Can't wait. You best believe I'll be listening to it on the release day.

Their set at this year's Rock On The Range. Third time's a charm !

Five Albums That Changed My Life....

I always get a kick out of reading these. I figured I should take a break from doing a movie related blog and do one. Even though I have a plethora of albums that have made a profound impact on my life, I had to narrow it down to five. On this five (this may or may not be a hint for future installments), I tried to pick 5 that I don't see on other lists. Without further ado, here's five albums that changed my life....

1. "Painkiller" by Judas Priest: I was maybe 4 or 5 years old. My mother and I, came back from running errands. I remember my dad sitting on the front porch and he had the living room windows open. As soon as Mom and I were making our way to the door, Dad said "Hey, check this out". He picked up the remote of his brand new Sony stereo and pressed play. All of sudden, I hear this killer double bass drum intro followed by this screeching/aggressive 2 guitar assault. Even before Halford kicks in, I just remember being blown away. This wasn't like the Kiss or Def Leppard stuff that I was use to hearing. This was more aggressive. From then on, I wanted more.

Hearing this album, laid down the foundation for my love of metal that would continue throughout my life. I owe it all to my father. Thanks Dad !

2. "Ride The Lighthing" by Metallica:  I knew nothing about them prior to 1991. The Metallica I knew had short hair and they made that one album with the black cover. A trip to K-Mart back in '97 would change all that....

You know you've got a cool grandma when she doesn't examine the CD she's buying for you. She bought me, my first copy of "Ride The Lighting". I remember going back to her house, popping this cd in her cheap Emerson boombox (wearing headphones), and "Fight Fire With Fire" started. Was slightly put off by the acoustic intro at first. Then I finally come to the realization that acoustic intro was simply the "calm before the storm". This storm lasted 47 minutes and was a brutal attack on my ears. At this point, this was the heaviest thing I had ever heard. Tracks like "For Whom The Bell Tolls", "Creeping Death", and my personal favorite "Ride The Lighting".

Definitely cemented my everlasting love for pre-Black Album Metallica.

3. "Exit Stage Left" By Rush: I discovered Rush my freshman year of High School. I seen the video for "Subdivisions" on VH-1. Seeing the video and song mirroring my life at the time, I instantly became a fan. Having a band I could relate to was something I was looking for. You didn't hear Zeppelin or Floyd singing about the pitfalls of being a teenager.

The summer before my Sophomore year, I went to Michigan with my grandfather. My mom and Stepfather gave me a shit ton of money for the trip. They insisted on my grandfather not spend too much on me. Rather than use it for souvenirs, I bought CD's and other random oddities with that money. While in Ann Arbor, I stopped into a Borders. It was a toss up between this and "Signals". Long story short, this won because it was a live album and the track list was awesome. To have live versions of "La Villa Strangiato", "Xanadu", "Red Barchetta", and "YYZ" (featuring Neil's solo) all on one CD was pretty epic. I had to own this.

At first listen, I came to the realization that Rush was a live band. Every song on this album either sound identical or better than the studio version. Not only that, but it was three guys doing the work of 5 or 6 ! This album, is why is my favorite band of all time.

4. "Roxy & Elsewhere" By Frank Zappa: Being a fan of Genesis, I was familiar of how Chester Thompson became the touring drummer. It was Phil's appreciation of this album that landed Chester the gig. This is where my fascination for Frank Zappa started. Up until this point, I knew very little about him or his music.

This album is just insane. The arrangements, the band, Frank's guitar playing, and how this doesn't sound like it was recorded in a club. Completely blew me away. You know, this isn't stuff you hear on your classic rock station. I really don't know what else to say about "Roxy & Elsewhere". The record really speaks for itself.


5. "Crack The Skye" By Mastodon:  2009 was not a good year for me. I was at a difficult point in my life. This album was kind of the soundtrack of that year.

I knew very little about Mastodon prior to this album. They were getting a lot of press because of this album, that's how I discovered them. During the interviews, bands like Rush, Genesis, Yes, and even Frank Zappa were getting mentioned. I love all of those bands, I need to check these guys out. Aside from the musicianship, I was amazed on how this record sounded like a 70's prog album. After this album, I not only became the hugest Mastodon fan but I immediately bought the rest of their catalog.

Even though, they get put on some of the biggest tours; they are still one of the most underrated bands around. And that's why I love this band. Except for it's harden fan base, no one understands their true genius.

Well, that's that. I encourage any musician or anyone that appreciates music heavily to do one of these.