Vocal harmonies. Brendan O’Brien. These are things I am not really interested in, especially in relations to a Mastodon record. And yet, all of these elements are here and I’ve managed to survive.
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It seems that from time to time Mastodon need some kind of let-down in order to shake up and create something truly impressive. It happened after weak Blood Mountain, when they created masterpiece that is Crack the Skye and it looks very much like that after Once More ‘Round the Sun, the band has again created a truly great album.
A co-worker had an advance copy of this record and I listened to it once and wasn’t thrilled by it. I only played it once because Mastodon is one of the few bands that I’ll give the benefit of the doubt to. I wanted to wait for the final product before dismissing it.I’m happy to report that my initial instinct was wrong. This thing has really grown on me and I like it more and more each time I give it a spin.Crack The Skye is Mastodon’s 4th full length record and their most adventurous to date. Some of their older fans may be turned off by the overt prog and classic rock tendencies here but I think they’ve done a better job assimilating those influences than on Blood Mountain. If you’re gonna go prog, you gotta go the whole hog.
That’s not to say that Mastodon have turned into Magma and forsaken their Voivod roots. Just look at the way that band evolved from War and Pain to Dimension Hatross.If you’re familiar with Mastodon the opening track “Oblivion” will throw you for a loop.
When the song kicks in the riff is kinda like Leviathan’s “I Am Ahab” and then an unfamiliar voice starts singing. At first I thought it was a guest vocalist but it turns out to be drummer Brann Dailor. This was not what I was expecting at all but it works. Guitarist Brent Hinds comes in after a verse with his familiar vocal style to tie the whole thing together.
There are some trippy parts that remind me of Pink Floyd’s Animals record.“Divinations” starts off with a heavy Thin Lizzy riff with a very melodic chorus. At times the backing vocals are a little too produced for my tastes but it’s still a good song.
If you took them away it would sound like something off of Blood Mountain. “Quintessence” slows the pace a little bit before getting faster and heavier. There’s another melodic chorus that reminds me Torche but produced by Alan Parsons.“The Czar” starts off with an organ part that sounds a lot like the Butthole Surfers song “Strangers Die Every Day” (from Rembrandt Pussyhorse). As you’d expect from a 10 minute song divided into 4 parts, this one is a real trip. Some of the heaviest riffing can be found on this one and the vocals are less restrained on this one. I really have no idea what the lyrics mean on this one or the entire record.
I know there’s a convoluted concept in here somewhere but I’m too busy trying to keep up with all the musical layers and changes to delve too deep into the words. A lyric sheet is included for those brave enough.I got really excited at the start of “Ghost of Karelia” because it reminded me of the intro to Anvil’s “Metal on Metal” but Anvil was never like this.
It’s a real swirly song that must have been inspired by Brent’s head injury as a result of an altercation following the MTV video music awards in September 2007. He said he suffered from vertigo and euphoria for about 8 months. Just listening to it will make you dizzy.Scott Kelly from Neurosis makes a guest vocal appearance for the 3rd Mastodon album in a row on the title track. The influence of Neurosis is strong on this heavy pounding jam. The backing vocals on this one are a little over produced for me. It’s an interesting contrast but I’m not sure if it’s totally successful. At times it sounds like 3 Doors Down singing on a Neurosis album.
There are some cool cyborg vocals that could be off of Zappa’s Joe’s Garage to make up for it.The album concludes with another long one. The last three Mastodon have all ended with a moody instrumental. Blood Mountain’s “Pendulous Skin” was kind of like “Ashton Park” by the James Gang and that’s where “The Last Baron” picks up.
This time there’s vocals and the song is over 13 minutes long. Lots of tempo and mood changes on this one including a section that sounds like one of Frank Zappa’s bands from the 80’s playing “YYZ” by Rush before ending on an epic Joe Walsh style guitar solo.Like I said before, this album is a grower. A few other people I’ve talked to also said it took a few spins before they really started to get into it.
This thing is getting great reviews in mainstream publications like Rolling Stone and Entertainment Weekly which is never a good sign for a metal band. On the other hand, some of the stoner/doom metal police are saying that it’s a total sell out. Basically, if you’re a Mastodon fan you owe it to yourself to check it out. On their upcoming tour they’re playing this thing live start to finish. I’m sure when they play this stuff in front of an audience it’s going to be much rawer. If Mastodon is serious about incorporating classic rock into their sound then they need to do a double live album where they can let it all hang out.-Woodybuy here.
Review Summary: The Mystical, the Heavy, and the Prog.Progressive rock has always been one of my favorite musical genres. The level of artistry that goes into the music is just unparalleled. The hypnotic ambience that are created by the instruments, and of course, the long musical voyages that were taken to. The artists create a new world, a musical haven, and having us descend into an abstract realm of elaborate musicianship. It's like the musicians develop this personal relationship with the instrument, letting the sounds express what's in their soul and translate it into some of the most incredible music ever written. The sound of Progressive rock is often complex, yet at times delicate, and that's because it's all about creating an almost trancing element.
The music consumes the listener within a spectrum of sounds and moods that often beguile the mind in a splendor of uncanny artistry. During the 1980's a multitude of Heavy Metal acts began fusing the abrasive sound of Heavy Metal, with the innovative nature of Progressive Rock. It was a natural coalescence, to say the least, as it brought forth an array of possibilities to both genres.The earlier albums by Mastodon have always been known for their aggressive sound, every song contained a powerful delivery with such intense ferocity, though even then there was always a more abstract element present in their music. Songs like 'Elephant Man' from Remission and 'Hearts Alive' from Leviathan, exhibit Mastodon's growing appreciation for Progressive dynamics, particularly the tendency for extended instrumental passages. Their third album, Blood Mountain, was a major transitional period for Mastodon musically as we saw them diverging from the more aggressive and heavier sound of the previous albums, and embracing a more experimental agenda with more eminent usage of ambient decorations in the music.Crack The Skye is the album where Mastodon fully embrace their Progressive influences. There is a gloomy shadow that casts throughout this album, darkening it's content.
Crack The Skye has us embark on a new tale to be told by Mastodon, this one being rich with mysticism and explorations of the mysterious spiritual realms. The album begins with 'Oblivion', which opens with an ambient guitar arrangement and then descends into a more restrained sound of Sludge Metal, it's very reminiscent to the overall sound of Blood Mountain. The lyrics of 'Oblivion' serve as the epilogue to the concept story behind the album. The narrator is describing his own death as he slowly loses consciousness and descends into the unknown dimensions of afterlife, which is represented by the instruments as they fade into silence. Though the story opens with the death of our protagonist, this is only the beginning.
Within 'Divinations' and 'Quintessence', we find that the music is now much more darker and aggressive, reflecting the turmoil that the narrator has found himself in. We discover that the narrator is now a conscious spirit floating through the mysterious realms of Limbo, he is then brought into the conscious world through a mystic ritual but only to find a multitude of obstacles that await him in this metaphysical odyssey.And now we descend into a more haunting atmosphere decorated with cosmic sounds. 'The Czar' opens with an ominous warning. Through mystical transcendence, the protagonist finds himself in midst of the Russian revolution. His soul has now possessed the physical body of the spiritual advisor to the Czarist royal family, Grigori Rasputin. 'The Czar', is Rasputin's warning to the royal family of the horrid events that will evidently await them. 'Ghost Of Karelia' and 'The Last Baron' seem to serve as cryptic reflections of the war between the supporters of the Czar and the new rebel army that would take Russia into a Communist society.
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The album finale seems to be narrated by the Czar, who has now seen that his army has failed, and is now coming to terms with the fact that he will die, and his kingdom will evidently soon follow him into oblivion.Now, to refer to the instrumental elements of the album, we see Mastodon at their most restrained. And that's because this album is not about frantic guitars and hard hitting drums. The music's delicacy and emphasis on gloomy ambience is to reflect the melancholic theme that coats this album. Death is present in every single track on the album, especially the title track, 'Crack The Skye'.
The song is a tribute to the sister of drummer, Brann Dailor, who tragically took her own life. 'Crack The Skye', the song, doesn't consciously fit in with the Czarist/mystical concept that is present in the rest of the songs, but overall it reflects the theme of death and the experience of dying which serves as the ubiquitous theme of the album. For the most part, we find the same old Mastodon sound that is present in the past album. Songs like 'Divinations' and 'Crack The Skye' are a reflection of the band's more aggressive roots. The progressive element is quite subtle in most songs, they all contain atmospheric elements decorated in psychedelia that evidently make the songs feel more mellow, but it's most prominent in the lengthier tracks.'
The Czar' and 'The Last Baron' share similar aesthetics in structure. Both songs are musical voyages, but they differ in sound. 'The Czar' is much more dark, driven by an ominous melodic texture.
Whereas, 'The Last Baron', is much more versatile in mood and sound, displaying numerous musical structures, ranging from a delicate ambience to a more powerful delivery that brings Dream Theater to mind one several occasions. The interesting factor in both songs is that despite their length, they don't contain any long instrumental passages that is found in typical Progressive music as vocal deliveries are often present throughout, which make the songs feel shorter during the listening experience. It's tough to say how Mastodon fans will view this album. Clocking in at 50 minutes and containing only 7 songs, something that isn't uncommon in typical Progressive albums, may divert a few fans. This is definitely Mastodon at their 'Proggiest', but the sound isn't too different from anything we've heard before.
I highly encourage this album to any Mastodon fan, and especially any enthusiast of Progressive music. When given the attention it requires, this album proves to be an unbelievable listening experience.
1 of.A strange journey into the occult that leaves the listener with an earful of amazing riffs.If the evolution found on this record is the destiny of Mastodon, then metal's collective.A mysterious, haunting, and fantastic journey across the cosmos, courtesy of Mastodon.Crack the Skye is Mastodon's proggiest album to date, showing a vast maturity in the band.Mastodon makes a humongous change in their style and takes the listener into a void of unc.An amazing successor to the critically acclaimed 'Blood Mountain'.
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