Using grinding guitars and abrasive vocals to tell tales about fairies and werewolves isn't welcome in a classroom of preschoolers, but it certainly goes over well in a mosh pit.
Mastodon made their place in metal history in 2003 on MTV2's "Headbanger's Ball," and has continued to receive praise from metal fans since 1999.
Released Tuesday by Warner Brothers, "Blood Mountain" is their first album with a major record label, a noteworthy follow up to the innovative "Leviathan" which was released in 2004.
This extraordinary array of tales is told through Mastodon's evocative vocals and energetic instrumentals. The melodies are practically hypnotic as the pounding drum rounds meet sleepy guitar riffs in the tracks "Pendulous Skin" and "Sleeping Giant."
"Blood Mountain" offers a variety of sounds from the throbbing punk rock guitar of "The Wolf Is Loose" to the psychedelic droning in "The Mortal Soil."
The lyrics match the spellbinding music as the album treks into the folk world of fairies, Cyclops, werewolves, magical crystals, ivory towers and other myths.
As in "The Wolf is Loose": "Shapeshifters rolling on winds of tyrants make/ fierce lore of fanged horn..."
The metal is heavy and hard throughout the album. The track "Bladecatcher" is over three minutes of beats, melody and a screeching guitar solo that sounds a little too much like R2-D2.
Mastodon continues to establish their folk theme in "Colony Of Birchmen," most evident in the line "this forest is growing faster than I can tell/ seems however I'm a victim of circumstance."
The band's affection towards sci-fi and fables can at times become an annoyance. Getting beyond the irritatingly repetitive theme will lead to the discovery of a great album.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
