Mastodon succeed time and time again with the impossible: To do exactly what comes to them in and still sound coherent. The american proggmetalgiganterna has written projektalbum on cancer, astral projection, and ”Moby Dick.” Dundrat to emerge as a prettier variant of the Slipknot one moment, and the next to carve out languishing poprefränger. And so on.
The total of fearless exploration is their most obvious character traits. At the same time, they are deeply rooted in their tradition – american meat and potatoes rock with influences from the Melvins, Neurosis, and Iron Maiden. Because of this living paradox, they need never make any anxious u-turns performed in search of renewal. It is in their DNA.
the shape live. A snapshot of the evening would be incredibly boring: A bunch of concentrated musicians arranged in each corner with full focus on their complex riffs. Sparse, to say the least.
And yet, or precisely because, they allow a bunch of crazy wizards. Shamans with deep concentration boils a häxbrygd of swirling gitarrmelodier, crushing heavy riffs and allsångsvänliga arenarefränger. There is no order to anything, and it feels totally logical.
As in the powerful ”Steambreather”, where stämsången fits like a glove time and time again. Or the thunderous vikingavrålen from the ”Leviathan”-the songs. Mastodon are extremely talented – no shortcuts, förinspelningar or half-measures, released through. At the same time, given the whole thing a strong psychedelic backdrop of videprojektioner with the melting voodooansikten and mountains swaying back and forth. Weedigt, but not stupid.
also be rock stars. A few fists in the air, a few strides up on high podiums, some The Who-vevningar. Visiting Neurosis-colleague Scott Kelly hugs mickstativet so that the knuckles whiten in the final monsterhitten ”Blood and thunder”.
But even as the rock stars are the kufiga, and one can’t help but wonder how a so this strange band has become so large. Maybe because they just do what comes to them.
Read more music reviews of Noah Soderberg , for example, if a heavy arenakonsert with both Behemoth and At the Gates .