Crack the Skye is a wet dream for any classic rock station looking to bridge the gap in the hope of marrying their weathered, tried, and tired head banging faithful with the desperately hungry young offspring that scoffed at the guise of nu-metal while holding out for a second coming of the good old days. Long no more, Mastodon delivers a metal album that expands generations. The rhythm section trudges with a 70’s Sabbath-like weight, the lead guitar work is reminiscent of the best that the 90’s Seattle grunge had to offer in musicianship (Cantrell, Thayil), while the vocals have the multiplicity of the new century’s front men in using the committee approach (Brann Dailor (Drums), Bret Hinds (Lead Guitar), and Troy Sanders (Bass); sometimes in tandem even on the same track.
What is unique about Crack the Skye is that Mastodon succeeds in fusing physical sensation of the music with attempting to tell an arching mythological story without being perceived like dungeon masters that hate reality. The music comes across nothing short of brutal and fist pumping, while the lyrics are conceptual. They foretell of an outer worldly journey and even time travel, which is immediately evident from the Icarian opening track “Oblivion,” a remorseful tale of anticipation and dread of the possible opportunity of absolution after failure. The epic four part “The Czar” blends A Perfect Circle-like delicacy with ripping emotional leads a la Black Label Society that save the song from becoming dour. However the true journey piece of “The Last Baron” concludes the album in a thirteen minute hyper-aware ode to salvation.
This is the fourth offering from the
Aaron Simms
Posts
