So who ran out to get this sucker today? It's a thrilling piece of work, it tops Leviathan...the music has so much more depth than ever before, and unlike the pretentious Mars Volta, the music is progressive without losing focus, it flies off on different tangents, but remains true to the central riffs, and the band is tight throughtout (Dailor on drums, especially). I would not be surprised if this goes down as one of the finest, most uncompromising major label debuts in metal history.

Barring any unforeseen surprises, it'll probably be my album of the year.

I'll be picking it up this weekend, assuming it's in stores here (NZ) otherwise I'll have to order it online. It's an absolutely amazing album - I'm not sure if it tops Leviathan since I haven't been listening to it long enough but it certainly feels like it. It's diverse and powerful, brutal and melodic all at once. The dude on drums is just insane.

Album of the year? Probably.

This Thursday the 14th at the Metro with Converge. And yeah, good album, but I don't know if it tops Leviathan.

There's just so much more going musically than Leviathan, and the production is much better. Dailor's snare sound was really odd on the last record. Leviathan did have a couple of catchy tunes in "Blood and Thunder" and "Megalodon", though...that's the one thing it has over Blood Mountain.

The musicianship blows my mind on this one, but I may prefer the songs more on Leviathan. I'll need a few more listens. Either way, it's a brilliant effort and I'm looking forward to their show on Thurs

Album of the year! Whoa! Is this recommended for casual fans of metal?

Well, let me put it this way...if you want the definitive prog rock/metal experience of 2006, get this instead of Mars Volta. There's a lot to digest, but it's not entirely inaccessible.

I'm loving the album, been loving it since I downloaded the early leak. Now that I've got the official copy, it's going to be one of those CDs that'll rarely leave my car.

And the DVD that came with it is pretty damn cool as well.

Definitely will be in my top 5 of the year.

Yeah, the special edition or whatever is a good one. Nice to see a behind-the-scenes piece where the members of the band all have something relevant to say.

I'm buying this this week. Another $9.99 Best Buy sale (just for the standard CD, though...no DVD.) I've deliberately held off on d/ling/listening to that leak. I can't wait to hear this thing for the first time.

Old school! Admirable.

Gotta say, Paul Romano has outdone himself with the artwork.

I like how the album is sequenced. The first two songs are very Mastadonian..."The Wolf is Loose" is an all-out thrasher, "Crystal Skull" has that swing we've come to expect from this band, and just as we're getting comfy, the hairpin turns start. "Sleeping Giant" is one of the most languid songs they've ever done (the last minute smacks of Voivod), and then "Capillarian Crest" does a complete 180.

anyone know if this was released on Vinyl...or should I just go straight to Best Buy and get it on cd?

Yes, comes out October 3. Pre-order at http://shop.relapse.com/store/product.aspx?ProductID=24239

Thanks...will be ordering the black 180 gram today.

San Diego show is at SOMA (of course) on Sept. 30th w/Converge & The Bronx.

Velocity, SF show is at Slim's on the 25th, also w/Converge & The Bronx.

Anyone willing to post a Y S I link...?

My brother-in-law has been pushing this band and I have yet to hear anything from them.

Thanks,

K-

So, the Deluxe Edition is worth it? I wouldn't think it would be just for a picture gallery, one video & a "Making Of..." documentary, but it is only $6 extra.


Y'all Send the Thing's been fighting me lately, but if you're on the 'bird I've got a prerelease copy.

Never got on the bird...I'm way behind, I know.

Let me know what you can manage...

Thanks,

K-

If I had the time, I would definitely up it, but it takes so long for me to do it, I can't spare the two hours today. Hopefully someone who has the real version (and not the sloppy early August leak) can accommodate.

I'll have it up in 30 minutes.

Capillarian Crest is my fav thus far

Definitely worth it. The documentary is around 30 to 40 minutes long (I didn't time it), and not just some mindless PR fluff-piece. The band seem like really cool, down-to-earth guys who'd be fun to kick back and have some beers with.

It sucks to have to pay more money for it, 'cause package the DVD with the regular CD, don't charge any more $$, and that's how you could get people to stop only downloading albums and picking up the thing in stores. The extra value here shows.

Sleeping Giant is the clincher for me. So unlike anything they've done before, yet still it sounds like definitive Mastodon. The mark of a great band.

So I bought this and listened to it once so far. My well thought-out and lucid review at this time:

FUCKING AWESOME.

That is all.

Nicely stated. It's like Ghost Reveries a year ago, nothing in the next few months can top this one. I have my #1.

Yeah, if it's not already sold out I'm probably re-thinking my stance on this...

edit: Yep, I'm there. Should be awesome.

was anyone at the show tonight? i was really wanting to check it out, but alas, was stuck reviewing a different show

I never got inside-sold out. I did notice that quite a few people left after Converge....

Holy shit Mastodon is tight live. Leviathan and Blood Mountain-heavy setlist. Good crowd, great show.

So I've tried and tried and I'm just not feeling this album at all. It's not bad or anything, but none of it excites me or sticks with me in any way. I'm just bored by it. Oh well.

My first thought when I heard this album was that this is their "Ghost Reveries," in that it sounds to me as if it is the album they've been trying to make their entire career, despite the fact that all their previous work is amazing and unique in its own right.

Also, saw them live last night. My thoughts are...


Openers The Bronx would have been called Poison in the 1985 and Buckcherry in 1995...yawn.


Converge annoyed me like no other. I've seen Mastodon twice now...two years ago they had Death by Stereo open for them at the now-demolished Bottom Lounge, and now this band...why oh why must we be forced to listen to all these "positive energy" punk metal bands?Both bands, I swear to God, delivered a rant 2/3rds of the way through their set about positive and negative energies,, followed up by how they've lost friends to...something....jesus christ, I want someone to show these fucks how to shoot heroin correctly so they stop having funerals to sing about.

Oh, and sweaty high school kids with flock of seagull haircuts....need I say more?


Mastodon of course made up for the minor inconveniences. Great set, lots of stuff off of Blood Mountain. "The Wolf is Loose,"and "Crystal Skull" absolutely smoked, as did any of the faster songs off of Leviathan. Brent Hinds' vox were massive (maybe using some kind of vocal filter), and Troy's bass was louder and punchier than in the past. Was that his wife on the side of the stage? Anyways, she had a little girl, maybe 6-7, with massive earmuffs on during the whole set who I think actually fell asleep towards the end! I thought that was pretty funny.

Saw the show a few nights ago at the Metro. Mastodon were great as always. Didn't overstay their welcome like a lot of bands do(an hr-15 minute set is a damn good amount of time for most shows in my mind).

It's funny, I own 4 or 5 converge albums and after a while, all their songs really just sounded exactly like the last one they played. And this show made me dislike Nate Newton.. what a fuckin bro.

wow, i thought Converge actually sounded great...I had not seen or listened to them in 8-10 years probably...Mastodon was great but the sound for them was muddy. I was also surprised how tame the crowd was.

Mastodon has one of the densest live sounds I've ever heard.

I like the clean vocal approach on this a lot better than the clean vox on some of the tracks from Leviathan. Great track.

WOW!!!!!, is all I can say after three straight listens.

I just got back from a week in the mountains, and then came back to an even more spectacular Blood Mountain.

I won't weigh in on the greater than/ lesser than Leviathan debate, as I think the records are so different that that's an apples v. oranges game. But this one is an epic crusher. The production is immense, the songs are great and intriguing, it just works as a piece soooooo well.

Early faves are "The Wolf is Loose," "Crystal Skull," "Sleeping Giant," "Capillarian Crest" (yes, I'm aware these are the first four tracks ), also love "Hunters of the Sky" and "This Mortal Soil."

Can't wait to see them next week at Slims. Fuck yes....

Edit: Anyone else notice that the vocals sound a little Ozzy/ BLS-Zack Wyldean, esp. on cuts like "Sleeping Giant?"

Edit II: "Capillarian Crest" is a REALLY weird song, BTW...

The album is already starting a debate among fans that's not unlike the Ride the Lightning vs. Master of Puppets argument. Both are masterpieces!

I just think Blood Mountain is a little more fully developed, and yeah, it benefits from a punchier mix. I think this album is going to go down as one of the most important American metal records in recent memory...especially if it sells well, like 500,000 or so.

So the new issue of SPIN gave Blood Mountain a measly two and a half stars while praising the Lamb of God album with four stars. I don't know about that. I've not heard the LoG disc, but there is no fucking way Mastodon deserves such a low rating. The really brief review basically complains that the band has no "memorable hooks". Sask's review was much better.

Argghhh. I attribute that to most peoples' unwillingness to appreciate prog music of any persuasion.

Thanks!

Chuck Eddy was saying on ILM that Spin docked the rating on his review down a star. He actually likes the album (I haven't read his review yet).

You should be glad you didn't see the Guardian's horribly misguided review. Here it is.

I'm betting either a high 6 or a low 7 in P-Fork. And maybe less at Stylus.

A buddy of mine, hearing me rave about this new album, asked me what kind of music they play. I replied "Riff-heavy prog metal." It later occurred to me, listening to both this and Leviathan, that I might have said "Riff-heavy prog-punk metal." Lately, I've been hearing a lot of punk in their songs (see "Aqua Dementia," "Cappilarian Crest").

Does that seem fair?

Yeah, hardcore was always a big influence on post-NWOBHM metal, but over the last five years or so the line between hardcore and metal has become so blurred, they're basically one in the same.

Great review in PopMatters, Sask. Hopefully it'll get this album more of the attention it deserves. I've been listening to it heaps and I'm pretty sure it'll end the year as my #1.

Yeah, same here. And it wouldn't be the first Mastodon album I named as my #1 on one of these SOMB year-end polls either!

but leviathon got an 8.5; remission, 9.0 (back in the day when every rating was super-inflated, but still)

I'm expecting Brandon Stosuy's review (if he does do it) to be on the cautiously optimistic side. But of course you know far better than I do.

I'd be thrilled if the album got an 8+.

http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/reco..._Blood_Mountain

I'm thrilled. Good stuff!

Stylus is a little more lukewarm. Just a bit, but a well-written piece.
http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/mast...od-mountain.htm

1. Nothing wrong with being pretentious.
2. I've only given it the one Death Deck spin, but the one word I would use to describe it is anything but 'progressive'. Perhaps it has hidden depths (I, of course, plan on giving it a lot more spins), but I was thinking, during that listen, that I would have loved it if it had come out in 1997 or something. In fact, I was disappointed at how trad it was at first impression.