Mastodon are back and ready to get messy with another collection of experimental rock and roll and prog metal hybrids. After narrowing things down with their last album, the Atlantan band takes a step back to their roots with their latest release.
"Once More 'Round The Sun" shows the band working further on the sound of "The Hunter", but the result is much more spontaneous and wild. The band still retains some part of the formula, they generally don't stray too far from the verse-chorus-bridge blueprint, but when they do they really shine. "'Round The Sun" repeats the formula of headbanging verses and explosive, melodic choruses, albeit with a little less polish than they've done in the past.
Most of the album will sound a little bit familiar if you listened to "The Hunter" in depth but it feels more rough and messy. Even though Mastodon are heading further in the direction of their last album they aren't afraid to look into their past. Some of the songs have little hints of their earlier stuff, and while they are not as aggressive or fast paced it's still the roughest they've done in the last 8 years of their career.
Mastodon have never really been just a metal band and this album differentiates them more than ever, "'Round The Sun" is a modern rock and roll record with a taste of metal, progressive rock and stoner rock. Songs like "High Road" and the title track retain the narrowed down nature of their last release, but songs in the second half of the album are more spacey and progressive, and the closer track is probably the most "spread out" song they've written since "Blood Mountain".
Fans of their first three albums will probably welcome "Sun" with open arms, but I couldn't help but feel this album doesn't have the staying power of "Leviathan" or even "Remission". Some of the songs felt a little underwhelming or lacking, and at times I was wishing they would just let themselves loose. Brann Dailor seems to be the only member who's allowed to get crazy all the time and sometimes his drumming is what keeps the songs interesting when the rest of the music isn't on par.
Vocals have never been the band's strongest element and this album is no exception, their solos generally convey much more emotion and their riffs more fury and energy. The highest spots on this album (at least for me) are the instrumental passages on "The Motherload" and the outro to "Halloween". Actually I even enjoyed the introduction and the ending of "Chimes at Midnight" more than the song itself.
"Once More 'Round The Sun" may not be Mastodon's strongest effort, but at least they haven't lost the will to try new things.
"Once More 'Round The Sun" shows the band working further on the sound of "The Hunter", but the result is much more spontaneous and wild. The band still retains some part of the formula, they generally don't stray too far from the verse-chorus-bridge blueprint, but when they do they really shine. "'Round The Sun" repeats the formula of headbanging verses and explosive, melodic choruses, albeit with a little less polish than they've done in the past.
Most of the album will sound a little bit familiar if you listened to "The Hunter" in depth but it feels more rough and messy. Even though Mastodon are heading further in the direction of their last album they aren't afraid to look into their past. Some of the songs have little hints of their earlier stuff, and while they are not as aggressive or fast paced it's still the roughest they've done in the last 8 years of their career.
Mastodon have never really been just a metal band and this album differentiates them more than ever, "'Round The Sun" is a modern rock and roll record with a taste of metal, progressive rock and stoner rock. Songs like "High Road" and the title track retain the narrowed down nature of their last release, but songs in the second half of the album are more spacey and progressive, and the closer track is probably the most "spread out" song they've written since "Blood Mountain".
Fans of their first three albums will probably welcome "Sun" with open arms, but I couldn't help but feel this album doesn't have the staying power of "Leviathan" or even "Remission". Some of the songs felt a little underwhelming or lacking, and at times I was wishing they would just let themselves loose. Brann Dailor seems to be the only member who's allowed to get crazy all the time and sometimes his drumming is what keeps the songs interesting when the rest of the music isn't on par.
Vocals have never been the band's strongest element and this album is no exception, their solos generally convey much more emotion and their riffs more fury and energy. The highest spots on this album (at least for me) are the instrumental passages on "The Motherload" and the outro to "Halloween". Actually I even enjoyed the introduction and the ending of "Chimes at Midnight" more than the song itself.
"Once More 'Round The Sun" may not be Mastodon's strongest effort, but at least they haven't lost the will to try new things.
Rating: decent
For fans of: metal (the crazier kind), stoner rock
Accessibility: average
Highlights: "The Motherload", "Ember City", Brann Dailor's drumming.
