"Once More 'Round the Sun" feels like a quick dart to the edge before "Chimes at Midnight" grinds away with some of the heaviest grooves on the album. From other bands, it might come off a bit pedestrian, but MASTODON has the capacity to reach the stars and that's where they take their listeners and lets them bask before pulling the plug one second before three minutes. The pure rock furrows here are a charm, not detriment. The difference between these songs and "Leviathan" comes down to matters of finesse and in the case of "High Road", uplifted choruses and an otherworldly bridge at the end.Įven the title track teases with a rolling intro bred out of "Leviathan" before accelerating a few clicks. At the end of the album, MASTODON revisits "Leviathan" a second time on the seven-minute-plus "Diamond in the Witch House". If MASTODON's purpose is to serve reminder why they come by their namesake honestly, "High Road"'s stamping grooves handle that resolutely. "High Road" subsequently minces all the effervescence staked by "Tread Lightly" and "The Motherload" with a rhythmic, punishing march straight out of "Leviathan", plus Gene Simmons-esque yelps on the verses. Love it or hate it, "The Motherload" is a pure rock blaster coaster with more going on for it than first meets the ear. However, FM is just not that cool, and besides, MASTODON extends the song beyond conventional running time for a radio cut with their extensive progressive bridge and solo section, as if to spite. "The Motherload" may sit uncomfortably with some listeners, but MASTODON effectively creates an addictive power jam that can readily slip onto FM. The chorus is the best Ozzy Osbourne dig the man himself hasn't done in eons. "The Motherload" is this album's equivalent to "Curl of the Burl" last time around on "The Hunter", but this time, MASTODON uses their jacked-up harmonies and soaring choruses to drag their cumbersome sonic might upwards. All that being said, what MASTODON attempts and easily achieves on "Once More 'Round the Sun" is to streamline instead of go mainstream. Brann Dailor alone throws out more fills per second than any vanilla pop-rock drummer could possibly handle. Not yet, anyway.įirst and foremost, MASTODON is way too hyperactive with their parts to ever be considered a straight-up rock band. Unlike what SUPERTRAMP and GENESIS did ages ago, MASTODON hasn't taken the immediate pickup junction leading to the radio friendly highway. What MASTODON tinkered with on "The Hunter" and now even further on "Once More 'Round the Sun" is a natural evolution for a band that can only have so much more to say as a sludge prog giant. This band and OPETH represent the pinnacles of metal for this generation, and in MASTODON's case, the proof is in the sludge pudding yet again with their new album "Once More 'Round the Sun". Rare is the occasion when a band as complex and progressive as MASTODON is sacrifices none of their core identity while transitioning to the major markets. MASTODON's continued inching toward an accessible rock sound is no doubt going to be met with enmity by some, which sucks, considering they play at a higher level than damned near anyone in metal music.
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