First off, I hope to hell that I really wouldn't review another album so soon after reviewing Aqua's Aquarium but I had to ask for an album for Christmas. And since this is Christmas Presents month, I had to review it so here we are with Crack the Skye by Mastodon. Mastodon is band that I really would have little business listening to since I'm not a huge fan of prog-metal. In fact, Queensyrche is the only real prog-metal band that I do like but all my friends love Mastodon and after catching the Oblivion music video on TV I decided to give them a chance. So let's dig into Crack the Skye.
Oblivion(****/****) - Right off the bat this song grabs you by the throat with its majestic guitar riff. It's so sweeping and epic as it suggests the idea of impending doom. Then when the vocals come in the music switch into a speed metal groove as it goes deeper and deeper into despair. However, what really got me was when I saw the video and found that the drummer sings the verse, the bassist sings the bridge and the normal lead singer sings the chorus. Each of them have fairly different vocal stylings and it helps make the song much more epic and much better than if it was just the bassist and singer singing.
Divinations(***1/2/****) - One second into the song and it's already filled with surprises. At first, you hear a guitar riff that sounds kind of odd. Then you realize that it's a banjo......Mastodon just made the freaking banjo metal and it totally works! As for the song itself, it's really nothing special at its core but it is performed really well in another great speed metal grove with a catchy chorus. Also, this song is smart enough not to overstay its welcome being the shortest song on the album by far.
Quintessence(***1/2/****) - After the big rock out in Divinations, it's time to slow down a bit. Of course in Mastodon land, slow down a bit is still rock your face off....just not as fast. The song starts with a nice dreamy guitar riff as the vocals going in a dreamy, methodical motion that lulls you in. Then it hits with a heavy and crazy bridge but that's only a fake out as it turns into their most commerical chorus on the album. However, by the end it almost goes into a demonic growl as we get straight into the thick of things on the next track.
The Czar(****/****) - Welcome to the land of prog where bands like Rush and Yes mingle about with their 20 minutes, multi-part epic songs. What does this have to do with Mastodon? This song is 11 minutes long and has four parts so quite a lot actually. The first part is The Czar where it's easily the slowest song, or part of a song, on the album with methodical musicianship and remorseful vocals. It is the slowdown after the first three songs. The second part is Escape where things get kicked up a notch with heavy guitars and banging drums. The vocals have more confidence in them as the singer and bassist once again bounce off their singing in the chorus which is a decent fist-pumper. The third part is Martyr and once again slows down briefly before it kicks into gear. It sounds like Metal Gospel as there's a feel that's almost religious with soaring vocals and guitars. The last part is Spiral which spirals all the way back to the beginning of the song.
Ghost of Karelia(***/****) - With a riff that kind of sounds like "Wasted Years" by Iron Maiden comes a song with a haunting vocal melody and that's the only thing that's haunting about the song. This isn't a bad song by any means but it's almost like a holding pattern from the quiet/loud dynamic that doesn't really fit the song to the competent but unmemorable musicianship for this. There really isn't much to say so I'll just move on to the next track.
Crack the Skye(***1/2/****) - With a riff that sounds straight from the 70's comes a song that makes us forget about Ghost of Karelia's unmemorability. It also has the quiet/loud dynamic as Ghost but it works in the song as the loud part is only in the screaming vocals which has an awesome contrast with the quiet vocals. The musicianship is back to being awesome AND memorable as the songs goes into some surprising territory with Satan coming to reclaim souls. It's a great song and the last great track from the album.
The Last Baron(***/****) - It's 13 minutes and in one part so you know what that means? The band is trying to recapture the awesomeness of The Czar but they don't quite make it. For one thing, the song is way too long as it can easily be cut into 7 or 8 minutes as it does spin its wheels. On the positive front, this is the best band's vocal performance as they perfected the quiet/loud approach from the last two tracks as the loud vocals have an air of fear and despair that sets the contrast between the quiet vocals remorse and bitter acceptance. It's a fitting end to the story but it isn't a fitting end to the album.
All in all, this is a very good album that doesn't have a bad, mediocre or even an almost-good track to it. It does run out of steam by the end and I have serious doubts that the band's claim of the album's story is either a case of Sure, Why Not or just messing with the fans heads. Oh well, it does make me want to listen to more of Mastodon's work.
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