Dogmatic

I’ve been sitting on this review for a while for the sole reason that it takes time to fully digest anything that Mastodon release. A lot of time. ‘Blood Mountain’ marks the band’s first release for major label Warner and features a diverse range of cameos from the likes of Neurosis vocalist Scott Kelly, Queen Of The Stone Age’s Josh Homme and Cedric Bixler-Zavala from the Mars Volta. An eclectic bunch of characters right there but then again, Mastodon are an eclectic mob themselves. Musically, Mastodon is unparalleled - delivering an intricate bludgeoning with each and every track. But it ain’t all a slice of bludgeon-riffola as far as these guys are concerned. The solos are interlaced with melodic undertones and the band have an uncanny knack of injecting unique sounding melodies with vocal and guitar alike layered on top of a complex and perplexing rhythm section. Or in short, the drumming is fucking amazing and lays an immense foundation for the band to work from. This album is so multi-faceted and continually refuses to let up its ferocity despite frequent shifts in style, mood, and attitude. Truly, a classic album.