Release Date: March 24, 2009
Label: Reprise Records
well, i got hold of a leaked version of the album, so here it goes....
Mastodon's latest effort seems more like a transition than a definite thing. This is the last of their "elemental" albums: where Remission was Fire, Leviathan was water, and Blood Mountain was Earth, this explores the idea of Air and the Ethereal realm(time travel, wormholes and crap). as a concept album(and yes it is a concept album), it's much more focused than its predecessor in the story, which itself is out of its mind. here's the story, btw:
[SIZE="1"]There is a paraplegic and the only way that he can go anywhere is if he astral travels. He goes out of his body, into outer space and a bit like Icarus, he goes too close to the sun, burning off the golden umbilical cord that is attached to his solar plexus. So he is in outer space and he is lost, he gets sucked into a wormhole, he ends up in the spirit realm and he talks to spirits telling them that he is not really dead. So they send him to the Russian cult, they use him in a divination and they find out his problem. They decide they are going to help him. They put his soul inside Rasputin's body. Rasputin goes to usurp the czar and he is murdered. The two souls fly out of Rasputin's body through the crack in the sky(e) and Rasputin is the wise man that is trying to lead the child home to his body because his parents have discovered him by now and think that he is dead. Rasputin needs to get him back into his body before it's too late. But they end up running into the Devil along the way and the Devil tries to steal their souls and bring them down…there are some obstacles along the way[/SIZE]
yeah, crazy stuff. but anyway, this is definately a new territory for this band. from the first song, you can already tell where they're headed in a more classic, prog rock direction. even so there's still parts to bang your head and pump your fist into the air. Musically, it's good, but the Muscality isnt as present as in Blood Mountain. This album focuses a little more on the melodies/singing than previously, plus there's a more, airy feeling to the songs themselves, like they're not entirely there. There also seems to be an....incomplete feeling after listening to it, like there should be more songs included or something. The songs themselves though, are still great. While the sudden shift in their music may turn off some people who are still waiting for "another Remmission", this'll nonetheless garner some new fans for this band, even though it's far from radio friendly music. [SIZE="4"]
All in all, i give this album an 8.5/10[/SIZE]. the songs are well crafted and fantastic, but there could be more put into the album so it doesn't feel as empty.
Oblivion- an abrupt tritone assault kicks this album off. then it shifts to a chugging riff and a shockingly new singing style for the band. This song has a very sad feeling to it. at the end it starts the riff of the next song with what seems to be a banjolike instrument
Divinations- This sounds more like a standard Mastodon song, akin to Crystal Skull or Circle of Cysquatch on BM, with a kickass solo to match
Quintessence-This also sounds like normal Mastodon, although the vocals and some parts are slightly different from their usual shenanagins. it's infectious chorus'll have you singing "LET IT GO, LET IT GO!!". at the end comes a strange transition, sort of a mini song before The Czar.
The Czar- My favorite song on the album. this is split into 4 parts, Usurper, Escape, Martyr, and Spiral. Usurper repeats the same phrase "don't stay, run away" over and over again in an almost hypnotic way. Escape is where it kicks in, with a kind of southern riff that has an almost danceable groove to it. Martyr has a calming effect to it, but still has a monster riff to match as well as a melodic singing part and a furious solo. Spiral picks up where Usurper left off, with added harmony. it ends with a sad piano playing the sung melody.
Ghost of Karelia- The guitar riff on this song is very eriee. the vocals are once again present as they somewhat mimic a guitar part. It's still big, but it isn't as much of a headbanger as some previous songs. possibly the low point in the album
Crack the Skye- The song the album is named after isn't as riffy as it could be, once again focusing on melodies, which are themselves pretty good. the guitars in the middle of the song seem to be disappearing and reappearing at once. this is possibly the most emotive song on the album, as you can feel it tug at your heart strings.
The Last Baron- it is the longest song on the album(13 minutes exactly), and possibly one of Mastodon's most epic achievements. starts off right away in a slow sludgy fashion with acoustic and electric guitars in the background. then the electrics take the forefront in a riff that then transitions into a dark and mysterious area. then comes the pounding drums that transitions into a quick riff that almost makes you forget the entire song before it. in the middle is a rediculously jazzy point that'll turn you upside down, but not before going back to the fast riff of before. then comes a sweet riff fest that then goes back to the intro, just so they could burn it into your memory a bit more. The song ends with a solo and a trill on the piano
EDIT:if you read all of that, god bless you
original link- http://www.musicbanter.com/album-reviews/38612-mastodon-crack-skye.html
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