ONCE MORE 'ROUND THE SUN

Surely Mastodon had entertained the idea, at least subconsciously, of fitting their gnarly sounds and psychedelic narratives into a more radio-friendly, even poppy format, since the band's sixth studio album retains the quality of being the most straightforward of all their efforts, despite the confusing and more widely-accepted view that 'The Hunter' is this album. In reality, the previous LP did introduce a streamlining of their sound, but this was intertwined with a plethora of interesting and often avant-garde twists, unlike 'Once More 'Round the Sun', which generally seems like a less nuanced album with a greater focus on catchy melodies to go with the choruses, preserving the majestic soloing as well as the massive riffs. Nevertheless, this seems to be a slightly less consistent effort when compared to past achievements of Mastodon's catalogue.

The listener will unearth a few progressive elements here and there, from which the songwriting rarely benefits, like the closing track 'Diamonds in the Witch House', a song that could have been a fine psych-prog mini-epic but in reality is more exhausting than exhilarating. Opener 'Tread Lightly' is a promising heavy track that sets a somewhat desperate and even melancholic tone, which comes as no surprise knowing how successfully Mastodon have captured frustration and angst within their music (unlike many of their peers). For what concerns the "pop metal" department, this album features memorable songs like 'The Motherload', 'High Road', 'Asleep in the Deep' and 'Halloween', all of which perfectly depict the fascinating evolution of the band's sound. At the same time, songs like the title track, 'Aunt Lisa', 'Feast Your Eyes' or 'Ember City', despite the presence of interesting ideas, sound more derivative. All in all, this is a good album from a band of very talented, seasoned musicians, but one that fails to impress as much as previous releases.

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