ONCE MORE 'ROUND THE SUN

"Once More 'Round the Sun" is the 6th full-length studio album by US metal act Mastodon. The album was released through Reprise Records in June 2014. "The Hunter (2011)" proved to be a big success for the band, and they´ve spend a lot of time touring in support of that album, which is part of the reason why there are 3 years between the two albums, but Mastodon have never been a band to release anything unless they are fully satisfied with the material they´ve composed, so they´ve also taken the time necessary to write the best possible material for "Once More 'Round the Sun".

"The Hunter (2011)" featured a less complex and more catchy and straight forward heavy metal sound, than the musical style on the earlier more raw, sludgy, and progressive releases by the band, and that stylistic change is continued and developed upon on "Once More 'Round the Sun". While the music on the album certainly is memorable with catchy choruses and powerful riffs, it´s not simple by any means and mainstream appeal is only present in smaller doses. Mastodon have not completely forgotten their sludgy past either and while the most hard edged tracks on "Once More 'Round the Sun" don´t compare in rawness to earlier material, some tracks are still pretty harsh.

And the variation of the material is one of the things that makes "Once More 'Round the Sun" such a great release. On the album you´ll find both heavy/stoner rockers, darker psychadelic tinged rock/metal tracks, and the above mentioend harsher sludgy tracks (and often all styles are combined). Another great feature is the attention to detail in the songwriting, which is something Mastodon excel in. While the music generally flows naturally and doesn´t sound constructed, these guys have obviously been through every second of music on this release to see if they could do anything different to make it sound better.

All material on the album are as a result well written and intriguing (even the most simple vers/chorus structured tracks are detailed and interesting). The music is well performed too. Great organic interplay between all involved, and the vocals, which on the band´s early releases were a bit more one-dimensional, are now more varied with both clean and raw vocal styles featured in the music. Mastodon have obviously worked a lot on their vocal melodies and how they perform them, because the vocal part of "Once More 'Round the Sun" is more catchy, powerful, and memorable than ever.

The organic sounding production is also a winner and helps bring out the best in the music, so all in all "Once More 'Round the Sun" is a high quality release by Mastodon. With the success of "The Hunter (2011)" I was wondering if Mastodon would strip down their sound and aim for an even more mainstream oriented sound on "Once More 'Round the Sun", but I don´t really think that´s the case. "Once More 'Round the Sun" is equally as adventurous as "The Hunter (2011)" and it´s nice to hear that the band haven´t completely abandoned their progressive ways in search of commercial success, even though the more simple sound on this one and on "The Hunter (2011)" are a far cry in sound and style (not in quality) compared to the more progressive predecessors. Mastodon seemingly insist on not settling or getting too comfortable and I find that greatly charming. A 4 - 4.5 star (85%) rating is deserved.

I was introduced to Mastodon by a youthful co-worker many years ago, who recommended their album Leviathan to me after hearing that I liked Dream Theater and Opeth. I wasn't impressed, and sort of hated it. I gave the band another chance with Blood Mountain. I didn't hate it, but wasn't impressed. The band's style of noisy, distorted, "sludge" metal failing to grab my attention despite the group's instrumental talent. With Once More 'Round the Sun, the third time seems to do the trick, because I think that this is actually a entertaining, well executed, and ass-kicking piece of heavy metal.

The band has shifted their sound to feel a bit more bite-sized, relying more on melody and hooks than walls of distorted noise. The song writing isn't very ambitious or complex, but the energy the group puts into the savage riffing, explosive drumming, and tone of the songs out weighs this short coming. Take for example the very catchy "The Motherload," which is a heavy, fuzz-filled crunch fest that features blistering and gymnastic riffing, a prodigiously busy rhythm section, and memorable vocals that grabs hold of, and sticks with you.

The consequence of this is that the band is leaning more mainstream, which may not appeal to fans of this web site. I feel like Mastodon is what a band like Isis would sound like if they opted to sell more albums to stoners in their early 20's instead of those seeking a full-blown art rock experience. I'm not passing judgement, just saying that the band has focused on hooks backed by their instrumental chops, so don't expect any epic compositions or experimentation.

While more listenable than other Mastodon albums, Once More 'Round the Sun will probably only appeal to fans of the heavy "tech metal" genre. A confident 3 star release.

Songwriting: 2 - Instrumental Performances: 4 - Lyrics/Vocals: 2 - Style/Emotion/Replay: 3

Sometimes, becoming generic is not bad at all!

Because Once More 'Round the Sun is a pretty generic Mastodon album. It mixes the fierceness and merciless riffs from Leviathan with the more progressive and melodic compositions from Crack the Skye, forgetting the weird and failed experimentations of the strange Blood Mountain and the too commercial and felicitous The Hunter.

The result is a very stimulating album which maybe does not hit the high levels of the two aforementioned albums (Leviathan and Crack the Skye) but reaches a very worthy third place in the podium of this band's career. Its progressive-sludge metal in its purest form, where Mastodon are the one and only specialists.

Best Tracks: the first five tracks of the album are just amazing! After that the album becomes a bit more irregular with some lackluster tracks like Feast Your Eyes and the not so impressive Ember City and Halloween. Diamond in the Witch house is an authentic return to the sludge metal roots of Mastodon, nevertheless!

Conclusion: Once More 'Round the Sun supposed a very welcomed return from Mastodon to the right path after the disappointing and cheesy The Hunter. The classical ferocious riffs of the band are back, the vocals are better than ever and the mixture between sludge metal and prog is just great this time.

So I consider Once More 'Round the Sun an excellent album from Mastodon. Maybe it was not as groundbreaking as Leviathan and not so perfectly composed like Crack the Skye, but a great addition to every prog metal collection anyway.

My rating: ****

This 2014 album was the sixth from Mastodon, following on some three years from 2011's acclaimed 'The Hunter'. Although I originally missed out on the debut, I clearly remember when I was sent their 2004 release 'Leviathan' and the impact it had on me. Back then they were in all the music magazines but moving to New Zealand just a few years later meant I lost track of what they were doing and it is only now that I am starting to revisit the catalogue. There are few bands who manage to stay together throughout their career, but the line-up on this one was the same as on the debut (and actually still is today), namely Troy Sanders (bass, vocals), Brent Hinds (guitar, vocals), Bill Kelliher (guitar) and Brann Dailor (drums). Over the years they have become renowned for their attention to detail, and how they mix many forms of metal to create something which is uniquely theirs. This means they can be playing something which is more akin to sludge and then surprise everyone with some incredibly melodic guitar twin harmonies which is totally out of character for what is happening musically yet also fits in perfectly. Then over the top of it all there are the dual lead vocals which add yet more melody to what is an incredibly heavy band.

But they are also not afraid to show what inspires them, and when listening to the title cut, one cannot help but be taken back to the Seventies, although in a far heavier and bass-led fashion. This song also contains samples of Lizzy's "Cowboy Song", and one wonders if this was a premonition of things to come given that bassist Sanders was asked to join that band for some live shows five years later. This is progressive metal in that there is a real refusal to accept boundaries or norms, creating music very much on their own terms, no compromise whatsoever yet somehow they create something which is incredibly easy to listen to and enjoy on the very first time of hearing. It is powerful and aggressive, yet with a layer of polish and versatility which belies the force of what is going on underneath. While it may not have the immediate impact of 'Leviathan' one can see why this is such highly regarded release and I am certainly glad that I have finally remade my acquaintance with the band.