Mastodon - Crack the Skye (CD & DVD)
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CD Details
Artist: MastodonBrand: Reprise Records
Edition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Special Edition
CD Release Date: 2009-03-24
Music Label: Reprise Records
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
- Oblivion
- Divinations
- Quintessence
- The Czar: I Usurper, II Escape, III Martyr, IV Spiral
- Ghost Of Karelia
- Crack The Skye
- The Last Baron
- Making Of Crack The Skye (DVD)
Music reviews of Crack the Skye (CD & DVD)
Music Review: Highly polished, melodic, mid-tempo metal. 7/10
Rating: 4 Stars
The only reason I bought this album was because I heard them play a song from this album on The Late Show With David Letterman. I was impressed with the multi-vocals in the song, so I took a chance on buying this album. Can't say that I had any expectations of this album, apart from the fact that I was hoping that that they did more of the kind of multi-vocals which I heard in that song on Letterman. It wasn't Beach Boys style harmonies...it was vaguely Moldy Peaches multi vocals, as in "Goodbye song"...except that the Moldy Peaches were on a much higher level and more challenging in that song. So, from that perspective, I have t say that I was disappointed that Mastodon didn't go down that multi-vocal route on this album...that would have been really cool, I think.
I did like this album to a certain extent, but I wasn't really planning on reviewing it here, as I didn't think I had anything to say about it, until I thought I'd approach it from the perspective of how it didn't quite do what I was hoping it would do. So, to keep it simple, here's how I would describe the album:
The sound is highly polished in this album and goes from melodic (both musically and vocally) to more harder edged sounds, both musically and vocally. However, being so highly polished, even when the tracks veer towards more extreme sounds, it still sounds sort of mellow and easy listening, so to speak. You don't get the bone jarring shift in ambience as you do for Metallica's classic "Fade to black" where a beautiful accoustic guitar melody makes way for a crunching electric guitar riff. The change in ambience is like going from a hot sauna into a freezing cold pool for that song. It also has to be said that there are no transcendentally beautiful tracks like "Fade to black" in this album. There are some pretty enough melodies on this album, but nothing which really stands out.
Haven't really looked into fan and critical reception to this album, but what comments I have seen seem to mark this album out as a 'concept' album or as being 'progressive' musically. Can't really say that this kind of music is something that I have heavily explored or have a lot of reference points to relate it to. Can say that one concept album sounding song, by Sonata Arctica, namely "Caleb" is terrific, but nothing on Crack The Skye approaches that. However, the album that Sonata Arctica song came from, Unia, seemed weaker overall than this Mastodon album.
The main singer on this album, I think, sort of sounds like an American Joe Cocker. He doesn't really go for the more extreme metal singing sounds you hear nowadays...he is quite understandable, but occasionally he does go mildly extreme, vocally. As this album is described as a 'concept' album, I can't say that I was able to follow it really. With a vocalist like Ronnie James Dio, he eee-nun-cee-ates every word and is very easy to follow. Mastodon's lead singer has a style which washes over you and you lose track. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, as some Bob Dylan songs are really nothing more than shaggy dog stories, but you really can't let his singing wash over you, as his voice demands attention, even when what he is saying isn't that interesting.
Back to the idea that this is a sort of concept album...I have to say that I wish the band was more ambitious with this...i.e. if this album was a lot weirder, but in an interesting way, I would have enjoyed it more. Not Trout Mask Replica weird, but maybe more "Wheels of fire" or "Horses" weird, I would have gotten more out of it. Even if an attempt to be more ambitious had failed, I would have given them more credit for trying. However, to give credit where it is due, Mastodon do mix things within and between songs, but, like I said, the highly polished nature of the recording just seems to even out the listening experience a lot.
Back to Letterman...listening to the cd, I can't say that I could pick which song the band sung. So, I'm guessing, there was something different in their approach on Letterman which stuck out to me. And that, unfortunately, is not captured on this album. Maybe on Letterman they weren't as highly polished, and maybe the multi vocals were more marked on that live performance too.
Before I go into the songs, I should mention that around the time of this review of mine, in the heavy metal magazine Revolver, there is an interview with the band where it's mentioned that the lead singer almost died after being king hit by a fellow musician...not sure, but the other guy may have been from System Of A Down. So, it's good to see the lead singer back, alive, and still creative. Often times one single punch can kill a guy. Literally.
Anyway, if you like smooth, melodic, lead guitar note picking and riffing rock, you may want to check this album out. It's very even, overall, but suffers from not really having any stand out song like a "Fade to black" or "Caleb". Here's my notes on this album, which has 50 minute running time:
Oblivion - has a gothic type intro...vaguely Enter Sandman with that; polished gothic, mid tempo metal. Multi vocals. I like the vocal melody of one of the singers. No silly voices and the lyrics are understandable.
Divinations - has a banjo type intro. There is an interesting tonal quality to the guitar sometimes. The singing is more intense here as is the guitar, which sound like they are revving at times. Guitar solos feature.
Quintessence - has grungy sounding guitars at the intro. Parts of this track are dreamy and I like the melodic notes on the lead guitar. The song is a little bit rock at times, too...sort of thrashy.
The Czar -(a song in four parts. I'll have a crack defining when each part begins):
I-Usurper- Piericing pipe organ notes. Melodic guitar playing Spartan notes. Eerie chorus, melodic verses.
II-Escape (from 3:44?)- Sort of thrashy intro, with lead guitar and riffing and dual vocals.
III-Martyr (from 6:54?)- Eerie synth, strings, then rock music. Melodic singing and a lot of bluesy guitar solos.
IV-Spiral (from 9:14?)- Returns to the catchy chorus of Usurper. Weird synth outro, and organ.
Ghost of Karelia - Vaguely Led Zeppelin "Rock and roll" drum intro as played by cymbals in this track. Thrashy at times, has a buzzing lead guitar at times and also melodic notes.
Crack the skye - the intro to this song is vaguely like Bon Jovi's "Wanted dead or alive"...the song being bookended by a guitar picking notes. The sound is vaguely mildly black metal, including the vocal style, at times. However, at other times the vocals are mellower and melodic.
The last baron - 13 minutes long (this song and The Czar almost account for half of this cd's running time). Has some more note picking on the guitar, multi-vocal harmonies which chime sometimes (percussive effect). A smooth song, but has some furious drumming at times. Pleasant vocal melody and the piano features at the end.
In conclusion, I don't mind this album, but I don't rate it very highly. It's sort of easy listening metal. If this is 'progressive' metal, then perhaps you need to be into that genre to appreciate this more than I did.
Since the version of this cd which came with the DVD cost only a few dollars more, I bought the version with the DVD. Not really looking to watch that dvd. Maybe it is a bit presumptious to have released the cd with that, but, of course, if you really dig this kind of music, then no doubt you will want to watch the dvd too.
Score? I'll say 73/100 tops. If you could call Metallica's Master Of Puppets 'progressive' metal, I'd say that I liked that more than this album. For an album that I rate very highly, with lots of different genres and styles played, I'd nominate Coldseed's debut album, "Completion makes the tragedy" which is a lot catchier and more sonically textured than this album.
Description of Crack the Skye (CD & DVD)
Deluxe Edition contains a bonus DVD featuring the making of Crack The Skye. Mastodon has taken hold of the leadership of the New Wave of Progressive Heavy Metal. The band's 2006 major-label debut Blood Mountain spun off a Grammy nomination and earned Top 5 Best Album Of The Year nods from Kerrang!, Revolver, and Metal Hammer, and a Top 10 at Rolling Stone. Now Crack The Skye, its fourth original studio album, mines subject matter from czarist Russia and astral travel to out-of-body experiences and Stephen Hawking's theories on wormholes for an unrepentantly heavy aural assault that will shake the heavens.Alternative Rock CDs
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