Having been impressed with this power act’s Blood Mountain album, I was quite excited when this one came along. Besides the dozen explosive live tracks, you also get the super-bonus of the full concert and Crack The Skye: The Movie on DVD. Crack The Skye (the visuals featuring as live rear-projection) spans almost an hour, offering up a far-out narrative visual trip with their musical backing via 7 chapters. The movie combines modern visual effects with an old-school early-1900s style in the vein of Maciste In Hell and Metropolis. A cosmic journey has a wheelchair bound invalid embark on an out of body experience, while a mystical figure battling evil brings it all together. Besides the prog-rock leanings and technical intensity, what also sets them apart is the diverse vocal sharing between drummer, guitarist and bassist. The fusion of modern Metal with old-school sensibilities is an irresistible proposition for lovers of the genre, and even if you don’t put stock into what Rolling Stone Magazine has to say, there is certainly a little truth in their claim that Mastodon is “the greatest Metal band of their generation…” Had Pink Floyd been a Metal band, they may well have sounded like Mastodon.
Rating : 5/5 – Demi-God
Reviewed By : Paul Blom
