Butt-Quaking Beast

Mastodon
Remission
Relapse

Just check the name itself. Mastodon. It immediately ranks up there with the heaviest of band names, most of which sit – like Motorhead, like Iron Maiden, like Earth or Entombed – at the intersection of the corny and the imposing. On the strength of their 2001 EP and this full-length, these fellows deserve such lofty company. And though their press, which glowingly crowns Mastodon as “the future of metal,” might seem over the top, it’s hard to listen to this record without being blown away. The band – bassist/vocalist Troy Sanders, guitarist/vocalist Brent Hinds, and two former members of the fabled Today is the Day, guitarist Bill Kelliher and the absolutely savage drummer Brann Dailor – specializes in punishing blend of mathcore, seriously elephantine heaviness, and raw punk edge.

In the sheer ferocity of their attack – the bark of the vocals, the tightly coiled rhythmic attack, and the textural subtlety within rage – they remind me of the late, lamented Botch. The first four tracks on this record, including the single “March of the Fire Ants,” are as strong as any heavy music I’ve heard in quite some time. For a couple months now, I’ve been pretty obsessively playing this slice of the record, at the cost of ignoring some of the album’s later jewels, which are more expressive and dynamic in many cases. The construction of the songs is excellent, with laser-sharp focus given to the tightly coiled, subtly fluctuating mega-riffs in which the band trades. With an almost fusion-like precision, they can stomp on your throat and then soar into the upper atmosphere.

As filled as these tunes are with memorable barks, butt-shuddering riffage, and occasionally anthemic moments, what really gets me every time is the drumming. He uses a small kit, with a really popping snare sound, and this combines with the outrageously tight playing for maximum impact: he’s a smart player, shifting his accents frequently to reframe the power chugging of his mates. It’s clearly in the Bruford lineage in a lot of ways, but it’s designed simply to smack you upside the head (just listen to the end of “Where Strides the Behemoth”). In some senses his style is a close cousin to Will Scharf’s playing in Craw and Keelhaul, but his fill-happy kit work also verges on swing at times (if indeed one can swing amidst crushing metal thunder). Still, this is just one element in the outrageous whole. One of my current favorite records, I can’t wait for their followup due later in 2004. And if you’re in the hunt for a copy of Remission, make sure you find the deluxe edition, which has the band slamming their way through a Thin Lizzy cover (!) and also throws into a complete live DVD to boot.