SOUND BITES

I've done variations on this theme several times in the past, usually after a long period of time during which I abandon my responsibilities around here and allow unreviewed releases to pile up high. Now that my "reviews" are shorter and without much deep thought involved, I kind of figured we wouldn't get to this point again so soon; and yet, here we are. Anyway, here are some albums I've checked out over the summer but not yet shared my opinions on; I could have done haiku just as easily as dropping one or two sentences as I have below, but it turns out I'm too lazy to even arrange this shit into the proper lines and syllables. Shrug. MONDO COZMO New Medicine June 12, 2020 • Last Gang Highlights Black Cadillac • Upside Down • Come On For his second album as Mondo Cozmo, Josh Ostrander got help from some heavy hitters; Black Rebel Motorcycle Club's Peter Hayes features heavily, both as a guest guitarist and co-producer, and previous single Come On was co...

Having taken a two album detour from their highly lauded, highly conceptual early career to make somewhat more accessible material (though not so much a dumbing down of their sound as a maturing of it), plus a host of side projects, 2017 sees the return of Mastodon in more ways than one. Emperor of Sand , their seventh album, isn't just the follow-up to 2014's relatively stripped down Once More 'Round the Sun , it's also their first concept piece since 2009's mammoth Crack the Skye ; in fact, to fans who were left a bit cold by the band's foray into more standard hard rock territory, Emperor of Sand will likely feel like the proper successor to Crack the Skye they didn't get in 2011. It's an idea made all the more credible considering the band has Brendan O'Brien producing for the first time since Crack the Skye . Indeed, this album tells a story centered around death (much like Crack the Skye ), and does so with a complex, metaphor-filled narr...

By freeing themselves from their self-imposed concepts and opening up to a whole world of sonic possibilities, Mastodon sounded energized and eager to explore on 2011's The Hunter . The results were sometimes unexpected, and longtime fans were quick to dismiss the album's more "radio friendly" moments, but I found it consistently engaging and far more rewarding than most gave it credit for. Once More 'Round the Sun picks up where The Hunter left off, but only insomuch as it also eschews a larger narrative in favour of a well-rounded, diverse album. It's lazy to simply call it a continuation, though; it's more a refinement of the exploratory spirit they conveyed on that previous album. There isn't anything that screams out as a bid for airplay such as, say, Curl of the Burl , nor a shocking sonic left turn as Creature Lives . That's not to say OMRTS isn't accessible or experimental, it's just that the songs on the album seem somewhat foc...

A couple of weeks back, I mentioned ten awesome and/or important albums that have the distinct privilege of being released during the months of July and August, a virtual musical dead zone where labels keep the good stuff locked in their cupboards for the fall shopping season and have stopped adequately promoting the marquee releases that came out in spring. We covered a good chunk of the 90's during Part 1. Today, let's have a look at 1997-2012, and ten more albums that beat the odds and captured that elusive Summer Greatness.

I don't like going over a week without posting something, so I promise I'll try harder and hope to appease you with a trio of new videos.  First up is Dry Bone Valley , the new single by Mastodon.  The video's sort of neat, but a little repetitive.  It's got neat animation, but it sort of repeats.  Don't get me wrong, I like it, it's just sort of repetitive.  And yet, I can't watch it on repeat.  Hmmm. We also have a new musical commercial for Red Hot Chili Peppers' third official I'm With You single Look Around , which features each member performing in seperate rooms amid items from their personal collection.  Which explains the Sesame Street mobile and car-shaped bed in new guitarist Josh Klinghoffer's room.  I keeed, I keeed. Finally, the cool, gritty, ball-smashing new animated video for Lamb of God's Ghost Walking , first single from the just-released Resolution album.  No explanation necessary, just know that your balls will b...

MASTODON Curl of the Burl From: The Hunter Released: September 27 After taking their concepts just about as high as they would go, Mastodon decided to strip it down to the basics for The Hunter .  Naturally, a legion of haters cried foul, proclaiming the album to be a sellout rock record.  Sure, it has some elements of classic rock in a handful of its tracks, but it's still metal at its core.  If you need evidence, check the blistering Blasteroid , or the very much Mastodon-sounding Spectrelight .  In fact (and especially given the album's context), Spectrelight sounds like the kind of mind-blowing art-metal jam that Mastodon can write in their sleep.  That's why it's so refreshing to hear them unrestrained by concepts or expectations and just cut loose.  By doing away with the rigid guidelines that their concepts require, the band has gotten out of the corner they'd painted themselves into years ago, leaving them free to try new flavours and expend...