Mastodon continues to impress with their spacey music video for “Oblivion” from the new album Crack the Skye, their third video helmed by psychedelic guru Roboshobo. Truthfully, their partnership seems to be paying off, because the man(?) has been able to consistently accomplish the seemingly impossible task of creating a visual document that accurately translates the incredibly visual auditory experience of Mastodon’s music. If Mastodon’s Crack the Skyeconcept movie really does take shape, we can be sure that Roboshobo will deliver with one of his own picture perfect interpretations if he’s the one behind it…
Last night, April 29, 2009, the the conceptual prog/thrash/stoner metal masters in Mastodon came to the Fine Line Music Cafe in the heart of downtown Minneapolis’s club district to support of their brilliant new album Crack the Skye, and they put together a gripping set that had the MN crowd salivating for more. It’s one thing to make every one of your albums into a separate concept piece, but it’s an entirely different story when you are able to execute that concept, front-to-back, in front of the live audience. However, Mastodon did just that by dedicating the entire first half of their set to the new release, and it didn’t end there they treated each of their releases with the same type of reverence, playing back through their career with mini-conceptual sets devoted to Blood Mountain, Leviathan, and Remission.
Crack the Skye was played in order, and it couldn’t have sounded better than it did at the Fine Line on Wednesday. The guitars were thick, loud, and crunching over the insane drum textures of Brann Dailor, sounding heavy as hell at times and lush and beautiful at others. Mastodon has the unique ability to play heavy rock that tends to get tripped out never loses sight of the fact that it’s main purpose is to fuckin’ rock! Fine Line’s sold out crowd certainly appreciated the heaviness throughout the night, and the moshing only subdued a few times during some of the most Pink Floydian moments.
However, things really kicked into high gear when the band stepped back onto stage for their second set of the night. As the band roared into the first notes of the psychonaut thrasher “Bladecatcher” from Blood Mountain, a renewed fervor hit the pit that didn’t let up until the end. Fans seemed to celebrate each time a new song began, a sure sign that of the future trouble the band might have in putting together albums that can stack up against their back catalog. Nevermind that though, because tonight the band has a more control of their sound and their crowd than any other band I’ve seen all year. The show was an ambitious one, but in the end it brought things full circle, beautifully introducing fans of the old the the new and vice versa.
Not to be outdone, the underground pyschedelic sludge metal vets Kylesa is came into town supporting their new album Static Tensions and played a set that left most of the crowd taking serious note of who was on stage in front of them. To anyone in metal band, Kylesa’s dirty headbanging psychedelics sonic presence is quite enviable, and the fact that they’re the direct support to Mastodon’s sold out tour is probably even more enviable. To sum it up succinctly, this is a “band’s band”, if you know what I mean; everybody sings, they’ve got two drummers, males, females, and they play some very, very, very sick metal.
The underground prog/sludge heavyweights in Intronaut started things off right with their poly-rhythmic doom metal. Most of the set was focused around Prehistoricisms and The Challenger EP, with only a single song taken from earlier material. All around, the band sounded extremely tight and super heavy last night, and for as technical as their music is, they still came across as a pretty carefree group of musicians. If I would’ve found them in the venue, I would’ve gladly offered to roll one up with the dudes (but I might have had to make that conditional on a personal request for “Fragments of Character” next time they’re in MN – it’s a song that brings back great personal memories!).
And now on to the media presentation! We owe a big thank you to Chris, Erik, and the guys at CultureBully.com for the spontaneous “partnership” that spawned the vimeo hosted video in this post (and they were nice enough to include some of the shots that I took with their own, much better and more detailed writeup of the show)! Check out all the great photos of Mastodon, Kylesa, and Intronaut and FIVE videos of Intronaut and Mastodon. Happy viewing!
Finally, we are at the end of March, and the time has come for me to put the closing bell on the Mind Inversion tribute to the recently popular Facebook meme on your most influential albums. I’ll have you know that, like most lists I make, the albums for this list were brainstormed rather quickly, and I think that’s a good thing. If an album were actually as influential as I thought, their importance should be fairly easy for me to recall. Truthfully, I’ve never really become too embarrassed about any album that I own; sure, I may have made some questionable choices in my youngest years, but somehow I’ve always seemed to have a remarkably good bullshit detector when it comes to music. What follows is a journey through the albums that had the biggest impact on forming my tastes and such over the years. If you really love the music I post about, read on for a brief reverse-chronological (moreorless) recounting of my most influential albums. For better or worse, I’ve written them out as haikus for your enjoyment!
25. Nachtmystium, Assassins: Black Meddle, Part I
Sick, twisted, subtle
Black metal psychedelia
With soul of Pink Floyd
24. Deerhunter, Cryptograms
Melodies so sweet
And a massive wall of noise!
A new Sonic Youth?
Isis is back. In only a few weeks, their new album Wavering Radiant will be officially unveiled, and this guy couldn’t be happier! Really, when it rains it pours; within a short 24 hour period I’m getting my ears on the first tastes of music from new Converge AND Isis – I think my head is about to explode. Isis just posted the song “20 Minutes/40 Years” over at their MySpace website (UPDATE: we’ve got a free MP3 linked below), and I’m now, for the indeterminate future, dutifully listening on repeat to this precursor of the divine psychedelic doom metal that is coming to everyone’s ears by April 21st. You’ll all likely just have to resign to the same lifestyle as well, and Isis seems to think it should be enough for now. In their words:
We feel this [“20 Minutes/ 40 Years”] is a good representation of [Wavering Radiant]. Our friend Matt Santoro is working on a video for this song which will be completed around the time of the records release. This is also the song we showcased on the ATP tour we did back in December. We hope you enjoy it. There’s lots of “ear candy” in this one, so be sure to listen on some headphones – or, better yet, wait until the vinyl is released for full sonic enjoyment.
In other obscure regions of the metal realm, it was a very busy weekend as well. A number of metal videos and songs that recently surfaced are posted below for your viewing and listening entertainment. Enjoy!
Cattle Decapitation – music video released this week for their first single (is it really called that for a grindcore band?) from The Harvest Floor, “Regret and the Grave“. It’s one that leaves little to the imagination; haunting, scary, sick’n’twisted, in-your-face blasting, grinding, gritty madness!
Amon Amarth – their second music video from their recent Twilight of the Thundergod is now available, created for the defiant Viking death metal battle hymn “Guardians of Asgaard“. The song features Petrov from Entombed, and the video is epic and fucking awesome (in plainspeak). Nothing more needs to be acknowledged other than the fact that Amon Amarth owns, and the video and new album are further proof of their exalted status.
Woot! Back from my spring leave of absence and ready to assault the web with more writing! For my past few Metalhead Minutes, I’ve been delving into some band’s from the obscure underbelly of some of metal’s rising artists (in my eyes). This week I’ll bring things back a bit closer to the surface; some of the commoners might actually be listening to the choices I’ve selected for this post. These songs come from two albums that will be unavoidable for anyone who even passively associates themselves with metal in the spring of 2009!
First, take a listen to the lead single from Mastodon‘s newest album, Crack the Skye. As a reminder, this album will be in stores everywhere on Tuesday, and “Divinations” is an epic, psych’n’roll metal masterwork that is only an indicator of the direction these Georgian metalheads have decided to take. I’ll have my review of the album posted on Monday, so I won’t get into the specifics now, but just enjoy the preview video for now to tide you over!
Maybe this is an unsuspecting choice for anyone who’s followed my tastes on the site, but honestly, Chimaira is a band that has never let me down. Despite the harsh treatment the band has endured from the community in general over the past few years, I’ve always seen them as a band that is thinking outside the box and pushing boundaries rather than being confined by them. Over the years, their attack has continued to be refined and “Secrets of the Dead” indicates another progression. The track comes from their forthcoming album The Infection, an album that will be sure to cement the band a permanent place in the metal history books. Though it still clings tight to the trash and groove metal centerpiece that Chimaira fans will know and love, death metal, epic doom metal, and black metal are all nuanced, as well. Simply put, “Secrets of the Dead” seems to meld my favorite aspects of all things brutal, and I hope the rest of the album is of the same caliber. In theory, a song like this could’ve been a mess, but Chimaira seems to have hit created a legendary sound for their newest evolution. Listen to “Secrets of the Dead” now and see what you’ve been missing!
Watch now! Crack the Skye hits stores on March 24th! Click read more to read the band’s own thoughts on this gorgeous new cinematic masterpiece they’re calling a music video and see their forthcoming U.S. tour dates… Continue reading →
Several months ago, Mind Inversion made the announcement that The Haunted would be coming to St. Paul for what promised to be an amazing show with Nachtmystium, Kylesa, and Intronaut in mid-April – which is why I was pretty caught off guard when I read the announcement yesterday for a April 12th Mastodon headlined gig at the Fine Line with Intronaut and Kylesa in tow. I’m really not complaining; if these bands were going to unexpectedly drop off an awesome tour, it might as well have been to go on an equally awesome tour.
Mastodon recently crafted the most psychedelic and unrestrained album of their career, Crack the Skye, and they decided to present it live to Minneapolis at one of the most intimate and unrestrained venues in the city. This is a very lucky occurence! Despite their growing success, it’s great that I’m still able to see Mastodon headlining club venues (like they did last time at First Avenue with Converge) rather than opening for some lesser bands. And while it’s only been 4 years, it seems like it’s been an extremely LONG time since their blistering, under-attended performance at the Triple Rock with Burning Brings. To me, it’s commendable that they’re still keeping it as small as they can. Additionally, they’ll be playing Crack the Skye in its entirety, and you don’t even have to go to Maplewood or sit through any shitty bands! Clearly, these guys still know how to book tours that their fans will love; this is a show no one should feel okay missing.
However, I really hope that this doesn’t mean that the Haunted/Nachtmystium performance is going to be canceled. Nachtmystium put out my favorite album of last year, and I was pretty bummed when they dropped off the Opeth tour that came through Maplewood in the middle of last year. I could really care less which show I see Intronaut and Kylesa play at – as long as I get to see them play – but if dropping off the Haunted tour causes this show’s cancellation, I’ll very fucking disappointed.
Continue on to see all the relevant dates these bands have scheduled… Continue reading →
It’s been a busy week between my first week of tests and a crazy amount of good live shows coming to the city, but I dug back a couple of days and found all the newest metal and hardcore video you should hear about. Turn up and tune in!
Dillinger Escape Plan, live from NJ basement
Dillinger Escape Plan play “briefly announced”/secret New Jersey basement show in area smaller than their tour bus. Rolling Stone actually covered it and posted great review of the ceiling breaking, 40 drinking, bone breaking, super intimate show from this band that built its fame off the intensity of these very same DIY type of shows in the late 90s. Watch this video as they barrel through “The Mullet Burden”, “Panasonic Youth”, and “43% Burnt” before the power goes out. They have a DVD coming out soon entitled We’re Not Trying to Impress You that will feature live footage from all of their phases as a band..
Mastodon, in studio recording Crack the Skye
Mastodon is soon to release their new album Crack the Skye, and its that time where they start treating us to treats such as games and previews and such to whet our appetite. In keeping with this tradition, they have released their very first in studio video, and from the sounds of Brett Hinds (who is definitely not normally this sober) they band is more focused than ever. If this really is “their” Led Zeppelin IV, we’re all about to have our minds blown..
Lamb of God, “Set to Fail” music video
We reviewed Lamb of God’s forthcoming album last week and were pretty impressed; this week they released their first music video from Wrath, and it happens to be from one of their best, most catchy songs off of the album, “Set to Fail”
More new metal is making its way online today; here’s the rundown:
Mastodon, “Divination”
(STREAM – skip to 21:30 mark to hear song)
from forthcoming album Crack the Skye, available tentatively on March 24, 2009
It’s already been nearly 3 years since their brilliant third album Blood Mountain launched them into the spotlight, and now they are back with their epic, carefully crafted Rasputin influenced, (elemental) ethereal based followup. There’s really no telling what direction these guys will go in, but my instincts are telling me it well take them into progressive and uncharted territories that will elevate their profile as “forward-thinking metalheads” even more!
Cannibal Corpse, Evisceration Plague
(STREAM ENTIRE ALBUM) Evisceration Plague will hit stores on February 3, 2009
Brutal death metal kings Cannibal Corpse are set to soon release the album that promises to be even heavier than 2006’s Kill. These veterans have set the goal of making each of their albums heavier than the last, and although that’s getting tougher and tougher each time, an authentic Florida session with Erik Rhutan has helped these veternans achieve it. This is one of the most anticipated death metal albums of the year, and for now you can hear it all for free…
Kylesa, “Said and Done”
(STREAM)
from forthcoming album Static Tensions, available on March 17, 2009
Kylesa sounds like they’ve really grown into their own skin on this album. Their gritty, grooving doom sounds more precise and psychedelic this time around, and there’s a nice polish over the tracks that adds a fullness to the sound that I haven’t heard from them before. If the rest of the album sounds like “Said and Done” this will be an sure album of the year qualifier and a career peak for the band. They’ll be here to play this live in early April with Haunted, Nachtmystium, and Intronaut.
If you’re cooped inside tonight, tune to UK’s BBC Radio 1 to hear the recent in-studio performance by Philadelphia’s unpredictable electroprogcore scientists in Genghis Tron. Their set will air tonight (Monday, December 15) at 12 midnight GMT (6:00 p.m. CST) on Radio 1’s “The Rock Show with Daniel P Carter”. The program will also be available for seven days at this location. If that’s not enough, the show also showcases the recent heavenly Melvins, Mike Patton curated ATP winter showcase in the UK w/ interviews with the Melvins, Mastodon, and Isis!
Just last week, Genghis Tron released volumes 3 and 4 of their amazing new 5 VOLUME SERIES(!) of limited edition remixes, and it features some of the brightest underground musicians retouching songs from the band. Artists involved include Justin K. Broaderick, Eluvium, Rob Crow, Steve Moore, Tobacco (of Black Moth Super Rainbow), Dntel, Scott Hull, Danny Lohner, Ulver, Telefon Tel Aviv, Odd Nosdam, Tim Hecker, Nadja, and many, many more. Before the show starts, head to their special myspace remix site to listen to some of these unbelievable remixes; as announced earlier, Volume 5 is now up for preorder here.
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25. Nachtmystium, Assassins: Black Meddle, Part I
Mastodon, “Divination”
Cannibal Corpse, Evisceration Plague 
Kylesa, “Said and Done”
MIND INVERSION 