Mastodon – Crack the Skye

mastodon’s latest album, crack the skye, is a concept album based around the suicide of drummer brann dailor’s sister, but although the concept is tied closely to the band, that doesn’t make it any more interesting, and the music suffers as a result.

their last album, 2007’s blood mountain, was really ambitious both musically and conceptually, and although crack the skye is much more focused, it still sounds like a conservative album, given the last’s expansiveness. the obvious plateau the music has taken on crack the skye is a concession that mastodon don’t really know what to do next— perhaps because of the immense critical praise that the last album received— and also a bit of a disappointment, as they cling to their old ways, when they seemed to have been on the cusp of something very unique. still, i wouldn’t label what they’ve done here as regression, not only because i don’t believe in such a thing, but also because the band seems to be taking what they’ve learned from blood mountain and are at least focusing it, ensconced in the safety of familiar territory.

the most noticeable difference on crack the skye is how the band has opted to make up in structure for what they lack in experimentalism. prior to blood mountain’s success, mastodon were renowned for their brevity and muscle, and really had that formula down pat. by messing with it here, they force themselves out of a comfortable situation, resulting in a number of problems, but also offering a fair share of rewards. “the czar” stands out particularly as an example of how the band are able to translate their thunderous pacing into a much longer format. divided up into four different movements, the song seems almost like it’d be more at home on a mars volta record, and yet it never reaches the same point of dull wankery that TMV have become known for. it’s interesting to hear how well they adapt to their self-imposed change, and because they rarely falter, perhaps mastodon aren’t so bereft of creativity after all. at least, musically speaking.

for all the successes of crack the skye, what hurts this album most is how it is conceptually weak. it’s nice in thought, but not in practise. here’s a quote from dailor as he summarizes the gist of the album’s narrative:

It’s about a crippled young man who experiments with astral travel. He goes up into outer space, goes too close to the sun, gets his golden umbilical cord burned off, flies into a wormhole, is thrust into the spirit real, has conversations with spirits about the fact that he’s not really dead, and they decide to help him. They put him into a divination that’s being performed by an early-20th-century Russian Orthodox sect called the Klisti, which Rasputin is part of.

Knowing Rasputin is about to be murdered, they put the young boy’s spirit inside of Rasputin. Rasputin goes to usurp the throne of the czar and is murdered by the Yusupovs, and the boy and Rasputin fly out of Rasputin’s body up through the crack in the sky and head back. Rasputin gets him safely back into his body.

That’s the basic story… but it’s all metaphors for personal shit.

oh, that clears it all up then. actually, no it doesn’t. i wouldn’t have known that had i not read it elsewhere. how’s that about your sister? luckily, it’s metal, and as usual, you can tune out the lyrics, but it’s unfortunate that i have to, because i know that they’re capable of writing great lyrics and tackling huge topics like melville’s moby dick. the fact that dailor has to explain his concept in that much detail tells me that this idea is far too opaque to speak for itself. i’m finding it difficult to divorce their music on crack the skye completely from the concept, making me less inclined to revisit the album once my initial excitement for new mastodon material has worn off.

EDIT: stupid warner music group taking the video down…

Filed under: Album Review , 2009, mastodon, crack the skye, concept album