Album Review: Mastodon - Once More 'Round The Sun

What's going on here? Anthemic verse-chorus-verse-chorus songs? Crystalline vocals? A comparative lack of convoluted D&D themes? Are Mastodon out to capitalise on the chart success of The Hunter? Typically strange and semi-lucid comments have emerged from the studio regarding Once More 'Round The Sun's conception, such as “letting it flow”, “not over thinking” and “trying to have the album come to me in my dreams”. All of which might be Mastodon-speak for just doing what comes naturally.

The new(-ish) direction starts off bright and breezy. If High Road doesn't get them back in the charts, nothing will. Its chugging riff lays all before it and is as cavernous and catchy as anything they've done before. Hidebound fans may groan that for the first 20 minutes the unhinged, synapse-exploding solos and prog-inspired sprawl are mostly waylaid, but it's only so long until Mastodon fall back on their old ways. The loathsome Chimes At Midnight is quintessentially Mastodonic. Guitarists Bill Kelliher and Brent Hinds burn on Halloween, supremely gifted stickman Brann Dailor does his best impression of a drumming millipede on Ember City while Aunt Lisa is a real pearler, with processed screaming, Dr Who noises and a cheerleader-laden finish.

Once More 'Round The Sun is another epic journey, but no matter how much Mastodon explore their outer and inner limits, they always come back sounding like Mastodon – and for that we should be truly grateful.