Live Review: Mastodon, Gojira, Baroness

Gojira swung for the fences, Baroness went on a journey, and Mastodon blew the doors off. It was a killer triple bill that saw three diverse acts dovetail neatly over each other, resulting in a sensational evening of melodic, crushing, fist-pumping metal.

French titans Gojira played a great set, pummelling early arrivals with L'Enfant Sauvage and Heaviest Matter In The Universe. Their ornate savagery was well met, and by all accounts a highlight of their Australian tour so far.

After Gojira satisfied thrash fiends early on, the energy was deftly tempered by Baroness, whose solo-on-a-mountain-top brand of metal felt like a wonderful palate-cleanser. They treated each song in their set like either their first or their last, with each afforded epic synth intros and a tonne of atmosphere. Their Southern style riffing was perhaps a little muted, but melodically they were an ideal choice to wedge between two bands whose power lies mainly in rhythm and grunt.

Mastodon owned the evening with a powerhouse set mostly made up of material from The Hunter, arguably their best release to date. Whilst the set was sorely missing Curl Of The Burl, cuts like Blood And Thunder from Leviathan and Crystal Skull from Blood Mountain were excellent additions, and faithful renditions of Dry Bone Valley and Oblivion kept things energised.

Brann Dailor's skills on sticks remains unmatched, and his vocals have improved as well. Same goes for bassist Troy Sanders, clearly having a better time than anyone in the room. Brent Hinds remained stoic, finally bursting free with a shattering rendition of Blasteroids.

There were no surprises (apart from a quick aside about a new record this year!), but Mastodon as a live band don't need to rely on gimmickry. They're one of the most powerful bands around, and to experience that awesome energy in person is hard to beat.