It turns out Mastodon’s Roundhouse gig is the fourth time in consecutive years that I’ve seen the band play, although all previous occasions they’ve been supporting or at festivals so I’ve not really paid enough attention. As a result, Mastodon have merged in my mind into an amorphous hybrid with Lamb Of God and Machine Head. Having now seen all three bands again in the last three weeks I realise I’ve made a huge mistake in not paying more attention sooner. Whilst all three were excellent, Mastodon are the clear stand out band.
Opening with Oblivion the band proceed with the entire Crack The Skye album accompanied by video projections and black and white films around the album’s themes of astral travel, Rasputin and the spiritual world. A lesser band attempting this mix could have achieved really quite disastrous results. It really is then a testament to Mastodon’s skill and inventiveness that instead we get an hour and a half of ambitious and intricate rock and metal, blending tempos and style changes into elaborate songs. There is no crowd interaction to slow down proceedings – no talking, no joking and no London-I-want-to-hear-you-scream moments.
Instead song follows song unceremoniously, professionally and passionately, each warmly received by the audience. The encore follows with songs taken from the earlier albums accompanied by the back projection of the respective album. Only at the end do the four talk, thanking everyone the audience and leaving quietly.
Perhaps the only downside of the gig was the rather disappointing merchandise on sale. Hey, a man’s got to buy clothes somewhere.
