Mastodon - Crack the skye

[Seventh Son]

Yeah, they definitely came up with all those riffs in just five minutes.  That is totally what happened in all those months of work. 

Listening to the album again.  "The Last Baron" at 8:19 continues to floor me. 

Because we all know that there is no such thing as hyperbole.

Good that if floors you. It does that to me too! So drowzy I hit the floor.....

[orcus116]

To me it sounds like they came up with them in 5 minutes and threw them into the studio and said "done".

That's applicable to early Mastodon but definitely not CTS. You just bein' straight up retarded, son. What kind of riffs do you even consider creative (from any band)? The ones from CTS were some of the only riffs of any band's album in recent memory that I actually remembered and liked.

[wolfking]

Easily Mastodon's weakest album.

[Seventh Son]

To me it sounds like they came up with them in 5 minutes and threw them into the studio and said "done".

That's applicable to early Mastodon but definitely not CTS. You just bein' straight up retarded, son. What kind of riffs do you even consider creative (from any band)? The ones from CTS were some of the only riffs of any band's album in recent memory that I actually remembered and liked.

"Creative" can be anything really, just something that sounds fresh, full of life, charisma and energy to me. That's what I look for most in music and I tend to think that's what my tastes reflect.

If you want examples....

Candlemass - Solitude: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Spu7FWs8ik

Wait for DAT RIFF at :41 to kick in. I love the ever loving fuck out of that riff and its definitely one of my favorites ever. So much color, so much energy, so much life in that one simple riff, none of which I got from anything from Crack the Skye.

The Lord Weird Slough Feg - The Spinward Marches/High Passage/Low Passage

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LORTX3Yot2k

This is technically two songs but I listen to it as a single piece all the time. The main riff of The Spinward Marches has just an enormous "in your face" kind of charisma to it.

At High Passage/Low Passage, the thumping bassline adding to the main riff just sends me into musical oblivion. There's something so insanely catchy about it, and the production lets the energy of the song really shine (And the fact that Mike Scalzi's vocals are absolutely godlike doesn't hurt anything either).

I have other examples if you want.

[orcus116]

I'm getting the feeling the lack of pure sludge riffs on CTS kills it for you, which is understandable.

[Seventh Son]

I'm getting the feeling the lack of pure sludge riffs on CTS kills it for you, which is understandable.

It definitely hurts it, but I wouldn't mind it if the riffs present on CtS were interesting. They aren't to me, not in the slightest. I definitely understand the appeal of them, but it just sends me to sleep 

[wolfking]

I totally agree with you Seventh Son.  I'm a HUGE Mastodon fan.  Lifesblood/Call of the Mastodon, Remission, Leviathan and Blood Mountain I wore all of those out, amazing, amazing music.  Then Crack the Skye came out and I fucking puked on the spot.

[toro]

LOL  Seventh Son
None of those 2 riffs sound better than most of Crack The Skye, the Riffs are indeed, lifeless, but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

[wolfking]

LOL  Seventh Son
None of those 2 riffs sound better than most of Crack The Skye, the Riffs are indeed, lifeless, but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

Candlemass are one of the best doom metal bands ever.  They have some of the best riffs since Sabbath, and have influenced a lot of newer bands these days.

[Seventh Son]

LOL  Seventh Son
None of those 2 riffs sound better than most of Crack The Skye, the Riffs are indeed, lifeless, but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

So damn unimpressed son.

[toro]

LOL  Seventh Son
None of those 2 riffs sound better than most of Crack The Skye, the Riffs are indeed, lifeless, but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

Candlemass are one of the best doom metal bands ever.  They have some of the best riffs since Sabbath, and have influenced a lot of newer bands these days.

I never said anything about the band, I'm talking about those 2 riffs that are "OMGZ AWESOME", they are  not bad but I don't see how those 2 are "better".

LOL  Seventh Son
None of those 2 riffs sound better than most of Crack The Skye, the Riffs are indeed, lifeless, but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

So damn unimpressed son.

Same with those 2 riffs.

[wolfking]

THe riffs on Crack the Skye are really nothing special at all, weakest riffs from their catalog.

[Seventh Son]

LOL  Seventh Son
None of those 2 riffs sound better than most of Crack The Skye, the Riffs are indeed, lifeless, but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

Candlemass are one of the best doom metal bands ever.  They have some of the best riffs since Sabbath, and have influenced a lot of newer bands these days.

I never said anything about the band, I'm talking about those 2 riffs that are "OMGZ AWESOME", they are  not bad but I don't see how those 2 are "better".

LOL  Seventh Son
None of those 2 riffs sound better than most of Crack The Skye, the Riffs are indeed, lifeless, but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

So damn unimpressed son.

Same with those 2 riffs.

The 2 riffs are just full of everything that makes metal so enjoyable to me. So much charisma, life and energy in them. The riffs on Crack the Skye had none of that. They're better because when I hear a riff I want it to be epic, meaty and full of so much life, to have a character of its own. I don't get that on Crack the Skye at all.

[toro]

THe riffs on Crack the Skye are really nothing special at all, weakest riffs from their catalog.

Yeah that's true, but the album has a couple of awesome riff too.

And thats why I said:

the Riffs are indeed, lifeless

And then:

but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

[orcus116]

THe riffs on Crack the Skye are really nothing special at all, weakest riffs from their catalog.

I dunno. There's a ton of lackluster shit on their other albums. Nothing that really makes me want to revisit those albums at least outside of a few tracks.

[Seventh Son]

THe riffs on Crack the Skye are really nothing special at all, weakest riffs from their catalog.

Yeah that's true, but the album has a couple of awesome riff too.

And thats why I said:

the Riffs are indeed, lifeless

And then:

but still have an awesome groove and melodies.

That's just it, groove or no groove I just can't get into riffs that are lifeless. They just completely drone their way through the whole album, lacking any kind of bombast that I crave from metal riffing.

THe riffs on Crack the Skye are really nothing special at all, weakest riffs from their catalog.

I dunno. There's a ton of lackluster shit on their other albums. Nothing that really makes me want to revisit those albums at least outside of a few tracks.

Eh, the early stuff is decent but I don't cream myself over it. There's better sludge to be found elsewhere.

[TheOutlawXanadu]

The riffs in Crack the Skye are super creative.

[wolfking]

THe riffs on Crack the Skye are really nothing special at all, weakest riffs from their catalog.

I dunno. There's a ton of lackluster shit on their other albums. Nothing that really makes me want to revisit those albums at least outside of a few tracks.

Man, I know their other albums inside and out, IMO they had run out of riffs on CTS, all the other albums had tremdous riffs.

Mother Puncher
Iron Tusk
Blood and Thunder
Crystal Skull
Hunters of the Sky
March of the Fire Ants
Burning Man
Crusher Destroyer
Seabeast
Hail to Fire
Shadows That Move

I could go on.

[orcus116]

The opening riff to Naked Burn is awesome too but the one that comes right after I just can't help but feel underwhelmed. I'll have to check out those songs again aside from Blood and Thunder which I already know is bitchin'.

[Seventh Son]

The opening riff to Naked Burn is awesome too but the one that comes right after I just can't help but feel underwhelmed. I'll have to check out those songs again aside from Blood and Thunder which I already know is bitchin'.

[toro]

 
I love that comic.

[wolfking]

That looks awesome, have you got a bigger one, I can't read it, my eyes are shot.

[orcus116]

Right-click, open in new tab/window.

[wolfking]

That didn't work for me, but I just saved the picture and enlarged it.  That was fucking amazing!! 

[skydivingninja]

DAT riff in Megalodon might be my favorite Mastodon riff ever.  You know the one.  Its the one that rips your face off and wears it as a loincloth.

@Seventh Son.  Just listened to those two songs.  You REALLY found that Candlemass riff more interesting, creative, and filled with more "life" than anything on Crack the Skye?  Yeah its doomy and stuff, but I'm pretty sure I came up with a similar riff just dicking around on bass once.  Thank god the WLSF got interesting around 2:20 or else I would've just stopped listening.  Maybe, like Orcus said, you're not big on the more psychedelic/prog direction on CTS and want more sludge. 

One point against CTS I'm just not getting is the accusation that the riffs are "lifeless."  Those riffs in CTS make me want to move, whether I'm headbanging or just bobbing my head with the groove.  I don't know how a "lifeless" riff could make me do that.

And I also agree with Orcus about other albums having lackluster songs.  Blood Mountain sorta dives in quality near the end, and I'm not big on Remission at all.

[Seventh Son]

DAT riff in Megalodon might be my favorite Mastodon riff ever.  You know the one.  Its the one that rips your face off and wears it as a loincloth.

@Seventh Son.  Just listened to those two songs.  You REALLY found that Candlemass riff more interesting, creative, and filled with more "life" than anything on Crack the Skye?  Yeah its doomy and stuff, but I'm pretty sure I came up with a similar riff just dicking around on bass once.  Thank god the WLSF got interesting around 2:20 or else I would've just stopped listening.  Maybe, like Orcus said, you're not big on the more psychedelic/prog direction on CTS and want more sludge. 

One point against CTS I'm just not getting is the accusation that the riffs are "lifeless."  Those riffs in CTS make me want to move, whether I'm headbanging or just bobbing my head with the groove.  I don't know how a "lifeless" riff could make me do that.

And I also agree with Orcus about other albums having lackluster songs.  Blood Mountain sorta dives in quality near the end, and I'm not big on Remission at all.

Yes. I like doomy riffs though *Shrug*
It doesn't matter to me if a riff is something simplistic that anyone can come up with or a technical behemoth, as long as it sounds good. I don't mind most psychedelic stuff for the most part, but I just don't think it goes well with metal at all.

As for the riffs being lifeless, I'll put it this way: When a riff is full of life, it makes my head want to explode. It just makes me sit back and go "holy shit, is that riff really real?" The kind of riff that just eschews awesomeness and masculinity and makes you headbang like no tomorrow. With Crack the Skye, the riffs are just.... "there". They don't do anything. There's no direction, they just exist. Nothing more.

[Gorille85]

The riffs in CtS are really good IMO. I don't see what it so uncreative about them...maybe it's because their not overly complex but I don't think that makes them bad by any mean.

And speaking about riffs, my favorite ever is probably this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbSUEbG3OVE (starting at 5:20-ish)

[Seventh Son]

Bleh, I guess it boils down to the fact I prefer rawer and more aggressive music (Although I don't mind non-aggressive styles, I just have to be in a "very" particular mood for it).

[sonatafanica]

A more accurate assessment would be that you just don't like good music.

[setrataeso]

Crack the Skye was one of the best albums of 2009.

[wolfking]

Bleh, I guess it boils down to the fact I prefer rawer and more aggressive music (Although I don't mind non-aggressive styles, I just have to be in a "very" particular mood for it).

Don't worry bro, I totally back you up on this one.

[Seventh Son]

Bleh, I guess it boils down to the fact I prefer rawer and more aggressive music (Although I don't mind non-aggressive styles, I just have to be in a "very" particular mood for it).

Don't worry bro, I totally back you up on this one.

Thanks man, I appreciate it. But I got this one.

A more accurate assessment would be that you just don't like good music.

[faemir]

Anyone who says The Czar and The Last Baron are bad songs are clearly deluded

[Seventh Son]

Anyone who says The Czar and The Last Baron are bad songs has good taste.

FTFY

[sonatafanica]