C&L's Late Night Music Club: The 50 State Strategy with Mastodon (GA)
By MaxMarginal Monday May 11, 2009 7:21pmThough the year is not yet halfway over, Mastodon's Crack the Skye will probably cap my end-of-year top 10 list. The Atlanta metal quartet are probably the most compelling metal act to come out since Metallica, hands-down the best American one, and currently the only one to have undeniable relevance outside of the extreme rock community. See their write-up (and drawing) in this week's New Yorker, doubters.
Though I'm still a bit partial to Leviathan, their concept album about Moby Dick from 2004, the new album (from which 'Divinations' is taken) is grander in scope and more deeply layered than anything they've done before. That an album as dark and ambitious as Crack the Skye can crack the Billboard Top 200 (it debuted at #11) is reason for metalheads and easy-listeners alike to celebrate.
Side-note: Many of you may know Mastodon from their guest appearance in the Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie.
Every Monday, C&L's Late Nite Music Club will feature an up-and-coming act from every state, alphabetically by state, as part of LNMC's 50 State Strategy. Know a band or artist that you think is the best in their state? Email suggestions to latenitemusicclub [at] gmail.com.
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Run To The Hills
Run for your li-i-ives!
Fast As A Shark
Udo Dirkschneider FTW!
Ace Of Spades
Scarred For Life
And how about that Norwegian death metal that all the kids are groovin' to?
its basically brendon small and co.its voices are contributed by george "corpsegrinder" fisher from cannibal corpse, and mark hamill(yes Luke Skywalker)My kids are metalheads and if I did not know this they may not pick a good old folks home for me when I'm older.
crack the skye is the best album to come along in 20 years...no really...
Angel Of Death
Brothers of Metal
(for Andy, who tonight is my only brother of metal.)
Brothers- k3wl! But the metal thing....Let's just say I've got a lot of music stored in my brain. I don't think I've listened to five metal songs in a row- on purpose- in about 25 years! I'm all over the board in my listening habits. Given my druthers, I listen to this:
Lambert, Hendricks & Ross
Centerpiece
That was yummy.
Ah, next week is Hawai`i. I suppose you've already chosen your selected musician, but if not I might suggest falsetto goddess Ra`iatea Helm, local favorite Fiji, youngsters The `Opihi Pickers, the kupuna Keali`i Reichel, or "Jawaiian" artists the Mana`o Company.
Whoever you select, please go for someone making uniquely "local" music, instead of typical mainstream rock. Hawai`i has an amazingly rich musical palette, ranging from reggae-infused pop to slack-key and ukulele to contemporary built on ancient styles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lse3WNhj5U4
She holds a note for 30 seconds (starting at 3:20) and then has enough breath left over to sing a few more notes. Gives me chicken skin every time.
Good call, am checking all of it out. Much appreciated.
This was a huge hit last year:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_B74Q9JlFBE
So was this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSsN1laZwh8
-B
The Young Canadians
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KNUnLaRekg
Now, this is a real Hawaiian, you can't get much more Hawaiian than Israel Kamakawiwo'ole.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ltAGuuru7Q
Yeah, I was going to suggest Iz but I figured he's touched on mainstream already (#12 on Billboard in 2004), and he's been dead for 12 years. But you're right, he's Hawaiian through-and-through.
oh man,, so tempting,, but Ill keep it current and umm,, on quaterstick
Dead Child
http://www.mtv.com/videos/dead-child/234303/s...
We had the Mekons the other night...
another fab pick. I have been obsessing on Swell as of late, 41 and Well to be specific.
what about the Carpenters? They're such sweet folk.
I was wondering when post-System Of A Down Metal was going to start bubbling up from the primordial ooze into the Pop arena. Cool.
They don't make Metal like they used to, by cracky.
;)
Any mention in this regard should also pay due homage to the original Crack The Sky in the 1970s. Stuff like Nuclear Apathy, Hold On, Ice, Hot Razors and She's a Dancer came along eons before these other guys.
Saw these guys at the boardwalk in Sacramento. I really like this act. Screaming death metal can annoy the hell out of me but their lyrics and songwriting are some of the best metal to come out in a while.
Oh and I'll take them over Metallica any day.
Great choice max!
In as many weeks! First you picked a great Flipper song last week, and now you pick a pretty good Mastodon song. I would have preferred something off of Remission, but I hear Crack the Skye is better, so who knows? Anyway, thanks for some music that uplifts the more hard edged of us liberal types.
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