CALL OF THE MASTODON

Call of the Mastodon is a re-recording of the 2000 demo by progressive/ experimental extreme metal act Mastodon. Five of the songs on Call of the Mastodon also appeared on the Lifesblood (2001) EP. The demo featured original lead vocalist Eric Saner while the versions on Call of the Mastodon as well as the versions on the Lifesblood EP feature vocals from the other members of the band. It´s a very short album with its 29:02 minutes but still a worthy purchase IMO. This was their last release by Relapse Records ( maybe a contractual obligation?) as they had singed a major record deal with Warner Music to release their next studio album Blood Mountain (2006).

The music is aggressive and a bit more direct and simple than the style on later releases from the band but the sound is unmistakably Mastodon. Heavy and complex metal with shouting angry vocals. It´s easy to hear that these compositions are from their early years though. The re-recording of the songs have injected them with more power and the more modern and professional production serves them well too. But the compositions are pretty much as they were and allthough it´s obvious in retrospect how promising these songs must have been they don´t hold the same high quality of the regular studio albums.

The musicianship is excellent as usual and as always it´s Brann Dailor´s busy drumming style that takes the price.

Call of the Mastodon is not a must unless you´re a fan of Mastodon but it is a pretty good album which serves as a reminder of how promising they already were early in their career. A 3 star rating is warranted. If you´re new to the band I would recommend that you start with one of the regular studio albums though.