HUSHED AND GRIM

I have a problem with overlong albums. It's rare for a band to come with more than 50 minutes of good music in each release. In the vinyl era, the artists were forced to choose the best material to fill an album, and the "fat" would be used as B-sides or never be recorded at all. When CD arrived, many bands tried to put many songs as possible in their albums, and frankly, that was a unnecessary move by most?

Anyways, here we are, with Hushed and Grim, the most recent release from the prog/sludge band Mastodon. A double album with some great tracks (Pain and Anchor, More Than I Could Chew, Gobblers of Dregs, Gigantium) and many not so great songs that I don't even remember the name. This is a more mid-tempoed album, with some furious and fast moments scattered through the songs. I would like to hear more faster tracks, to add a bit more of variation. And surely this album would benefit from some editing ? pick the best music and put the rest in an EP or in the aforementioned B-sides.

Mastodon never made a bad album, but their last great release (and masterpiece) was Crack The Skye. I still recommend this one, but it's a tiring listening.