Mastodon Pens Deal With Warner

One of my favorite new bands, Mastodon, has signed to Warner Brothers and plan to release a new record in early 2006. Congrats guys. Catch them on their current headlining tour or when they're on the second stage at Ozzfest this summer.

Although the death metal utterances/shouting vocal style on their debut EP and first full release can be initially tough to digest, their unique approach to progressive metal (think of a less structured Rush/Tool/Floyd hybrid mixed in a blender with sludgy Sabbath riffs) will reward the faithful listener. Their drummer, Brann Dailor, whose style is more about constant fills than typical boom/crash rhythm, has to be heard to be believed. These guys, from the high concept music, straight down to the art on their CDs and inserts, are the real deal.

Check out their latest, Leviathan, since its slightly larger emphasis on singing, plus the lofty Moby Dick concept, make it the true gem of their small body of work. Be sure to get the 2-disc version, which contains a DVD with 5.1 remixes of three album cuts, plus four previously unreleased live tracks.