Photograph by Jimmy Hubbard

With Saturday night’s Seattle performance, the second of their latest assault on the U.S., Mastodon furthered their claim as kings of wormhole-tearing, time-traveling meta-metal. The Atlanta quartet devoted most of their 70-minute set to Crack the Skye, their recent, mainstream-courting opus, then reeled back through their catalog. Behind them was the sort of big-budget backdrop they’ve always deserved: a drive-in-wide digital video screen lit with vintage black-and-white hellspliotation footage, animated mandalas and various filmic versions of Rasputin’s bearded torment. The combination of ear-crushing sonics and twisted imagery was a sensory steamroller that drove the swirling, sweaty mass of moshers and crowd surfers center-floor. Several shoes and hoodies went flying in the melee.

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Every Mastodon show is a window into their influences, from galloping Metallica-like aggression to ZZ Top’s bluesy grind to the eerie, Ozzy-esque wailing of singers Brent Hinds and Troy Sanders. On Saturday, Pink Floyd was the touchstone, albeit a Floyd pumped near bursting with testosterone and adrenaline, mind-bending through sheer abusive volume. (more…)

It was the perfect setting for a metal showdown: a dilapidated Masonic temple in Brooklyn. Even better: this was the first area show in four years from Oakland experimental metal band Neurosis. The group — fronted by Steve Von Till, wearing what looked like red doctor’s scrubs (or a mental patient’s pajamas — your pick) — turned in a skull-fucking set that ranged from full-blown thrash to quieter, tuneful dirges (“A Season in the Sky” was a highlight). Equally good were Atlanta dudes Mastodon, who opened for Neurosis with a satisfyingly long string of tunes from all their albums. While they didn’t unleash any new songs, as fans were anticipating, it was one of the few times they’d performed “Hand of Stone” and “Trilobite” live. And despite the muddied sound (and two false starts at the beginning of “Aqua Dementia”), the four-piece still managed to sync up for some tricky lock-step grooves on jams like “Sleeping Giant.” Hit the jump for more photos. (more…)