Mastodon - Crack the Skye

If you've been following the Mastodon hype machine you'll no doubt be anticipating something genuinely progressive and ultra-heavy from Crack the Skye, the band's fourth LP. But what we have here is a surprisingly conservative album: of the seven tracks, the first three fly by in a largely forgettable blur, complete with unnervingly soft-metal guitar flourishes. Having established an absurdly baroque narrative (even for a metal album) the band find their focus in the second half and manage to build towards a suitably epic finale. The astonishing, emotionally-charged title track makes good on the band's promise of a crushing, otherwordly sound and serves as an impressive reminder of why Mastodon have attracted so many fans outwith the metal community. Ultimately Crack the Skye feels like a slave to its concept, and even though they don't quite pull it off, it's a thrill to watch them aiming so high. [Jay Shukla]