Best Mastodon album

I'm pretty sure it's Leviathan.

my order:

Remission
CtS
Leviathan
BM
TH
OM'RtS

CtS > Leviathan > BM > Remission >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> newer crap

Leviathan is pretty much a dead cert for winner though, surely?

I think Remission may have a fair chance round these parts.

Remission is probably the most canonical one but I actually prefer current hooky rock Mastodon to tiresome screamo Mastodon.

Both have their good points. Leviathan is the best compromise between hooky and screamo. I enjoy the newer stuff too though, hunter and once more each have four or five killer tunes. I sometimes think it's a bit of a shame they lost the purer aesthetic though.

The one I can't particularly get into is Blood Mountain. The epic widdle-outs are too widdly.

gonna need to do some soul searching for this. Leviathan, Blood Mountain, and Crack The Skye all in the running, and the new one ain't too bad either!

I don't go for anything after Leviathan, that's the winner for me

remission is the only good one, when i try and listen to their dopey hard rock stuff i just feel embarrassed for them

feel like blood mountain doesn't get enough love but when the album preceding it is leviathan i guess that makes sense

they're all great or at the very least enjoyable in their own way, w/ hunter prob being the worst, only really liked "curl of the burl" and "black tongue" off that one

blood mountain might be my favorite, transitional as it feels

rightful winner of this poll is remission

i like the new record a lot, though

only really liked "curl of the burl" and "black tongue" off that one

Dry Bone Valley is huge.

agree with BradNelson re: Blood Mountain, for some reason it doesn't feel as solid/original as Leviathan, but more and more it's the one that I keep coming back to

For me it's:

Leviathan/Crack the Skye (tie, leaning toward CtS)
Once More 'Round the Sun
The Hunter
Blood Mountain
Remission (I used to hate this record, now I just think it's boring)

This is hard. They all have their merits. Mainly which one has the most sick Brann Dailor (sp?) drumming. On that basis I went with OM'RtS.

blood mountain is like really... vivid or something

and not boring like hunter or bloated like crack the skye

voted for blood mountain but not sure there's anything better in the world than "crusher destroyer" -> "march of the fire ants"

I was teaching the Beringia land-bridge theory in social studies today--that nomadic Asian hunters crossed over from Siberia to Alaska during the ice age, following after food.

"Here's what a mastodon looked like."
(Google searches "mastodon.")
"Oh--they looked just like a modern-day rock band."

revisiting once more 'round the sun—"aunt lisa" is among their best songs

wait a sec how could the album with the most sick drumming be anything other than Remission

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Leviathan and Crack the Skye are a close 1-2, for sure. As for the rest, I'd probably say Blood Mountain, The Hunter (both of which are excellent in very different ways), Remission, with the new record bringing up the rear.

This should be interesting. Doesn't seem to be a consensus pick

Leviathan is the most consistent.

remission 4 life

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

solid outcome imo

yep

though I had no clue there was such a substantial crack the skye caucus

man blood mountain got hosed smh

not a huge remission fan tbh but otherwise can't disagree

good results

They killed it at Brixton Academy tonight, never seen the venue so rammed. The new material went down extremely well, I even quite enjoyed Ember City.

Noticed that Troy is by far the best live singer, I wouldn't object if they just let him handle all the vocals onstage. I love Brent's vox on record, but he can't really cut it live.

I'd like to hear what 'The Hunter' would sound like if you stripped out all those effects and not mix some tunes with the vocal as the center of the mix like a diva singer. It's easily as awful a mix as some of the Metallica albums, which I guess is an honor of sorts as it did not seem to make them less popular. I hadn't listened to 'The Hunter' in a couple years and it always surprises me how gloppy and overcooked it sounds.

New interview at RS -- some very thoughtful stuff here.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/mastodon-on-emperor-of-sand-cancer-writing-pop-songs-w470842

man blood mountain got hosed smh

― search datpiff, you'll find it (slothroprhymes), Wednesday, November 19, 2014 7:19 PM (two years ago)

I'm excited but also anxious about the new album, I really want it to be good

This is very hooky, and heavier than the last two. Haven't formed a conclusive opinion, but there's certainly a lot going on here.

their singing keeps improving

"roots remain" is pretty fucking awesome

i was unsure from the singles but basically every song hear has some really great hook buried in it (which was also the experience i had with the last one)

I think they've come to the conclusion that if they want to make their songs shorter and more melodic, they also have to pack in awesome riffs and face-melting solos wherever they can, which is a goid thing.

*good

I got mine today and I like it

I like "Show Yourself."

Yeah "Show Yourself" kinda captures a perfect "I would have called this my tune for life when I was 16" vibe for me. And that's not meant to be backhanded, that's perfectly earnest!

yeah this is def hooky as hell and the vocals are indeed nice. still find it funny how 'controversial' it was when they added some cleans on Leviathan and now it's just their thing.

I like the psychedelic and spacey moments too.

Ned, you are nothing if not earnest! :)

first few listens, I'm feeling pretty positive about this, all the individual songs are strong, the singing really is improved, and "Show Yourself" is indeed a jam. My only criticism is that a few too many tracks are in the driving, propulsive rock category, they start to all blend together. I think they'd be helped by varying the tempos and moods a bit more. The songs that stand out to me are the ones that go in a slightly different direction, like the groovier main riff on "Steambreather" or the old school prog synths on "Clandestiny".

Clandestiny is my fave song on this.

the album is so good ive played it 5 times since yesterday when the lp arrived. Its having the same effect on me as the last Ghost album as every track is a winner. Its definitely their heaviest since Blood Mountain yet retains the hooks of later stuff.