We are continuing our voyage through a comprehensive list that Loudwire.com created called the 50 Best Metal Albums Of All Time. When we started this journey, there were a heck of a lot of albums to cover from artists I had not fully explored as well as albums I have always been well aware of. Now that we are finally into the top 20 of the list, it was about time, we checked out #19 on the list which belongs to the mighty Mastodon. In 2004, Mastodon who were made up of Troy Sanders (Bass/Vocals), Brent Hinds (Lead Guitar/Vocals), Bill Kelliher (Rhythm Guitar), and Brann Dailor (Drums) would release their second full length album Leviathan which also marked the first time the band decided to do a concept record. The album is loosely based off the classic novel Moby-Dick that was written by Herman Melville and released in 1851. This was the album that helped me discover who Mastodon was and it certainly was the case for them with the rest of the world as the album helped place them on the map especially with the help of touring.
1. Blood And Thunder– a thunderous riff opens up the album and the track which was the second single released features Clutch frontman Neil Fallon. The song is about the paranoia that Ahab goes through as he dreams of the whale that has escaped him. 5/5
2. I Am Ahab– The third single off the album and a very intricate track with time changes that explores the character of Captain Ahab and his lust for revenge as he sets his eye son the sea. 4.5/5
3. Seabeast– a very melodic opening to the track and the track has more of a sludge metal feel to it as we explore the very beast that Ahab is chasing in Moby Dick himself. 4.5/5
4. Island– an in your face track that I think is Ahab praying to the Norse Gods that he will be able to succeed as he leaves Iceland for the seas. 4/5
5. Iron Tusk– It was the first single released off the album and it’s a punishing track that is heavy as hell and I love it. I think the track is Ahab telling his men exactly how he plans to kill Moby Dick. The track features some of the best drumming I have heard on a track. 5/5
6. Megalodon– I love the guitar playing on this track because I feel it’s Hinds showing you exactly what he has on this track about a giant shark that is stalking them. There is a part in the track where it slows down and it has a country blues moment which was weird but very cool. 4.5/5
7. Naked Burn– a track that Brent Hinds hates playing because of the nature of the track. This is a track that has nothing to do with the concept of Moby Dick, but the track is about how Brent was pissed about Catholic priests raping little boys so he wrote a track to raise awareness about it. 4.5/5
8. Aqua Dementia– The track features Neurosis great Scott Kelly and is all about the battle between the men and Moby Dick as they try to kill him with the spears, but I think it also features a message on pollution of the earth and them trying to raise awareness on that. 5/5
9. Hearts Alive– This song goes hands in hand with the previous track as this tells the grim and dark details of the fall of the Pequod by Moby Dick. I love the melodic nature of the track and it’s the perfect ending of the story. 5/5
10. Joseph Merrick– an instrumental track on the album named after the world famous Elephant Man of England in the mid to late 1800’s. 4/5
My Final Thoughts– This is an album that you better be strapped in and prepared as they take you on a musical voyage that you will not forget. In a way this was a great concept album because the music matched the mood of what the lyrical content was. Tracks 1, 4, 8, and 9 are my favorite on the record and I am going to give the album 4.6 stars out of five for a final grade.
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