The first time that I saw Mastodon was at Hellfest 2001, the same year of Earth Crisis' last show. Some friends of mine told me that this would be one of my favorite bands after I saw them. So, I eagerly anticipated their appearance like nothing else. Their set was intense and completely blew me away. They were so intense it hurt, even with the technical difficulties that prevented them from using most of the samples that would later appear on their first EP Lifesblood. I quickly procured their demo from them before that quickly got out of dodge that day. Not long after the Lifesblood record surfaced, I found a 7" of theirs that had some of the songs from the demo and a couple others that I had not yet heard. I went and saw the band whenever they played because of that first show and these few audio documents of their existence.
Now Mastodon is one of the biggest names in metal. With Blood Mountain being their soon to be released major label debut (for Warner Bros.) coming on the heels of their great album Leviathan, the band is poised to take a place in today's music world that few bands ever reach. So, as a parting gift to their old label, Mastodon has reissued the Lifesblood EP, that 7", and a song that never saw the light of day all on one album with new artwork and called it, fittingly, Call of the Mastodon. The sequencing of the songs is different as well, and the samples have been removed. But otherwise, those songs are the same.
"Shadows That Move" explodes from the disc. The guitars are whipped at the listener with ferocious intensity. The drumming is frantic and frightening in the respect that a human being is capable of this - seeing Brann Dailor live only heightens that mystification with his even more intricate live drumming. They mix tempos and dynamics all through the song. "Thank You for This" may be short but it is good. I like the different arrangements on the track and the rapid changes that they make. "We Built This Come Death" is another excellent example of Mastodon's earlier work. It does not rely on completely crushing you with force. The vocals are a little more subdued and show some diversity. "Battle at Sea" showcases a bit of diversity as well. They seem to give the music time to engulf the listener. The unreleased track, "Call of the Mastodon", is good stuff and has some real balls to it. Though I think it would fit better at the front of this album as it has a good beginning.
For people into Mastodon who already have everything, except for the unreleased song, this may not be worth owning. But, for those without record players and who have never picked up Lifesblood, this is a must have. I can't say that Call of the Mastodon is a bad way to be introduced to Mastodon as, for the most part, it is how I was. But listening to this makes me realize how much they have progressed since this material was first released.
