Metal can sometimes be over the top. Some put satanic lyrics or macabre imagery to the pure intensity of rapid-fire riffing and blast beats. Still, there’s a bright line between sloppy songwriting that hides behind gimmick and masterful compositions that do the genre justice.
Mastodon does the latter.
For 17 years, the Atlanta-based band has been melting the faces off unsuspecting audiences with their technical, prog-metal sounds, and now, in support of their latest record, Emperor of Sand, the band is stopping in San Antonio to make sure we end up with said melt-face.
On Saturday, October 14 the quartet will play The Aztec Theatre with post metal outfit Russian Circles and The Eagles of Death Metal.
In a world where bad metal seems to pass as good more than it should be able to, Mastodon harness the emotional intensity of the genre while displaying a sophisticated and intentional control over their instruments, songwriting and performances – a combination few in those spheres will ever come close to.
Tickets go on sale Friday, June 16 at 10am, For more information, and to find about pre-sale tickets visit the official event page on Facebook 6:30pm
The Aztec Theatre, 104 N. St. Mary’s St., 210-812-4355, theaztectheatre.com
This article appears in May 24-30, 2017.