Review by Adam M on June 16, 2025.

This was an interesting album in the progression of the band because it featured a new forward thinking style along with the usual catchiness to make for a worthwhile effort overall.  It is one of the most complete albums of the bands collection and one of the more compelling ones altogether.  They would become more generic later on and this is still a thoughtful part of their discography.

The musicianship is quite strong with groovy guitars and a drumming sound that is brutal and pounding enough.  The vocals are crucial and add a down-tuned singing to make for an exciting style overall.  Overall, the musicianship on this album is strong as is the production.

If there is a flaw to be found it is that albums like Crack the Skye match it and they were perhaps more fresh in their progression.  This means this is just something from the band in a long line of albums and not overly interesting.  This isn’t anything particularly new and those looking for something fresh would be advised to look elsewhere.

All in all this is an enjoyable album though it suffers from the lack of innovation to be found.  It is still very adventurous and a work that needs to be checked out by all fans of the band and necessary if you like their other albums.  If you are interested in Mastodon you should check out this fulfilling effort.

Rating: 7.510