I feel like the southern twang Brent always added to every track is very much reduced on this

That said, this is much better than I expected

I do kinda wish the mix was less stuffy tho

I’ve cooled a lot on the Don overall but touring with Deafheaven and Alcest is awesome. I bought tickets to the San Diego show since they’re dodging where I live

Doesn’t do much for me. I’m more into the crack the skye flavor of mastodon.

There's a big ol' gap where Brent used to be. The psychedelic parts with Brann's lower, haunting vocals is a great touch. Troy sounds slightly more aggressive, bringing to mind the 'Floods of Triton' collab with LoG. I do appreciate that they held off on showcasing Nick prominently on their first single post-Hinds' death. The proggy little bridge towards the end is super cool and has a Heritage-era Opeth sound to it. Looking forward to what comes next : )

I liked but didn't love this. I agree that Brent's presence is missed, but I still respect the hell out of the band for continuing to play.

They actually performed at the Alaska State Fair last year, which I believe was their first performance after Brent's death. I unfortunately couldn't make it, but I saw videos and they did a very touching tribute to him. Really wish I could've been there.

Pretty cool

Great track, agreed on the Opeth vibes

This rips wtf yall on lol. At least 3 riffs on this are sick. Loved it

Love it! Great main riff.

It's ok

Great song, you can tell how much heart is in it

Great stuff yeah.

Great song. Obviously, Brent is missing and Mastodon will never sound like CtS again; however, his influence was heavily reduced on the last records already anyway (not to lessen his incredible skills, just pointing out the obvious).

They brought back some of the punch in guitars and Troy's vocals that reminded me of early era Mastodon, which is nice.

Yea I'm getting a nice mix of front half and back half of their discog from this. It rips.

Oooh this is riffy, digging it. I can hear Brent's absence but Johnson is doing a great job, the cool dissonant Mastodon riffs are still in there

This starts off nicely, for sure interested in this. Cool that Nick is an official member, I think he should be a great replacement.

I dig this. Hoping this will be their comeback album. Their last two were alright, and while Once More was better than those two, The Hunter was the last Masto album I felt like really had that special sauce.

@DamnVanne i might try to catch them in san diego if the la show is sold out

also, mastodon and alcest is such an awesome ticket. the two best 21st century metal acts imo

great track, classic mastodon. tour line up is absurd

I think it’s great, brings back some heaviness from the earlier albums. I miss Brent but this is still on par with a lot of their stuff where Brent had pretty much checked out. This doesn’t do much to show off Nick, but that might’ve been a little tasteless given the lyrics. Time will tell on him, but I think he’ll be good - it’s a new era.

Tour lineup is indeed absurd. Mastodon/Deafheaven are probably my top two favorite bands and Alcest is pretty good.

Fantastic track. Brent may be gone, but the band's spirit remains. He would be proud.

Won't even lie, this got me pretty emotional. Especially after seeing the interview clip with Brann where he gets choked up and apologizes for not addressing the fans after Brent's passing.

Really digging this more than any Mastodon single in years.
I did love Teardrinker though, but this one has something special and is a great blend of H&G with their previous heavier riffs. Troy sounds great too.
Brent will be missed and I agree with those who got choked up by the Insta video of Brann getting emotional.

This is pretty good.

Oooh I hope you do Budgie! Evidently it’s not in Sam Diego proper but I’m gonna spend the weekend sightseeing in the city regardless

As someone that doesn’t give a single fuck about mastodon… this is some good shit.

The little shreddy moment at 1:20 was fun, outro was cool too

Few idiots at the top of comment section have lost their minds yeah. I see nothing but high praise pretty much everywhere for this track.

Song is great. Loving the riffs, towards the end that chunky riff calls back more toward a Leviathan feel, and definitely digging the energy this is bringing.

I'm quite the opposite in my views of their records, for me Hushed & Grim was the comeback record. The Hunter was okay, but definitely a huge drop off from earlier work, and Once More & Emperor of Sand were pretty good, but Hushed & Grim really captured me. So hoping this is just as good.

Good first single so far.

oh cool it's in del mar, that's where i grew up. nice area, downtown encinitas is super chill, grandview and moonlight are really nice beaches

if you have time definitely check the wild animal park, it's up in the north eastern part of the county but worth the drive IMO much better than the san diego zoo

Wow, that was a pretty stellar track! Going to be so awesome seeing these guys, Deafheaven, and Alcest altogether in a few months.

It would take something special to rekindle my interest in this band now (so, likely not happening) but I'm happy to see them making music in a post-Brent world. I hope they deliver the goods for people.

the world is not "post-brent"
he lives on in the music

history will remember him as the best metal guitarist of the 2000 decade

Glad to see they're moving forward still and making great music. RIP Bslaw

Deafheaven and Alcest opening for their tour might just be enough for me to actually give these guys a real shot

Really great song! Excited to hear more

It grows on you a bit.

Excited about that tour, though.

Yeah this is definitely better after another listen.

The song is absolute fire, wtf? Massive, brutal riffs, sick progression. How are we complaining about a band this good 30 years into their careers? This is a total banger, front to back.

Hard [2]

This is a great track at first listen, def better than anything off the last record IMO, but you can't feel a a sense of sad Irony that the track is about Brent and at the 3 min mark (I am guessing), there is a breakdown which switches into another riff......in previous albums Brent would have thrown in a wailing guitar solo which would have just ascended the track and taken it to the next level. Yet there is no solo whatsoever. will miss his vocal presence as well.

Too much Brann vocal kills mastodon songs

I will still give the album a spin!

not dug any mastodon in a while but enjoyed this

This is absolutely incredible imo