Mastodon: Hushed And Grim (2CD)

It's been four years since Mastodon released their seventh studio album "Emperor Of Sand", which reached number seven in the charts in the USA and only just missed out on the top 10 in the UK and Germany at number eleven. The band received their first Grammy Award in the "Best Metal Performance" category for the record. in 2021, the US progressive metal/sludge heroes picked up where they left off and released their new, eighth album: "Hushed And Grim" is Mastodon's first double album and the first work after the death of their long-time band manager Nick John. "This album is a collection of our authentic emotions, drawn from our real life experiences, and we can't wait to share them with you!" say the band. The quartet, consisting of Troy Sanders (electric bass, vocals), Brent Hinds (guitar, vocals), Bill Kelliher (guitar) and Brann Dailor (drums, vocals), recorded a total of 15 new songs over the course of last year with producer David Bottrill (Tool, Muse, Dream Theater, Peter Gabriel) at West End Sound Studio in their hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil contributed a few guitar parts. On "Hushed And Grim", Mastodon once again demonstrate their wide musical spectrum, which ranges from metal and punk to alternative rock, psychedelic and progressive rock. The album cover, which shows a tree, was designed by Paul Romano. Drummer Brann Dailor on the idea behind the artwork: "Essentially, to make a long story short, [the tree] is an afterlife mythology that says that when you die, your spirit goes into the heart of a tree and then experiences all the pillars of your life in the succession of seasons that the tree experiences. In this way, you can say goodbye to the natural world and move on to the next dimension. There's a green man in the middle of the tree - the heart of the tree - and that's our good friend and manager Nick John, who sadly passed away a few years ago. [He] had a lot to do with the inspiration for the album 'Hushed And Grim'." Mastodon revealed what the new album sounds like in advance with the first single "Pushing The Tides".