For any music group, in any genre of music; There is a constant pressure to adapt to a persistently changing landscape of musical trends and varying preference from the consumers, to innovate and grow (lest the band's sound grow stale) but still retain the key characteristics that made the band popular and prolific in the first place. Failure to comply with any of these unwritten requirements of Rock Stardom may result in an alienation of not only the core fans but of anyone who had even a passing enjoyment of the band's music.

Mastodon takes these tenants in stride. They never go out of their way to make sure that what they've got is fresh and new because it always just happens that way. The Atlanta Quartet's uncanny ability to constantly top themselves with each new album has made them into the consummate media Rock'n'Roll darlings as well as the reigning kings of today's metal scene. Crack The Skye, the band's forth major label release, looks to be another one of the band's signature: a melodic, expertly written prog masterpiece undeniably that is caked in sludge. How does Crack The Sky live up to this pedigree?

While Crack The Skye is unlike any of the other albums by the band, it is still not a complete departure from the band's signature sound. Like the other Mastodon albums, Crack The Skye represents one of the four classic elements. In this case, it pulls double-duty representing both Air/Wind element and the fifth element, starring Bruce Will--I mean, the fifth element, Aether. To fully embody these two elements, Crack The Skye completely uproots itself from the ground and releases itself from any mortal shell; becoming an intangible being of pure energy and scrubbing itself of any dirt or sludge. The album strives to become the quintessence and bond with all things.

With only seven tracks and clocking in at 50 minutes, Crack The Skye seems a bit anemic, to me at least. Crack boasts another Mastodon signature: perfect song arrangement and sequencing. While few in numbers, the seven tracks fit perfectly together and all stand on their own merit. Mastodon knows how to make albums that are mostly killer with very little filler, but Crack stands out for being almost entirely flawless. It's almost like a rock-opera in that more enjoyment can be derived when you listen to album in a single sitting, in chronological order instead of just listening to the songs separately.

Drawing upon themes of wormholes, astral projection, space & time travel and Tsarist Russia, is a trippy, colorful (but never psychedelic) trip through self-awareness and the cosmos. The use of banjos, tambourines, keyboards, and slightly untuned drums help give the album a untethered, drifting sound. The songs all last about 5 minutes with three exceptions: Divinations (3:39) which is as close to a classic Mastodon song as you'll get from Crack The Skye, and The Czar and The Last Baron: two epically long prog masterpieces both clocking in at 10:54 and 13:01 respectively.

Another way Mastodon has branded Crack The Skye as uniquely theirs is how obvious the band's fantastic synergy shines through. Ever member contributes something to each song that makes it memorable. Every song is ambitious and adds a different element to the overall arrangement. A great example of this is on the first track Oblivion, on which drummer/chief creative force Brann Dailor and bassist/vocalist Troy Sanders share vocal duties as a duet. On top of being a God-tier drummer, Dailor also showcases a haunting, other-worldly voice that really has to be heard to be believed, (when you hear him sing the lyrics "I tried to burrow a hole into the ground/breaking all the fingers and nails from my hand", the hair on the back of your neck will stand up) which when contrasted against Sanders' grainy, fierce growl, it really lets the listener know that what they are listening to is unlike anything that has ever been put out before.

And yet, where Crack The Skye succeeds the most is where it ultimately falls short. While in its quest to become one with the aether, Mastodon forgot that in this state they could not be touched by the hands of man. The album is extremely ambitious, so much so that long time fans and newcomers may be turned off by how simply grand it is in scale. It's hard to know where to start with a piece of work like this and the inability to comprehend every complexity of it can be discouraging. Crack The Skye can be beautiful in its design but can be menacing in its elaboration. This is definitely the type of album that needs multiple listens to truly grasp what a monumental effort is.

For now, Mastodon fans can expect to look forward to the next release. As stated before, the band has a talent for constantly topping itself with each release. When even beginning to imagine what a successor to Crack The Skye could be like, the mind boggles.