Crack the Skye is the fourth studio album
by American
progressive metal band
Mastodon, released on March 24, 2009
through
Reprise Records. It features
seven tracks and runs at 50 minutes and 3 seconds. The album
debuted at number 11 on the
Billboard 200, selling 41,000 copies
in its first week. In Australia, the album debuted at number 19. It
has sold 250,000 copies to date. "Crack the Skye" has been released
as standard CD, CD/DVD, limited-edition 2xLP that contains the
album on CD, standard single-disc LP, a "super-deluxe" CD/DVD
version that includes a tunnel book and a lithograph of the album
art (this version sold out during pre-orders), and will be released
in a "Royal Edition" with a CD of the instrumental versions of the
songs, amongst other bonuses.
Musical and lyrical themes
Drummer
Brann Dailor described the
album as more "focused" than its predecessor,
Blood Mountain: "Maybe there was
a deeper heart to this record that needed more exploring… We got
more involved with feeling the vibe of the record and everything
feels more creepy and spaced out and something special is going
on."
Vocalist/bassist
Troy Sanders said in
an interview with Stereogum, "
Crack The Skye is a
departure from everything we've previously recorded in the sense
that we kinda strapped on our aeroshells and departed from Earth
for a while, and then captained to the ethereal element of the
universe and kind of slept on the roof of the world for a while to
get a perspective on this record. ... Basically we're exploring the
ethereal world. We're dissecting the dark matter that dominates the
universe, in a nutshell."
When asked
in multiple interviews Dailor said the record would tell a story
dealing variously with the art aesthetics of Tsarist Russia
, astral travel, out of body experiences and
Stephen Hawking's theories on
wormholes.
Dailor has also said that "Crack the Skye" is meant as a homage to
his sister, Skye Dailor, who committed
suicide at age 14.
Artwork
Paul Romano, who has contributed to Mastodon's albums in the past,
created the artwork for
Crack the Skye. The piece features
various ethereal images tied in closely with the overall concept of
the record.
Crack the Skye was released in two editions:
the Standard and the Limited Edition. The latter has an elaborate
packaging with a tunnel book that, when looked through, reveals
three-dimensional like imagery. A "hidden" picture of Brann
Dailor's sister, Skye, can be seen on both sides of the tunnel book
as well.
Critical reception
Initial critical response to
Crack the Skye was extremely
positive. At
Metacritic, which assigns a
"universal acclaim" rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream
critics, the album has received a score of 82, based on 29 reviews.
It is also currently the second highest rated album of 2009
according to the
Rate Your Music
website.
Crack the Skye received positive reviews from many major
reviewing sites.
Total Guitar awarded
the album a 5/5 rating, describing it as "even more ambitious in
scope and sound than 2006’s
Blood Mountain. Embracing
elements of prog and country, but above all classic rock, Hinds and
Kelliher literally add new dimensions to the band’s ever-expanding
sound."
Decibel who
awarded
Blood Mountain as their number 1 album of 2006,
gave Crack the Skye a 7/10 rating as reviewer Joe Gross responded
that "
Crack is clearly designed as a grower, not a shower,
the sound of a band that grew tired of people not responding to
their ground game, so they put the ball in the air. Who knows when
it will come down?"
Clash's review was particularly
glowing in its praise for the album, saying "no metal release of
2009 is likely to be as important as ‘Crack The Skye’ except CKY's
'Carver City'." The review praised the album's expansive sound and
emotion, and finished by claiming that the album is "surely
destined to become the stuff of legend." Reviewer Nate Chinen of
the
New York Times noted the
album's "ambitious vision and vivid execution." The New Yorker pop
music critic Sasha Frere-Jones lists it as one of his favorite
albums of the year on his personal blog and in an article for The
New Yorker called the Crack the Skye a "deeply entertaining album."
Among the few negative reviews,
Sputnikmusic raised complaints about Mastodon's
lyrics and songwriting, citing "epic fee-fi-fo-fum drivel,"
"boorish palm-muted chugging in the verses," and that their
non-metal ideas are "contrived and half-baked." .
Track listing
CD/DVD
- The Making of Crack the Skye - An exclusive behind the scenes
documentary
- Track-by-Track Commentary - Video commentary of the album by
the band
- Photo Gallery - Slide of various images from the band
Personnel
- Performers
Charts
| Chart (2009) |
Peak
position |
| Australian ARIA Albums Chart |
19 |
| Austrian Albums Chart |
42 |
| Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) |
26 |
| Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) |
73 |
| Canadian Albums Chart |
13 |
| Danish Albums Chart |
37 |
| Dutch Albums Chart |
56 |
| Finnish Albums Chart |
6 |
| French Albums Chart |
106 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Albums Chart |
23 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart |
6 |
| Swedish Albums Chart |
23 |
| Swiss Albums Chart |
58 |
| UK Albums Chart |
32 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 |
11 |
References
- Mastodon On New Album And Supporting Metallica and
Slayer, The Quietus (2008-11-04)
- Mastodon On New Album And Supporting Metallica and
Slayer, The Quietus (2008-11-04)
- Progress Report: Mastodon, Stereogum
(2008-11-26)
- [1]
-
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1605029/20090212/mastodon.jhtml
- Hilson, Keri. "Critics' Choice", New York Times, March 22, 2009.
Retrieved on 03/22/09.
- http://www.sashafrerejones.com/2008/12/best_of_2009.html
-
[http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/notebook/2009/05/11/090511gonb_GOAT_notebook_frerejones
- "Mastodon - Crack the Skye Review.",
"Sputnikmusic," March 25, 2009. Retrieved on
4/3/09.
- Top Canadian Albums
- Billboard 200
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