The Crow So, I'll finally start to review the Mastodon's albums, a band that I've followed for years. This little EP, their first official release, is their least worthy work!

Mainly because the true style of the band would be later developed. While in this album the dominant key is death metal, with some trash and stoner rock elements, and a bit of experimentation. Ok, this mixture is the Mastodon's trademark, but in Lifesblood the direction of the tracks is not really clear, and a bit too chaotic. The poor production doesn’t help to improve the sensation these five tracks give. The vocals are poor in comparison with later Mastodon's albums, and they are too synthetized and artificial.

But if you are a Mastodon fan, of course you'll find some interesting things here. Like I found! We Built this Come Death has some of this macabre and odd ambience that Mastodon can give to their songs. The little initial riff of Hail to Fire has the typical sharp and special Mastodon's guitar sound, and Brann Dailor was impressive behind the drumkit. And of course, Battle at Sea is a worthy track, a little Mastodon's classic.

Nevertheless, if you are new to the band, I recommend you start with one of their full-length albums (specially Leviathan or Crack the Skye).

Conclusion: if you are not a Mastodon's fan, you will hardly find anything interesting here. Because this album is maybe too rough, and the later Mastodon's style is almost invisible here and yet to be developed.

So, in my humble opinion, Lifesblood is only recommended for fans and the band’s completionists.

My rating: **

siLLy puPPy Progressive death sludge, anyone? Yeah? Then check out LIFESBLOOD, the very first release by MASTODON. This is the first official release preceding “Remission” by a year but like that debut LP it’s a massive molten heap of hot, sludgy brutality. This EP only contains five tracks that are just shy of the 16 minute mark, but this little beast does not disappoint, that is if you love your metal fast, brutal and raw. Think Behemoth meets Neurosis here, only with the progressive leanings of a much more sophisticated band like early Atheist. While the the vocals are brutal, growly and tortured, the music is equally brutal but sophisticated and unrelenting and most of all shows MASTODON with a unique progressive style of metal from the very first track.

Like many, i didn’t hear this one until after all the full-length albums. I never hold out any hopes for these early releases but i have to admit that with MASTODON it’s the early brutal beasts that rock my world the most. Brann Dailor is the star here showing us from the start that he is one of the fastest technical drummers in the universe. He claims his playing was developed from playing with the guitars instead of the bass as most metal bands tend to. Whatever the case, wow! I can hardly ignore the excellent guitar and bass work of the rest of the band. Every player is top notch and the passion pits are flowing here living up to the name of the giant extinct mammal after which they are named.

While this EP isn’t essential, i would argue that the tracks on it are. They are also available these days on the “Call Of The MASTODON” compilation albeit without the movie track samplings that begin the tracks on the original, which has become quite the rare collectible only having been produced limited numbers. If you love MASTODON at their most aggressive and unpolished then you will love this one. I swear this even blows “Remission” away. Not even close to as polished as the later works but satisfying for its raw beastly brutality nonetheless. LIFESBLOOD is an excellent slice of progressive death sludge metal in my world.