The story goes like this. Like 80 YEARS ago or some shit, perennial American badass Wallace Stevens — who, by all reports, was about as METAL AS IT GETS at the time — had already crowned himself the emperor of ice cream. Unfortunately, here in the tough-as-nails and cynical-A-F 21st century, “ice cream” feels kinda… wimpy.
So, dutifully enough, our triumphant, long-haired, progressive-psych-metal-pedaling friends who work down at the Mastodon corporation have announced that they’ll be creating a whole new market for badassery by releasing a new album on March 31 via Reprise Records with the much “grittier” (HA) title Emperor of Sand. Boom: Problem. Solved.
The new album, which follows-up 2014’s Once More ‘Round the Sun, finds the band “returning to a deeply imaginative and complex conceptual storyline that ponders the nature of time” loosely detailing the myth of “a man sentenced to death in a majestically malevolent desert.” It was recorded at The Quarry Recording Studio in Kennesaw, Georgia with producer Brendan O’Brien (Pearl Jam, Neil Young, AC/DC, Rage Against The Machine), who kinda rocked it on 2009’s Crack The Skye. It’s already available for pre-order in a variety of packages (e.g., the “deluxe pre-order,” consisting of a 2xLP 180-gram vinyl in a gatefold jacket, “Color-In-Your-Own vinyl jacket” with — of course — Mastodon colored pencils), all of which include a download of the single “Sultan’s Curse,” which is presumably also a sorely-needed 21st-century, doom-n-gloom update of Disney’s day-glo bullshit Aladdin story.
And to help commemorate/solidify their grand vision of “weird new inanimate stuff one can be the emperor of,” the lads are also kicking off a spring tour in support of the album on April 14. It begins in Missoula, MT and includes support from Eagles of Death Metal and Russian Circles. Check out all the details below, and head to the band’s site to purchase tickets and receive a copy of the new album (in your choice of format) along with your purchase! “Whoa,”right? That’s more like: Emperor of AWESOME.
Emperor of Sand tracklisting:
01. Sultan’s Curse
02. Show Yourself
03. Precious Stones
04. Steambreather
05. Roots Remain
06. Word To The Wise
07. Ancient Kingdom
08. Clandestiny
09. Andromeda
10. Scorpion Breath
11. Jaguar God
Mastod-On Tour:
04.14.17 - Missoula, MT - Wilma Theater
04.15.17 - Seattle, WA - Paramount Theater
04.16.17 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
04.18.17 - San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
04.20.17 - Los Angeles, CA - The Palladium
04.21.17 - Phoenix, AZ - Comerica Theatre
04.23.17 - Salt Lake City, UT - Complex
04.24.17 - Denver, CO - Fillmore
04.26.17 - Kansas City, KS - Uptown Theater
04.27.17 - St. Louis, MO - Pageant
04.28.17 - Birmingham, AL - Iron City
04.29.17 - Jacksonville, FL - Welcome to Rockville Festival
04.30.17 - Ft. Myers, FL - Fort Rock Festival
05.02.17 - Washington, DC - Fillmore
05.03.17 - Toronto, ON - Rebel
05.04.17 - Cleveland, OH - Agora Theater
05.05.17 - Concord, NC - Caroline Rebellion Festival
05.06.17 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
05.08.17 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
05.09.17 - Portland, ME - State Theater
05.11.17 - New York, NY - Hammerstein Ballroom
05.12.17 - Pittsburgh, PA - Stage AE
05.13.17 - Chicago, IL - Aragon Ballroom
05.14.17 - Cincinnati, OH - Taft Theatre
05.16.17 - Detroit, MI - Royal Oak Theater
05.17.17 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium
05.18.17 - Memphis, TN - Minglewood Hall
05.19.17 - Dallas, TX - Gas Monkey Live
05.20.17 - Austin, TX - ACL Live
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