MASTODON's Next Album Will Be 'All Over The Place' Musically

In a new interview with U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine, MASTODON drummer-vocalist Brann Dailor spoke about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the follow-up to the "Hushed And Grim" album, which came out in 2021. He said: "[The songs are] all over the place. I hear some punk rock in there, but then I hear some insane prog and I hear the heaviest version of ourselves poking its head out again.

"You can talk all day about what you want to do, but at the end of the day it governs itself — it pulls you where your heart is."

Dailor also revealed that MASTODON's next effort will be a concept album. "I have a story I'm working on," he said, adding that it revolves around "supernatural horror".

As for a possible release date for MASTODON's new album, Brann said: "I don't see a world in which it does not come out in 2025."

MASTODON and LAMB OF GOD's collaborative single called "Floods Of Triton" was released in September 2024. The track, which was recorded prior to the launch of the two bands' "Ashes Of Leviathan" summer 2024 tour, was made available via Loma Vista Recordings.

"I wouldn't say that the song is indicative of the new material, but I wouldn't say that any single song would ever be indicative of the overall sound of anything that we were gonna come out with, because I think that we sort of pride ourselves on offering, especially when we're putting out a full album, that's got a lot of variety to it," Brann told Australia's Heavy in October. "So it's like a puzzle. I look at an album like a puzzle. There has to be balance there and everything sort of fits together and tells one long story, but it doesn't necessarily all sound the same."

Earlier in October, MASTODON singer/bassist Troy Sanders told Kyle Meredith about the band's plans for the next LP: "Thankfully, we don't really sit down. Nothing is really preconceived as far as musically. Whatever riffs are happening with people in the band, those come to the forefront. And if we like it, then we dig in on it and we try to get it to a spot where it can become hopefully a good song. The storyline, if we decide to have one on the next album, that will come if someone brings in an idea, like, 'Hey, guys, I've been thinking about this thing. What do you think of ta-da-da?' And if it sounds interesting, compelling, then we'll dig in and give it a go maybe. But at this moment, we just wrapped up three years of touring on 'Hushed And Grim', so we're excited to dig into some new music. That's for damn sure. But nothing is written in blood or set in stone. But also nothing is off limits. If someone comes and says, 'What do you think of this, guys? Just hear me out.' And if it sounds interesting and unique and potentially fun to pursue, then we're in. We never really think, like, 'Hey, the last record was long. It was good. It was long and dark and the subject matter was really sad. So we need to do something different.' Well, we're gonna do something different anyway. But we're not gonna do anything just to try to please our fanbase. We're not gonna do anything to purposely try to appeal to a new fanbase or anything like that. We've always just felt confident in whatever we do, people will see through it as authentic, and whether they like it or not, it's not in our hands anyway."

Asked if he thinks performing MASTODON's entire "Leviathan" album on the recent "Ashes Of Leviathan" co-headlining tour with LAMB OF GOD will have any effect on the musical direction of MASTODON's next LP, Troy said: "Good question. We were proud to play that record every night for the past month and a half. It didn't feel like simply nostalgia. It felt like, 'Hey, this is a cool record.' We know what it did for us. A lot of people love it. There's tons of people out there enjoying it as we're playing it live. So it was awesome. It's very possible that some of that ferocity and some of those quick riffs will be, like, 'Hey…' This is fun to play. It's very fun to play. So I wouldn't be surprised if some 'Leviathan' creeps in. But it's still in the early stages."

"Leviathan", released on Relapse Records, was MASTODON's first concept album, loosely based on the 1851 novel "Moby-Dick" by Herman Melville. Three magazines named the LP "Album Of The Year" in 2004: Revolver, Kerrang! and Terrorizer. In 2009 and 2015, MetalSucks named "Leviathan" the best metal album of the 21st century. "Leviathan" was also released with an audio DVD in a limited-edition set with a black-and-gold slipcase.

MASTODON's latest album, the aforementioned "Hushed And Grim", was a double LP recorded at the band's Atlanta studio, West End Sound. The effort was produced by David Bottrill (TOOL, RUSH, MUSE, PETER GABRIEL) and was MASTODON's most expansive song cycle to date, featuring 15 distinct tracks. It achieved the band's third consecutive No. 1 debut on the Billboard Hard Rock Albums chart and earned MASTODON a Grammy Award nomination for the track "Pushing The Tides". Additionally, the album's single "Teardrinker" secured a top 10 position on the rock radio charts, a further testament to the band's widespread acclaim.

"Floods Of Triton" was recorded at MASTODON's own West End Sound in Atlanta and was produced by MASTODON and Tyler Bates, highly regarded in his own right for his scores for "Guardians Of The Galaxy", "John Wick", "MaXXXine" and more.

Last month, MASTODON and COHEED AND CAMBRIA announced "The Infinite Arc" tour with special guests PERIPHERY. Produced by Live Nation and FPC Live, the 20-city trek kicks off on May 10 in Salem, Virginia, spanning the East Coast and Midwest before wrapping up in Waukee, Iowa on June 8.