NEXT MASTODON ALBUM TO BE PRODUCED BY… BRENDAN O’BRIEN??

This was a real shocker when I read it last week; apparently the next Mastodon album will be produced by Brendan O’Brien, a man who’s most famous projects include Stone Temple Pilots, Pearl Jam, Train, The Offspring and Incubus. The man does have some metal cred, having produced King’s X (Dogman – props) and Rage Against the Machine, and having mixed a number of other notable projects, but still; this strikes me as an odd pairing, as does the decision to leave behind Matt Bayles, who helmed the past three Mastodon records. I’m thinking one of the following:

• The band wants to move in a different, more rock direction
• Warner / Reprise were dissatisfied with the sales of Blood Mountain and want the band to write more commercial music, taking it to the next level.

This is definitely a “what the fuck?” moment. Either the results could be groundbreaking or they could be disastrous. This is a very important album for Mastodon; having vaulted into the big leagues with Blood Mountain, everyone is expecting big things. Will it live up to expectations?

-VN