Metalocalypse at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium

this is my final assignment for Music Appreciation class: A one-page concert review

Metalocalypse at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium
by. Skye Adams

On the evening of October 16th, 2009, I entered the Roy Wilkins Auditorium and was immediately lost in a sea of black metal shirts. A popular adult cartoon titled Metalocalypse, based around the fictional progressive metal band, Dethklok, was touring the country with fellow “prog metal” band, Mastodon. Along with the two lesser bands that opened the show the duo made for a performance of epic proportions.

Although metal has been viewed negatively by many sophisticated critics its subgenre, progressive metal, utilizes an enormous amount of musical theory. Intertwined with a powerful dose of complex compositional structures, abnormal time signatures and intricate instrument playing, progressive metal and bands like Mastodon are definitely worthy of more respect from today’s musical critics.

Mastodon took stage and provided the audience with nothing but an amazing performance. While playing the majority of their newly released concept album, Crack the Skye, the audience was captivated by a full screen visual representation of the selections being performed. The visual and audio combination stimulated the audience and a common attitude of musical appreciation could be felt throughout the venue.

One selection entitled, “The Czar” could be considered as a loose modern day representation of the classical symphony. The collection is organized into four distinct parts titled, “Usurper”, ”Escape”, “Martyr”, and “Spiral.” Beginning with a dream like introduction, the audience was mesmerized as the exposition described two themes to be reintroduced later in the piece. “Usurper” quickly developed into “Escape,” which altered the theme of the song while still being able to keep the audience enthralled. “Martyr” could be considered the equivalent to a Symphony’s third movement, the minuet. Although it is not focused around the traditional ¾ time signature, it does represent the minuet’s delicate and dance-like characteristics. Last, “Spiral” reviews the original themes introduced in “Usurper” and elegantly brings the piece to an end.

Mastodon is known for their ability to intertwine jazz-fusion and classical themes into their music. Their performance at Metalocalypse could be considered one of the best live performances I have been blessed to witness. Due to their ground breaking methods, many believe that Mastodon will leave a large imprint in musical history for generations to come.