Masto's Of Their Domain

While you were nice and snug indoors on Friday (Jan. 25), J.I. braved the sub-freezing temperatures and trudged deep into Ft. Greene, Brooklyn, to offer up the following report on the Mastodon/Neurosis metal extravaganza. First though, a little description for those of you who've yet to see a show at Brooklyn Masonic Temple.

The actual performance space is somewhat reminiscent of a smaller Webster Hall or Warsaw, with an upstairs balcony featuring wooden seats. For some reason though, they were letting people smoke in the hallways, which made waiting in line for the bathroom nearly unbearable. Getting into the venue also took forever; there was only one guy checking IDs. In short, it's a cool space to enjoy music, but several logistical kinks need to be worked out.

As for the music, there was a definite expectation that Mastodon would be playing some new songs but none materialized. It was also obvious that a good percentage of the audience was only there to see Mastodon and not Neurosis, arguably the most influential band in the experimental metal world. If they left early, it was their loss (for one thing, the sound was much better for Neurosis' set).

Anyway, Mastodon certainly rocked, and they sound as scary as they look. "The Wolf Is Loose" and "Crystal Skull" set the tone right away, with the punishing instrumental interplay making up for the near-unintelligibility of the singing. J.I. personally likes the (comparatively) more nuanced passages in Mastodon's music, and along those lines was rewarded with the (somewhat) slower riffage of "Blood and Thunder" and "Siberian Divide," but sadly, "Sleeping Giant" was on the set list and not played.

Other highlights: "Trilobite," from the 2002 album "Remission," the absolutely slamming "Blood and Thunder" and the arpeggiated aggression of "Aqua Dementia." The group also went out of its way to thank Neurosis for asking it to open these two Brooklyn shows. "We wouldn't exist without Neurosis," guitarist Brett Hinds said.

With creepy back-screen projections adding to the vibe, Neurosis' set was dominated by material from last year's "Given to the Rising." Disorienting epics like "At the End of the Road" were well balanced alongside riff-fests like "To the Wind," "Hidden Faces" and "Water Is Not Enough. Of the oldies, "Burn" (from the "Neurot Recordings 1" compilation) was a nice touch, and nine minutes or so of "The Doorway" put a fitting end cap on a refreshingly loud night of hard rock.