Before there were blogs there were these things called magazines, and the only metal magazine we still get excited about reading every month is Decibel. Here’s managing editor Andrew Bonazelli…

Mastodon’s on the cover of the October Decibel, and that’s four times total now, one more than any other artist. When you climb to that level of popularity—then for at least one glorious month park your ass comfortably atop it—polarization is inevitable. And if this achievement coincided with the release of Crack the Skye, arguably their most popular album and far and away my least favorite, I’d be rolling my eyes along with the haters right now. But what’s so interesting about Masto—and I think as good a reason as any to spotlight them four times—is that every album has so little to do with its predecessor. Love ’em/hate ’em/jack off to ’em/begrudgingly admire ’em, they’re doing exactly what they want and not sweating the consequences (wait ’til you hear “The Creature Lives”). Mind you, this is all really easy to say since I think The Hunter assimilates most of the awesome shit from Remission, Leviathan and Blood Mountain, and is crazy-catchy without being pandering, but the same sentiment goes no matter what they do. Mastodon are always at the cusp of evolution. They picked the right name.

Anyway, Kevin Stewart-Panko did the cover story, meeting up the dudes at the end of their two-year Skye touring cycle, and discovers why The Hunter is their first without a labyrinthine overarching concept. It’s in the webstore now, available for subscribers within two weeks, also featuring that ripping Skeletonwitch flexi disc.

-AB

Decibel’s October 2011 issue also features The Black Dahlia Murder, YOB, Today is the Day, Dimmu Borgir, Testament and a Queensrÿche/Operation: Mindcrime Hall of Fame. But why not just get a full subscription to ensure that you never miss an issue?