Mastodon are “Sifting Through Ideas” for New Album

As of November, Mastodon were “about to really dig in” on their next album, according to drummer/vocalist Brann Dailor, who added that he was “feeling the doom,” a possible allusion to the musical direction of the band’s new material. Earlier in the year he’d said that the band already had “too much material” for the band’s follow-up to Emperor of Sand (2017), saying “we need to get in there and start chipping away at that giant hunk of granite and hopefully produce a beautiful sculpture for all to see.”

Now, in a new chat with Kerrang!, bassist/vocalist Troy Sanders has indicated that the process of whittling down all of those ideas into a cohesive body of work ready for public consumption is ongoing, telling the magazine:

“We’re constantly creating. When we’re out on tour, we’re always coming up with lyrics, riffs or half-songs on voice notes and the Pro Tools rig we take out with us. The long touring process for Emperor Of Sand ended in July, and we all took a couple of months off. Then we all started calling each other with the itch. Through November, we’ve been in Atlanta sifting through ideas. We’re always moving forward.”

At this juncture an early 2020 release seems unlikely given the stage of the material so far, but a new album later in the year certainly remains possible. We’ll keep you posted.

Mastodon’s lone live appearance of 2020 is currently scheduled for May at the INKcarceration festival in Ohio; tickets here.