Mastodon Crack The Skye

Mastodon singer/guitarist Brent Hinds had his face cracked in a fight following last year's MTV Video Music Awards. Now, his prog-metal band are set to Crack The Skye.

That's the title of the album the Atlanta, Ga. group will release early next year as the follow-up to 2006's successful Blood Mountain. Mastodon's fourth LP was recorded at their hometown's Southern Tracks Studios with producer Brendan O'Brien (Rage Against The Machine, Bruce Springsteen).

While Mastodon battled cysquatches on the conceptual Blood Mountain, they'll take on "The Czar" on the new disc, which revolves around a central lyrical theme of Czarist Russia. As you might expect from such an effort, it features a four-part song ("The Czar") and the disc's seven tracks stretch out to 50 minutes.

Mastodon are in Europe as part of the Unholy Alliance Tour with Slayer, Trivium and Amon Amarth, and will be the opening act for several of Metallica's European shows next June and July.

Here are the songs on Crack The Skye:

"Oblivion"
"Divinations"
"Quintessence"
"The Czar"
"(I) Usurper"
"(II) Escape"
"(III) Martyr"
"(IV) Spiral"
"Ghost of Karelia"
"Crack The Skye"
"The Last Baron"