Neon this week
Mastodon offers metal with twists
Last time they were in town, they were dressed as a bunch of pale-faced, blood-spackled zombies, and they did their best to kill the crowd and enlist them in the ranks of the dead.
Mastodon's burly, mountain-sized set at Vegoose last fall was one of the fest's many highlights, with the band churning out guttural prog metal with more twists and turns than a thrash labyrinth.
Their tunes are epic in scope, a blend of the long-winded, technical ecstasy of Iron Maiden and the brutal, breakneck riffing of Slayer. Bust out the neck brace, dudes.
See the band at 6:45 p.m. Thursday at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay, 3950 Las Vegas Blvd. South. Tickets are $27 in advance, $30 day of show; call 632-7600.
-- JASON BRACELIN
