"Blood and Thunder" is the opening track and does an excellent job of setting the tone for the whole record. Combining elements from a cross section of metal and its respective sub genres and mixing it with a dirty southern rock vibe, Mastodon have created an ultra sludgy, ultra heavy record that keeps the listener compelled with its sheer unpredictability. The rhythm section is literally ALL OVER the friggin place...seemingly never playing the same beat twice. On "Seabeast" clean vocals are introduced and offer a small break from the lumbering roar that we hear throughout Leviathan. Keep in mind these are "rock n roll" style vocals filled with swagger and attitude as opposed to the clean vocals that run rampant in many a hardcore song today...filled with whiny lyrics and high pitched yelping.
Something that must be said is that the bands technical abilities are outstanding. While it sounds like they may be holding back at times, make no mistake about it, Mastodon can shred your face off. Songs go on never ending tangents so diverse, lesser musicians would never dream of let alone attempt. "Megalodon" is a perfect example of this. At one point in the song I could have sworn I was listening to Metallica's "Sanitarium" but then it transformed into some Lynyrd Skynyrd jam session on steriods. The album's lyrics all center around the story of Moby Dick and make for an interesting read, even if you are an uneducated fool like myself and have never read the book.
As a whole this album is amazing so picking stand out tracks was a bit difficult. But if you want to hear some samples before going out and buying this beast like you all should, I would suggest downloading:
Blood and Thunder
I am Ahab
Iron Tusk
Megalodon
Naked Burn