Metal titans Mastodon and Gojira took over a sold out MGM Music Hall on Sunday night, on the first of two shows in Boston as part of the Mega Monsters Tour. Joining them on the road is special guest Lorna Shore.
Fans made their way down Lansdowne early in the evening, making sure not to miss Lorna Shore’s opening set. Emerging from the shadows, they would take their places and kick off with “Sun//Eater”, off their latest album Pain Remains. The deathcore band would focus entirely on their 2022 release, a powerful and emotional record that comes to life on stage, with Will Ramos’ bone chilling vocals and the band’s explosive sound.
Lorna Shore’s furious set ignited the crowd, as the first curtain covered the stage anticipating Mastodon’s arrival. In a thick fog, the lights slowly came down, as the band stepped onto the stage. The curtain drops, and the frantic “The Wolf Is Loose” kicks off the show with a blast of energy that gets the audience roaring. Crowdsurfers immediately started to make their way to the front, as Mastodon continued their siege, from “Megalodon” to “More Than I Could Chew”. On a personal level, the band’s Boston stop was also special, as they shared how some of them grew up in Milton, Massachusetts.
A spectacular lighting setup kept shifting in the background with each song, keeping the band eerily backlit. With heavy doses of pyro going off accentuating the intensity of the music, this is one of the most impressive sets Mastodon has put together in recent years: a nonstop visual spectacle that goes hand in hand with wild vertiginous riffs. One of the main highlights of the performance was the menacing one-eyed creature that made its entrance during “Circle of Cysquatch”, with “Crusher Destroyer” and the classic “Blood and Thunder” bringing the set to a close.
Still catching their breath, fans were presented with yet another curtain, this time with Gojira’s logo across it. The energy was at an all-time high, fueled by anticipation. More fog covered the stage, and with a swift motion, the curtain dropped and “Born for One Thing” saw the band erupting onto the stage. The French metal titans kept the atmosphere heavy and enigmatic, with confetti cannons, fire and smoke. A dense fog almost entirely covered the band during the stunning “Flying Whales”, setting the tone for the rest of the show.
With just as much charm as strength, Gojira’s set is a sophisticated explosion of energy, with plenty of organic elements that blend in well with tracks like “Amazonia” and “Another World”, of their 2021 album Fortitude. The message was loud and clear in the band’s voice: “we should help take care of this Earth first”. A vibrant drum solo brought some comic relief to an otherwise aggressive set, as drummer Mario Duplantier kept showing handwritten signs to interact with the crowd, with sayings like “I can’t hear you” and “fuck yeah”. “The Chant” and “The Gift of Guilt” brought the show to a close. The Mega Monsters Tour brought a stacked lineup that no metalhead should miss!
LISTEN TO MASTODON HERE!
LISTEN TO GOJIRA HERE!
CATCH MASTODON WITH GOJIRA ON TOUR HERE!
