American aughts heavy metal band Mastodon brought their best to a humpday show this week that was full of metal, grit, and high octane. Playing a majority of tracks off their latest album, Marrow Deep, including “In the Ruins” and “Snakes for Dinner”, they bewitched the crowd with killer riffs and insane imagery as the bandmembers kicked and stomped and headbanged their way through the set. In twenty six years the band hasn’t strayed far from their theatrical roots, with lasers and vibrant animated backgrounds almost straight out of a He-Man montage or cult action anime. For those who don’t know, Mastodon catapulted themselves to notoriety with their 2004 concept album, Leviathan, devoted to Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. They blessed the crowd with “Blood and Thunder” and “Megalodon”, to raucous cheers.

Deafheaven set the pace for the night with a selection mostly from their 2025 release, Lonely People With Power, including “Winona”, “Doberman”, and “Magnolia”. Breaking it up was “Dream House” from Sunbather for the longtime fans. Frontman George Clarke put on a delirious set, sweating under the strobe lights, with bassist (and Allston local) Chris Johnson and the rest of the band following suit. Much like Turnstile, their genre-bending and often gender-bending performance is distinctive, incredible, and not to be trifled with nor missed live. 

French black metal band Alcest supported.