The eponymous debut long-player from the nautical hard rock supergroup featuring members of
Tool
,
Mastodon
, and
Dethklok
Legend of the Seagullmen
is a narrative-driven blast of chum-filled sea spray that's as swashbuckling and entertaining as it is completely absurd. The brainchild of mysterious artist/rocker/vocalist
David "The Doctor" Dreyer
, who has been sculpting the
Seagullmen
mythology via music and film since 2010, the project also features
Danny Carey
(
),
Brent Hinds
Pete Griffin
), film director/animator
Jimmy Hayward
(Horton Hears a Who!, Toy Story, Jonah Hex), and
Chris Digiovanni
. Steeped in weird fathoms-deep lore, and bristling with unapologetic power metal posturing, doomy psych-rock brooding, and nerdy, prog-rock noodling, the eight-track set falls somewhere between
Blue Oyster Cult
Manowar
Primus
Tenacious D
, and an R-rated entry in Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Tales of undersea leviathans abound (Orca, Arhciteuthis [a giant squid], mutant deep sea divers, etc.), but the
are just as content wading into the riptides of ecology -- lead single "The Fogger" follows the bloody adventures of a face-breaking, seafaring vigilante in pursuit of polluters. Equal part greasy,
Sabbath
y hymns ("Shipwreck," "Orca") that connect with the subtlety of a windpipe massage, and epic, semi-orchestral blasts of Spaghetti Western art-rock ("Curse of the Red Tide," "Ballad of the Deep Sea Diver"),
delivers all the thrills of a big-budget B-movie with the sonic might of a broadside cannon. ~ James Christopher Monger