(Showbox Sodo) On paper, the bearded sons of Atlanta, Georgia—Mastodon—may not appear to have much in common with the French kings of heaviness, Gojira, and the metallic newcomers from Norway, Kvelertak. Mastodon are known to play a prog-influenced brand of stoner-friendly groove rock, while Gojira bludgeon listeners with a distinctly loud brand of burly riffage, and Kvelertak provide a blackened dose of D-beat hardcore. The common link? Each band brings a unique and artistic left-field perspective to metal, all of which skew from the common stereotypes of what metal should be. All hail thinking man’s metal! KEVIN DIERS
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(Crocodile) Despite an unfortunate name (Discogs lists at least 18 bands who’ve toiled as Toy), this British quintet creates music worth your precious time. On releases like 2013’s Join the Dots (2013) and 2012’s self-titled debut LP, Toy strike a balance between being chaos-loving space rockers and dudes who like to write pretty melodies swathed in klangy guitar smog and powered by motorik beats. (The closest Seattle comparison would be Jetman Jet Team.) Place them in the same pigeonhole that holds Tame Impala and Temples as another young “T” band taking psychedelia to the bank in the twenty-teens. DAVE SEGAL
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And here’s all our recommended music events—tonight, tomorrow, this weekend, and beyond!