On March 7, it was announced that Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds has left the band by mutual agreement. Mastodon was formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2000, with Hinds as a founding member.
The band’s official statement reflects on “25 monumental years together.” Among the eight albums they have released over the years, perhaps the most monumental of all is their 2004 release, Leviathan.
As UK journalist Paul Brannigan wrote:
“In truth, Mastodon have always been too quirky, too warped, too cerebral and too damn idiosyncratic to have genuinely stood a chance of cracking the mainstream.
But the Atlanta quartet have created a remarkable body of work, forever pushing forward, constantly refining their craft. And it was their relentless, questing pursuit of excellence which inspired their finest artistic achievement.
Leviathan, the band’s second long-player, stands as both a conceptual piece themed around American writer Herman Melville’s 1851 epic masterpiece Moby-Dick and an allegory for Mastodon’s own career.”
Vocalist and bassist Troy Sanders elaborated on this connection in a 2005 interview:
“The story of Moby-Dick paralleled the lives of the four dudes in Mastodon so much, [that] it was too easy for us to pick and pull similarities to Captain Ahab’s character and the pursuit of the whale, and the dedication, persistence, and sacrifice.
The longevity of his trip was almost like what we’ve done in our band for the past five years.”
In that same interview, Sanders credited five key musical influences that helped shape Mastodon’s sound: Thin Lizzy, Iron Maiden, Neurosis, The Melvins, and The Jesus Lizard.
Mastodon Guitarist Brent HindsAccording to Paul Brannigan:
“Elements of all five bands can be detected in Leviathan, but dissecting the beast is counter-productive, as this is an artefact that works best in its totality as an immersive experience.
With Clutch frontman Neil Fallon supplying the voice of obsessive whale hunter Captain Ahab, opening track Blood And Thunder instantly sinks a harpoon into the listener, with a fabulously insistent riff and a chorus – ‘White Whale! Holy Grail!’ – that could hardly be more immediate.”
Drummer Brann Dailor once described Blood And Thunder as “the ivory leg [Leviathan] stood on.”
Another standout track, Aqua Dementia, features a guest appearance from longtime collaborator Scott Kelly of Neurosis, while Megalodon serves as a stunning showcase of the instrumental prowess of all four band members.
However, if any one song cemented Mastodon’s place as one of the most significant metal bands of their generation, it was Hearts Alive—a majestic, 13-minute prog-metal epic reminiscent of Metallica’s 1984 classic The Call of Ktulu.
Paul Brannigan described Hearts Alive as:
“Emphatic proof that Mastodon were more than just riff-monsters… a masterpiece of dynamics, structure, and pacing, ebbing and surging like with its own riveting tale from topographic oceans.”
In 2004, Leviathan was named Album of the Year by Kerrang!, Revolver, and Terrorizer magazines. More than two decades later, it remains Mastodon’s crowning achievement.
