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Rampant Rumors

TROUBLE IN MASTODON PARADISE? BRENT HINDS STORMS OFF STAGE IN OAKLAND

 Monday, May 10th, 2010 at 3:00pm by

brent hindsAccording to a couple of eyewitness accounts the latest trouble in the Mastodon camp has been caused not by ailing (but recently recovered!) guitarist Bill Kelliher, but by the Tasmanian devil himself, Brent Hinds. Seems that Hinds sabotaged the band’s performance in Oakland, CA over the weekend by appearing to be incredibly intoxicated (shocker), fucking up songs intentionally, and eventually storming off the stage leaving the rest of the band stranded. I’ll let MS Maniac “The Big Chazboski” take it from here:

Brent seemed off from the beginning, staggering a bit and not stepping up to sing his lines. I’m pretty sure he damn near collapsed at least once.  Troy once ran to the mic, nearly pushing Brent over, in an effort to sing Brent’s lines.  Brent continued to throw in wild solos where there should be words, throwing his guitar around and running off stage.While there seemed to be major technical issues, mostly with his monitor from what I could tell, he became less and less involved in the performance to the point where he even stopped playing and simply yelled in to the mic something around the lines of “I love heavy metal…..No I don’t.” Even more telling, he managed to screw up the intro to a song (that I can’t remember right now) to the point where Brann was looking through his cymbals in hopes of figuring out what was happening. He eventually completely lost his composure, throwing down a mic stand and storming off stage.

After roughly a 20 minute delay consisting of the keyboard player playing the same three notes for 10 minutes, and then realizing issues and perhaps showing more professionalism than I thought possible for a stand-in, started changing things up, trying different chords and rhythms, anything to try to keep the crowd from losing their interest completely. The band finally re-took the stake, sans Brent, thanked the audience for being there, and asked if we wanted one more. Bringing out another mic stand, Bill sang backups to ”Blood and Thunder” and gracefully let the show die out into the night with no trace of Brent.

According to another source, a similar thing happened at the band’s New England Metal & Hardcore Festival performance in Worcester, MA last month. We’ve heard plenty of stories of Brent’s drunken antics — and we’ve even bore witness to them ourselves — but this is one of the most unprofessional displays I can recall. So your monitor mix sucks and you’re having a hard time hearing yourself; it sucks, but you work through it and play the fucking show instead of throwing a hissy fit about it. It’s rock and roll, and the show must go on. Mastodon, a band that toured basements and VFW halls for years before hitting it big – without a monitor anywhere to be seen —  should know this better than anyone. Give the fans what they paid for instead of acting like a prima donna and storming off stage. I feel bad for the other guys in the band, especially Kelliher, who battled a serious medical condition (confirmed by Metal Insider to be pancreatitis) and came back to the tour in spite of still probably not feeling too hot.

If anyone has additional information about Hinds, Mastodon, or his status with the band, kindly let us know.

-VN

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  • ElvenMarth

    He better not pull this shit when I see them

    • two snakes

      he did exactly the same shit when i saw them on february 14 in cologne (that’s in old europe, for those not in-the-know).
      from the beginning he seemed kinda pissed/bored and didn’t look like he’s having a good time singing his lines (he sounded pretty shite, too). he kicked troy, not in a fun kinda way. troy was kinda “wtf dude” and did not look at him for the rest of the show. later in the set, brent went to switch guitars and instead of giving the guitartech his gear, he threw it at him. hard.
      so as you can see, the athmosphere wasn’t too good, but they put on a decent show playing the whole crack the sky album with visual support on a huge screen behind them.
      when bands do such visual stuff, people tend to look at it instead of moshing like crazy. the encore was older material without the screen, so everyone started to move to the music eventually. after they finished their set, brent spoke for the first time to the audience, saying something like “if you were this awake from the beginning, this would have been a much better show”.
      everyone in the first couple of rows was like “huh.”
      i was kinda bummed to see that brent is such a pisspoor excuse for a rockstar and it’s pretty sad that this appparantly wasn’t just one night.

      • chris

        I was supposed to be at the show in Koeln, but there was way too much snow in my town to risk driving the 60k. That, and the fact that I heard they were going to play the entire Crack the Skye, kept me from going.

        Going from being a good band in the underground scene to blowing up b/c of the new album can have that effect on people. I had a similar run-in with the guys from Baroness at Gebaude 9 this year. Their live show was great, but they were total assholes after the show. I saw them at the same venue last year before the new album dropped, and they were extremely cool guys. It’s nothing new. It’s just a bummer when you like the band.

        • two snakes

          i was at that baroness show too, can’t remember them being assholes though. what they do when they’re off the stage doesn’t even matter to me, the difference is that baroness would’ve wiped the fucking floor with mastodon if the two shows were actually one. awesome live performance.
          and to be honest, i wouldn’t say that mastodon blew up after or because of crack the skye. they were fairly big after leviathan, big enough to drop the “underground” tag.
          baroness for that matter aren’t even in the same league. they blew up? just compare the essigfabrik to gebäude 9 in cologne. totally different venues, not just in terms of size.

          • http://www.facebook.com/people/Sean-Barrie/695461310 Sean Barrie

            Yeah I met John Baizley at the Croc Rock in Allentown PA in April (when they were on an off-date with Mastodon, ironically), and John couldn’t have been more humble and willing to talk to me. Maybe you just caught them on a shitty day, Chris.

          • stu1

            Mastodon have gotten bigger with each record. It’s been a steady growth. Baroness are still very very very underground in comparison.

        • Igottawocket

          yeah, everytime I’ve talked to the Baroness guys they’ve been awesome. True class acts. Pete and John I’ve both spoken with, awesome dudes.

          • http://www.examiner.com/x-44499-San-Antonio-Heavy-Metal-Examiner San Antonio Heavy Metal Examiner

            Same, I chatted with John and Summer after a Baroness show in Austin, and they were very polite and humble. Never would have thought they’d be assholes to any.

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ryan-Sean-Heron/9391234 Ryan Sean Heron

        i saw them years back and really didn’t know alot about them but I personally thought they sucked as a live act. and from watching their youtube videos, they still do. their music and their act just doesn’t translate well to live shows. whatever. I still love their albums and I probably won’t ever really have a big urge to go see them

        • Igottawocket

          what Baroness have you been watching live?

          • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ryan-Sean-Heron/9391234 Ryan Sean Heron

            i was referring to mastodon. sorry. never saw baroness live.

    • Matthew Grant Anson

      Glad this didn’t happen on the May 7th date in Pomona.

  • Nostradumbass

    Maybe he’s trying to get a spot in Guns N’ Roses.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Anthony-Showalter/100000592087843 Anthony Showalter

      Nah, Axl won’t let him do that. Only Axl is allowed to behave like an insufferable toddler.

      • Will

        LOL

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jose-Ariel-Nezahualpilli-Rangel/1032900271 Jose Ariel Nezahualpilli Rangel

      Haha Yeah dude he’s growing out his hair for dreads. it alll makes sense now.

    • Anon

      Win.

  • The 5,334,275,002nd most interesting man on the planet

    Well, the even keeled Brent Hinds is the last person in all of rock and roll I’d imagine to do something like this!
    That’s just a damn shame. Hopefully that fucking psychopath can get some help and retake his place, because I’m rooting for Mastodon to go down as one of our generations greatest bands.

    • Alex_P

      By the way, I don’t believe there are 5,334,275,002 men on the planet, seeing as the total population is less than 7 billion, and half are female. Which means you’re in the red. That’s harsh.

      • The 2,334,275,002nd most interesting man on the planet

        Well, you make a vaild point!
        The mathematics was never this guys strong area.
        Fixed in honor of Alex_P

        • Alex_P

          See? Now, there are less interesting men than you. You’ll be a pimp in no time.

      • Cryzthormagnusian

        What makes you sure that the women/men split is even though?

        In most industrialized countries it’s typically 107 boys per 100 girls. In China, depending on where you are it can be anywhere from 119-140 boys to every 100 girls.

        It’s being predicted that males in China will outnumber females by 24 million by the end of this decade.

        So his number may be correct.

        • Cryzthormagnusian

          So his number may be correct someday.

          • Alex_P

            Men would have to vastly outnumber women for it to happen if the population were to cap under 10 billion individuals. If the actual cap is 11 billion, then it will of course happen. I think China’s trend will eventually reverse itself, and I strongly doubt it will spread to the rest of the world (apart from India).

            It’s possible, of course.

        • Hendecahedron

          Proof that MS readers are able to cover a wide range of subjects, not just mumble incoherently.

          • Alex_P

            BOOBS. I’m sorry, what were you saying?

          • http://heavybrutal.com/ familyghost

            WHo0o0o00o0 WHeeeeeeeeeeeeee We_get_it_herE

        • wordMCface

          wow……who knew….china=sausage fest

  • Zach S

    I was at the New England Metal and Hardcore Fest, and it pretty much sounds like the same antics. He was way off and on something. Though the Oakland show sounds a little worse. This might be a bad sign of the band’s future.

    • inhumanrampager

      I was Metal Fest as well. I had no idea wtf was going on. But we pretty much got the same thing here. I kept saying they did much better when they toured with Dethklok….and uh, now I at least have some (if very little) context as to what was going on.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Pete-Simone/60802652 Pete Simone

      I was front and center at NE Metalfest as well, and I did think something was off. I thought I was just too drunk/beat up from the pit/pissed that they played the exact same set as they did on the Dethklok tour to process correctly at this point.

      In any event, the Oakland show sounds like it was way worse. Brent just looked (and sang and played) like he was a little more fucked up than usual at Metalfest. He did not, however storm off the stage at any point, but lets face it. The guy is complete mess and a substance abuse poster child. However, I still though it was still a fairly enjoyable set. BTBAM and Baroness stole it from them though.

      I guess it’s part of Mastodon’s shtick. Brent Hinds is a living cartoon character. If he appeared onstage clean, sober and put together, I’d be surprised and a little disappointed. Wouldn’t you?

      • Sam

        Sorry for being late to this party, but I have to agree with Zach. I was at the Metalfest with my fiancee, and this latest meltdown sounds exactly like what happened at Metalfest.

        At the time, we both thought that sound issues were to blame, but now it seems like it was Hinds’ fault all along. This is a total bummer to hear.

  • http://sfsludge.blogspot.com Blyan

    I was there and right up front. Brent was obviously drunk but he was in good spirits through most of the crack the skye set. His mic was feeding back, so he kept his head further back from the mic but it also didn’t even look like he was singing actual words. It all fell apart during the Last Baron when he was goofing up lines and playing the wrong parts. He was pretty pissed that he messed up the song and that’s why he stormed off. When they finally came back out they played Crusher Destroyer and Brent didn’t do any vocals, then they played Crystal skull. He played both songs were really lackluster and then left. Troy looked really uncomfortable but they plowed through Blood & Thunder as a three piece. Since I was right up front I could see Brent on the side stage and he was actually playing his guitar parts while talking to his girlfriend.
    Overall it was still an awesome show and awesome festival, everyone was still having a great time.
    pics:
    sfsludge.blogspot.com

    • bearbomb

      ” playing his guitar parts while talking to his girlfriend.”????

      Doesn’t get anymore un-metal than that!

    • elston_gunn

      I was at this show, too. And what Blyan writes matches what I saw much better than what The Big Chazboski wrote does. Brent became increasingly frustrated with the squealing feedback being generated. At the outset, he was really into it — doing seveal solos at the edge of the stage on his knees. By the end of the show, though, he was fed up. (Maybe he was drunk, too; but that wasn’t the primary problem.) The mic that got knocked over occurred when Troy’s bass strap got caught on it as he was walking away. Brent did NOT do that. And on the last number, Brent did play — he was just off to the side of the stage. The only thing that I thought was lame was that Brent didn’t come out to wave goodnight to the crowd.

      Vince et al, I think you’re allowing a misrepresentation of what happened; and I think that reflects poorly on your site. My $0.02.

      • Chazboski

        I’ve heard other people confirm that he was indeed off stage during the last song (I wrote the email within minutes of stepping through my door) but to say he was off his game is an overstatement. While the mic may have been caught on a strap, he definitely lifted it up and through it down I was the guy on crutches front row stage right, and could hear some of the monitor issues, but nothing to the point of that wild. An extra couple of solos here and there is fine, but it almost seemed on a few songs that he was barely aware of what was going on. I’ve seen the band before and had a great time, but the show died with a whimper after what broke down to be either someone being too drunk/ill to play (which I’m personally hoping for the future of the band) or simply a prima donna.who couldn’t handle things and wasn’t prepared to act professionally towards the crowd, the staff or his own band.

        Being in a cripple state it took me a while to get out of the area, and the roadies/staff were definitely more than livid at Brent for his behavior, which at least puts a little weight in my argument. I would love to hear more sides of the story so I could understand more, but all I could tell is from where I was standing, roughly 6feet of open area right in front of me.

        Elston I like your look at the situation a lot better than mine, and I really hope I that I did mis see things, but from my perspective of what I was able to hear and see, I was thoroughly disappointed and just glad the other bands did manage to act professionally and get me my money’s worth.

      • elston_gunn

        After re-reading what The Big Chazboski wrote, I’m convinced that HE was more drunk than Brent. It’s just a terrible account of the performance. Perhaps you want to recategorize this blurb, changing its heading from “Rampant Rumors” to “Loads of Lies.” Just an idea…

        • elston_gunn

          Chaz, sorry — my reply was being written while yours was; so I didn’t see yours until mine posted. You were closer than I was, so I won’t dismiss your account entirely. I won’t deny that Brent made a bigger issue than it should have been. To have not come out for a bow is lame, as is playing the final song from off the stage. But Brent did not miss the whole encore, as you say — “Blood and Thunder,” the last number, was the only one. And the break between the main set and the encore was nowhere near 20 minutes. It really wasn’t as bad as you make it out to be — or as bad as Vince is portraying it.

          • Chazboski

            I hate to mislead anyone, I was just far enough right to not see him play backstage, so that is entirely my fault. I misinformed you there. That break, though, seemed to be pushing 15 to 20 minutes. He did come back on momentarily if I remember, but was simply wanking and throwing his guitar around instead of playing the show. While it was entertaining in its own light, I at least took it as a sign of he doesn’t know nor care what was happening at that point, and after messing with his amps a few more times and flipping his guitar over, I never saw him again. So sorry for the mislead on him missing the total encore, I just missed part of it myself I suppose

          • stu1

            He may be exagerating a bit, but you may be really underplaying it, as, it seems that people at several shows on this tour are saying they saw the same or similar behavior, myself included.

  • halloway

    give the guy a fucking break. he was probably just having a bad day. god forbid he has one or two of those while touring his whole life…

    • TonyT

      Ya but you have to understand performing is their fucking job. I’ve had several terrible days but that doesn’t mean I go to my job and throw bitch fits, I’d be fired in a heartbeat. People pay good money to watch them perform and it’s pretty much a slap in the face to fans when he does shit like this.

    • GoingDeaf?

      Nope it’s his fucking JOB. Having an off day where he played a little sloppy or didn’t have his normal energy is going to happen…. this is just unprofessional and would get you instantly fired from a real job.

      People paid (overpaid) good money to see this show, and this baby should not receive any of his share, as he clearly did not complete his part of the contract.

      I’m happy I chose to go to the Ludicra show that night instead, because THAT is a band worth supporting.

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jason-John-Crispen/100000169530540 Jason John Crispen

        an off day gets you fired from your job???? are you a mine sweeper? jesus.

    • stu1

      There is a difference between “having a bad day” and totally losing your mind.

    • Reality check

      Amen brother! I was at the show and it rocked, a few mistakes or not. This is what happens when musicians play instruments and don’t just dance around to backing tracks. Don’t ruin the magic you fairies, metal is supposed to be raw, played drunk, and sometimes, gulp, people break shit, whether they’re mad at a sound guy or not! Cheers Brent, you rock!!!

      • KC

        Yeah but for those ticket prices I don’t want to see a guy in a metal band leave the stage due to technical problems. Like you said, its fucking metal, shit is going to fuck up and he needs to learn how to deal with it appropriately.

        If you went and saw some local band play a show and their singer got pissed and left the stage because of a monitor issue what would you think about them? Prima donna? Get over it? Or would you really be cool with it? What makes Mastodon so different from them? It’s still some sweaty dudes playing metal on stage rocking out. You can’t give this dude a pass just cause you like his band.

  • bearbomb

    More and more I feel like this band will not withstand the test of time. Enjoy them while they still exist people.

    • \m/Eluveitie\m/

      I agree, this is the beginning of the end.

      • Alex_P

        Yeah, pretty much. One more album, then they break up for 6 years, then they’re resurrected (sans Brent Hinds), tour as a legacy act, release a single-disc live album, and never write another good song.

        • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ryan-Sean-Heron/9391234 Ryan Sean Heron

          that sounds eerily and scarily spot on to me.

          • mastodon sux

            saw these guys last night in Eugene, OR….fucking bs….i was waiting 3 months to see these guys come through and I ended up leaving after they played The Czar…fucking piss poor

    • Igottawocket

      … your taking this as the beginning of the end? by that logic the whole “beginning” should have been way back when brent got the shit beat out of him by those system of a down guys. no, brent will continue to be known as a wild personality, and the rest of the band will continue dealing with it like they have for years and making music in the midst of it like they have for years.

  • gatorblast

    This was the same deal in Tucson, I don’t know how many times Brent would look off stage, rage on the sound guy, and then talk some major shit to the crowd about the guy.

    Did I mention he was dressed like he was in Return to Forever?

    • Polaris

      glad i didnt waste my time driving from phx!

  • RayRay

    Hopefully they break up for good and stop making such shitty music.

    • Art Weingartner

      lol, I read that and thought that sounds like something Ray would say. And then I looked up to your name.

      Read my mind, band fuckin’ blows.

    • Igottawocket

      you’re an idiot.
      I think thats all I need to say.
      Actually, both of you are.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Karl-Sterling-Halden/34703222 Karl Sterling Halden

    Well this does explain why I found their crack the sky set to be a little distracting. Their earlier performance in the bay area at San Jose State blew me away but the other night just seemed riddled with sound issues and odd antics by Brent (who is still the man).

    Side note: Baroness stole that show for me.

    • http://sfsludge.blogspot.com Blyan

      Dude the crowed LOVED Baroness, they were awesome. Everyone from all the other bands came to watch High On Fire, who were also great.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Keith-Brown/537636633 Keith Brown

      Baroness fucking RULED, man. For me, though, It sucked that some guys headbutted me during BTBAM’s set and I missed at least 3 out of their 5 songs

    • elston_gunn

      I second the claim that Baronees stole the show. I was excited to see them, but hadn’t anticipated that they’d fucking kick as much ass as they did. Awesome!

      • Matthew Grant Anson

        Yea, Baroness was incredible.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Sam-Shereck/825474139 Sam Shereck

    Fuck this, he better not leave Mastodon.

  • Chris

    THIS is basically the same thing that happened at NEMHF this year. Brent was fucking trashed. Not drunk either, I have no issue with metal dudes who like to get a little tipsy when they play, so long as they can keep it together. Brent was on another fucking planet. They had to bring out a giant posterboard thing w/ all his lyrics so he could read off of it, he didn’t know what he was doing. He played and sang like shit all night, straight up forgetting parts. He ended up leaving in the middle of a song and the remaining 3 were left to awkwardly finish the tune. I think it was Cap Crest, IDR but they ended up cutting their set short by about another 5-6 songs because of Brent’s bullshit and just did a one-song-encore w/ Blood & Thunder. I said hi to Bill as I passed him on the way out, he said hi but was pretty visibly pissed-off. As a long time Mastodon fan I was fucking pissed w/ Brent who ruined an otherwise awesome Masto-performance. He looked like Steven Tyler up there stumbling around. Needs to pull his shit together big time. I wonder if Bill’s “illness” doesn’t have to do w/ Brent’s bullshit antics.

    • sco703

      I don’t think that Bill’s health problems are fake. if that’s what you’re getting at. Personally, I’m sure the band is not happy about it, but I don’t think Bill would sulk about it and just take a few shows off. Not likely at all.

  • Zap Branigan

    He was a little off at the show in Pittsburgh a couple weeks back also. I think he was yelling at someone in the crowd when the band started another song. He made them stop the beginning of it, yell at the guy in the front row, then started the song again. Very bizarre.

    • booortz

      a guy in the front called him a f.a.g. and he threw a hissy fit about it. later some guy in a balcony threw a bottle cap at him so he stormed off stage and came back later and probably flipped the guy off about 8 times over the course of the rest of the set. grow some balls. he’s been touring long enough that he should be able to handle hecklers (and his alcohol) but he fails to and it really drags the rest of the band down.

  • http://reigninblonde.com Angela Gossowski

    The show in Grand Rapids was really off as well. They started off super shakey, the rest of the show was confusing, and they ended up not doing an encore at all. Total, they played about 45 minutes. I don’t think they even knew what was going on, as the house lights kept going on then off at the end of the set. The worst and most disappointing Mastodon show I’ve seen. What the heeeeeeeeck. =(

  • ferris

    Maybe it’s acting up over the uncertainty of the band’s music in the Jonah Hex movie. Can we get an official statement, please, and get this all behind us?

    • kmfcm

      I was about to say, I certainly hope he’s not taking that out on everyone.

      Careful they don’t end up in a “some kind of monster” type situation

    • stu1

      I think that’s a pretty massive stretch.

  • Mal Content

    Brent pulled the same “bad mix” jive at the Starland Ballroom show in NJ and if I’m not mistaken at the Hammerstein during the Dethklok tour as well. After 3 (or was it 4) false starts he turned “The Last Baron” into a half-hour plus ordeal. Tough slog that was.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Sean-Barrie/695461310 Sean Barrie

      3 false starts. I was there. He insisted that there was a problem so bad that he would not play The Last Baron until the problem was resolved. But other than that, I don’t think we encountered any other problems.

      • Alex

        I was at Starland show as well. Brent complained a few times during Crack the SKye set that he couldn’t hear out of his monitor. After the acoustic intro to The Last Baron he stopped, reamed out the sound guys, started again, stopped and finally got it the third time although the sound was still very off. He was visibly pissed but they played a full encore set that sounded spot on. I think Crack the Skye is simply too layered and they are having a hard time pulling it off live. I saw them with Dethklok in NYC night before Halloween and they didn’t stop at all or have any sound issues, but again, Crack the Skye wasn’t as good as I had hoped for live. The album has too many solos and is too layered with different guitars to play live. They still sound great, but not nearly as great as the record does. Their encores are always tighter and better than their Crack the Skye set, unfortunately, cause CTS is an amazing fucking album.

        • sco703

          You know, that’s a good point about the difficulty of pulling off CTS live, but I would still think that they would be able to pull it off for the most part without all this crap happening. I understand a live show will have issues as well since it is LIVE. Good point though!

    • Joshua Kerekes

      I don’t know what show you were at, but from what I remember, he didn’t pull any of that at Hammerstein w/ Dethklok. I was there and they played the same set they played on the first Crack the Skye tour…albeit not as flawlessly, but still without any of the problems mentioned earlier.

  • http://www.myspace.com/thestarsthrewdowntheirspears Tim

    He better suck it up for Rochester after all the waiting/wasted gas & time we’ve had to go through. Seriously, it’s a 3 hour round trip for me, some other people I talked to there drove an 8 hour round trip twice, and while I understand it was out of their control the absolute least he can do is play and sing competently when we finally get to see them the 24th.

  • ferocious_fetus

    Kick him out. He’s ruining the band with his shitty vocals and wanky guitar bullshit.
    more REMISSION, less Crack the Skye.

    • Chud

      Dude, Remission is 10 years old. Give up the fucking ghost already, it ain’t coming back

    • two snakes

      more crack the skye, less bullshit rockstarism sounds like a good deal

    • kmfcm

      Just listen to Intronaut. That’s what I do.

      • stu1

        Listen to Black Tusk or something then. Every one of their records has kind of evolved. Dude’s obviously holding out for them to back track 10 years and 4 records.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Anthony-Showalter/100000592087843 Anthony Showalter

    In San Diego, they were pretty freaking awesome. I think the guitars were too buried in the mix, though. That was a bummer because Baroness sounded so fucking good, they were the best that night. I talked to Baroness later ’cause they were standing out front of HOB, and they had no merch to sell! What the fuck!?

  • Sean

    I saw them in Indy the week before and they did a great set. Bill was still out so the Baroness guys subbed in on various songs. They seemed to enjoy having the other guitarists help out, Brent seemed quite happy and jammed with them on stage when they were on. He seemed spot on too. Sorry to hear other shows haven’t been as good, hope he gets his attitude under control.

    • Aaron

      I saw them in Orlando while they were touring with Dethklok, and they did a great set then too. The majority of these comments look more like speculation than anything else; they’re either going to straighten Brent out or kick him out. He was great in Orlando, and it seems to be a luck of the draw whether or not he’s going to play a good set at any future shows. For the sake of one of my favorite bands, I hope he gets his act together as well.

  • Brian

    saw them in Pomona the night before. sounded like shit and he was pissed at sound guy then as well. it doesnt surprise me that he lost his mind in Oakland. same shit two nights in a row has to be frustrating.

  • Cryzthormagnusian

    So they are drunken prima donnas. Nice.

    • stu1

      At what point in that story does it imply a “they” at all?

    • Chazboski

      The rest of the band was as professional and giving as they could be during that time. They obviously didn’t know what to do, but carried forth anyways, to which I say bravo. A lot of other bands would have just turned the lights on and ended the pain

    • Atlanta_Girl

      @Cryzthormagnusian: THEY are not all drunken prima donnas. Brent is Brent. I mean, come on, he says he cut out the crack and pain pills after his head injury in 2007 on Wikipedia, so it must be true (insert sarcasm drip). Brann is a consummate professional musician and one of the nicest people that I have the pleasure of knowing. Bill is sober since his illness, but I used to see him at the bar everytime I went out. Troy, I don’t know so well. But, he seems to have a handle on things. Don’t generalize the whole band by what you’ve read on a BLOG for fuck’s sake. And, @everyone: Don’t forget that these are still human beings we are talking about. They may be gods of metal, but not of men.

  • TXHellbilly

    He really needs to know off his “rock star” bullshit. He already has a pretty shaky reputation as a drunken prick and it would be a shame for that to effect the entire bands performances on MULTIPLE occaisons. Get your shit together man!! I saw them on the Dethklok tour in Dallas and they put on a great show, hope he gets his shit together.

    • RomuluXX

      Agreed. I was at the Dallas show too and they killed. I would’ve been pissed if Brent pulled this bullshit. He better get it together

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jacquelin-Rostad/635209883 Jacquelin Rostad

    I’m supposed to see them on Friday, and traveling 4 hours for it… So I hope whatever is going on is smoothed out by then. The 2 other times I’ve seen them they were jaw-droppingly amazing, so I’ve still got high hopes for this one.

  • ben

    IF they make it to the Alice in Chains tour, I hope the guys in that band mention a thing or two to Brent about keeping his shit straight.

  • Pete

    At the Burlington, VT show, during the Crack the Skye set, Brent kept signaling to the sound guy during downtimes in the performance, and even a couple times during the set he ran off stage to talk to the mixer. I noticed a lot of feedback. My friend saw them a couple of nights later in Pittsburgh and had the same complaints. I think he needs to grow up, but I think part of the problems this tour are frustrating technical difficulties.

    Word is at the Oakland show he played on “Blood and Thunder,” but it was just off to the side of the stage where he wasn’t really visible.

  • yetzer hara

    mastodon was dead on in baltimore a couple weeks ago. they even played “ol’ nessie,” which i hadn’t seen them do in awhile. everyone was 100% on point. i’ve seen mastodon have an off night before, but not in several years.

  • booortz

    sounds like he’s pulling this shit everywhere lately. he’s a dirtbag and a big baby of one at that

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Zach-Eustice/13934861 Zach Eustice

    Seeing them next week at ROTR, really hope they have their shit together. Amazing band.

  • Bierko

    They should break up and reform Lethargy.

    • Matthew Grant Anson

      lololol

  • Seer

    I watched them just last night in Reno. Brent seemed totally fine, no issues whatsoever. Vocals/guitar sounded great. This surprises me actually after them putting on such a badass show.

    • >_>

      I was going to go to that show but the weather said it was snowing in the mountains I would have to go through to get to Reno, and we don’t have a 4 wheel drive car. =[

      Glad to hear there was no bullshit going on at the gig by any of the bands, even though I personally don’t care for mastodons music that doesn’t make it any less bad when shit like that is pulled. Eh I take that back, if a band I really respected pulled that shit (even if I just heard about it, but didn’t witness) I would pretty much lose most of my respect for them (whoever did the bitchy nonsense), sure I would still listen to the music but I might not buy an album.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ian-Verdugo/1128951014 Ian Verdugo

    Shitty sound sucks, they’ve come far enough to where they should sound killer every night. That would be enough to really piss me off. But to do that to your crowds are there to see you is the definition of uncool.

  • http://infinitybasement.tumblr.com Jon

    Goddamn! I just bought BlackDiamondSkye Tix!

  • Seb

    With the amount of touring that Mastodon does, I’d say this is low-percentage occurrence. I’ve seen them live 4 times since 2004 and they’ve always been professional.

  • Dirtman73

    Fuck Mastodon. I’ve tried giving their albums a chance, even though they all sound the fucking same to my ears. I’ve tried to enjoy their music, and despite what everyone else seems to say about Mastodon, I just can’t get past the shitty production and muddled sound mix on every fucking release. These recent stories only cement my belief that they aren’t going to be around much longer and, after that, no one is going to give a flying shit about their music anymore.

    Fuck Mastodon hard. There are plenty of other bands out there who are just as talented as Mastodon, but those bands are willing to put maximum effort into their chosen career. Getting piss drunk before shows, picking fights, and acting like a spoiled brat aren’t the best ways to endear your “legacy” to your fans. Brett Hinds is a fucking prick.

    • stu1

      All of their records sound the same?? You’re out of your mind. I could see maybe saying that about the 1st 2, or the most recent 2 (even though I think each of those are distinct) but Crack the Skye does NOT sound like Remission. And shitty production and muddled mixes?
      I really think maybe you have never heard the band Mastodon.

      • Dirtman73

        Yeah, their albums all sound the same to me. So what? I’m glad your ears can discern the difference, be proud. And as far as the mixing they utilize, it only sounds like mush to me. It’s like a Wall of Sound effect they try to go for, but it comes out like shit and doesn’t do any justice to their music. They wanna be a stoner band but they can’t mix their sound well enough to make it worth listening to while high.

        Sorry I’m on a rant, but I’m tired of Mastodon being referred to as saviors of metal by clueless dorks who are too lazy to take a trimmer to their fucking beards every once in a blue moon.

        • stu1

          The albums are so different at times that I stand by my assumption that you either haven’t heard the right band, or that you’re out of your mind.
          Also, their mixes are generally great.

          • Dirtman73

            Bull. Listen to some other bands before you declare that Mastodon know what the fuck they’re doing when it comes to studio production and sound.

            For technical comparisons, grab a 5.1 DVD copy of Leviathan and run it against stuff like-
            NIN- The Downward Spiral
            BtBaM- The Great Misdirect
            Tomahawk- Mit Gas
            ISIS- Wavering Radiant

            If you can’t tell the drastic difference in quality between those efforts and Leviathan, then you shouldn’t be listening to 5.1 mixes anyway. There’s no doubt that the members of Mastodon are talented dudes, but they make lo-fi albums, whether they’re recorded in 5.1 or stereo or whatever other format happens to be lying around at the time. If I want to hear lo-fi, I listen to the Ramones or fucking Guitar Wolf. I expect better of bands like Mastodon that have a full arsenal of technical wizardry at their fingertips.

        • Snafu

          Obviously, you’re deaf.

        • SourDeez

          Their mixes are excellent dude, I’m sorry. You’re clearly unfamiliar with audio in general. And each album has a completely different vibe and compositional style. There is a certain point where your opinion ceases to be an opinion and actually becomes wrong, and you have reached that point.

    • sco703

      None of their albums sound the same at all. That’s one of the best things about Mastodon is that their sound evolves with each new album. So, I have no idea what the hell you are talking about. Their production in no way is shitty. What exactly is shitty? Please fill me in as I think you are misinformed and clueless with what you are talking about.

    • Atlanta_Girl

      His name is Brent. I think maybe you haven’t really heard the band.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Sterner/1335958279 Andrew Sterner

    Seems like the account’s really biased, and has more to do with the technician failing. If memory serves right, they always seem to have issues with the mixing, at least when I’ve seen them(the guitars are always way to quiet).

  • Lard

    The dude’s on crack what would you expect

  • liv33vil

    Saw them twice on this tour and both times his monitor wound up kicked off of the stage but both still great shows

  • http://www.twitter.com/iheartsnuggles iheartsnuggles

    Firday night at the Pomona something was obviously wrong. Lots of of feedback from the mic which meant he wasn’t singing into it and he just seemed off through Crack the Skye.

    Anyway, Baroness fucking killed it Friday night. Those guys are animals on stage.

  • Sabbathfan

    Fuck that alcoholic asshole. No wonder he gets the shit kicked outta him. Surprised it doesn’t happen more often.

  • Balls

    I was at the show and I dont totally agree with the description above.

    Nearly every band sounded like shit from the get-go. Priestess was like WTF, Baroness was amazing but you barely hear the guitars, High on Fire sounded like fucking shit, and BTBAM was slightly better.

    Brett didnt seem out of the ordinary fucked up. You couldnt hear his vocals, nor the guitars really. Anyone whose seen Mastodon recently knows they have taken a 10 minute break every time after they finish Crack the Skye….

    Just read the comments, Blyan and Elston’s description is way more accurate.

    • Chazboski

      I know they take a 10 minute break, but this seemed overly excessive compared to the shows I’ve seen before. It really did appear to me that Brent may have been ill as he seemed to almost collapse at least once. Just based on how many times Troy had to sing all the vocals and Brent’s wreck-less attitude on stage, something had to be wrong. I’ve never seen them perform this horridly.

      • Aaron

        Was it ever considered that the longer break was due to frustration? Maybe he was pissed at the mixing and refused to take the stage until it was fixed, which it apparently wasn’t?

  • Metalguy

    Where’s shavo odadjian when you need him?

    • sco703

      It wasn’t Shavo who punched Brent.

  • kmfcm

    Are they still using that chorus effect or whatever it is on the vocals when they play the CTS songs?
    I saw them at Irving. . . . Last year I think. . .and only during those songs, the vocals sounded fucking weird.
    They didn’t sound like that for the encore at all.

  • CharlieB

    Brent is another drunk drugged up raging asshole “rockstar” with a huge fucking ego. The band should give him an ultimatum, either straighten up, or fuking get lost.

  • Seer

    Its funny to me that the commenters most pissed off about brent’s “rock-star” attitude aren’t even fans in the first place. Why do you care what he does? I’d much rather have a wasted brent playing poorly then Between the Buried and Me playing at their so-called best.

    • Igottawocket

      I don’t get all the BTBAM buzz either, they didn’t wow me much at all…

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Trip-Cahouet/706361037 Trip Cahouet

    Scott Stapp, much?

  • http://reaper-x.deviantart.com/ Reaper-X

    It would have been funny if he was like. ‘”WE STILL HAVE ALL YOUR FUCKIN’ MONEY!”

    • Dan O.

      “And we will spend it on drugs!!!”

  • Fufkin

    Well he’s the definition of loose cannon – it’s the rough with the smooth every time with him. But it looks like the band are getting too big for this kind of jazz and jive.

  • Eric

    i was at the oakland show and im still fucking furious and want my moeny back. the sound was HORRID. it sounded like a young teenager figuring out his four track recorder for the first time. FUCK

  • Bart

    Preface: I was at the show Saturday and am a die hard Mastodon fan as well as a gigging musician who knows sound and dealing with bad mixes.

    I think anyone who is saying that things sounded fine performance-wise is out of their mind. Now I can’t comment on the monitor mix but they have been playing this set on tour for what, a year and a half now? Almost every single transition from the beginning of the set was disjointed and sloppy. Rhythmically it was a nightmare. Since their set is so challenging, I would give them a free pass, except for the fact that they are pro and we paid good money to check them out.

    As far as sound, aside from the vocal mix I didn’t think it was THAT bad. All night things sounded pretty bass heavy, though.

    All I know is I saw Brent Hinds flailing about, signaling to his keyboardist to get him a water or some weird crap, overpushing his vox, etc. We didn’t stay after the Crack the Skeye album was done because it was so sloppy anyway, and we already saw the kick ass version of them in San Jose a while back. Well, I guess after we left it spiraled even further done. I almost regret missing the trainwreck.

  • Bart

    Seb says: May 10, 2010 at 5:02 pm
    With the amount of touring that Mastodon does, I’d say this is low-percentage occurrence. I’ve seen them live 4 times since 2004 and they’ve always been professional.

    Hey Seb, I definitely don’t doubt it, but this is the 3rd time I have seen them and Brent freaked out at Outside Lands in SF too last year because he broke a couple of strings during the set. The cohesiveness was WAY better than the Oakland show though. I’m telling you man, it was BAD. I can’t believe people are only blaming the mix. I don’t think they nailed one transition the whole night.

    I still support these guys to the max. Truth is you’re going to have bad nights. Just sucks I was there for one. Baroness was the SHIT though.

    • Igottawocket

      Baroness is ALWAYS the shit.

  • David

    I was at the Oakland show and didn’t see things go down like that…Mastodon played the entire Crack the Skye set well, but there was some kinda sound/feedback issue…which was a shame in hindsight because Baroness’ set was near flawless sound-wise (perhaps it’s the Badcats?). Anyways, it didn’t affect the show or energy that I could tell and my guitar player buddy said that Hinds leads were smokin’. Holy shit, where did he get those guitars?!?!

    The encores were a little lackluster and I left during Crystal Skull, so I didn’t catch the drama. But, I was pretty freakin’ buzzed, as were a lot of people down front, lurchin’ around. Lotsa drunks out that night. Great show.

    But nobody bought poor Valient Thorr a drink, sorry fellas!

  • Igottawocket

    I don’t know why this is surprising to anyone, Brent has been known to be a wild, unpredictable personality for years. In tons of interviews the band has said that he has his highs and lows and that they just roll with it, not getting in his space when he gets pissed. I mean, I’ve seen them 3 times in the past year, once at the free show here in Albuquerque where Brent was obviously not having a good night (he was pretty stoic the whole night but played alright then at the end of the set just set his guitar down and booked it). Then on the Dethklok tour he was way on and happy, joking with the guys and watching High on Fire’s set, and same thing on this tour. He playfully kicked Troy and the two were laughing with each other. I think he’s just a guy whos all over the place. All the power to him.

  • Eric

    me too bart…been playing for years small clubs to big festivals in europe and seen many shows as well as crazy sgit happeinign at shows..but this pissed me off more than anything…

  • yetzer hara

    all of this is really weird… i mean, i definitely believe the accounts of mr. hinds’ behavior, having been witness to both his on and offstage behavior many times over the years. i’ve probably seen mastodon play 20-30 times over the last ten years, from small clubs with less than 20 people there to huge festivals, and i’ve never once seen brent act like this.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Kyle-Kessler/1031820406 Kyle Kessler

    Man, I’m glad I saw them when they were touring with Dethklok. Would’ve seen them at the Oakland show, but uh, if you’re from the Bay Area, you already know Oakland sucks.

  • John

    I was at the Oakland show and flew in to see them in Reno too. It was total night and day. The oakland show was excatly as decribed in the article but the Reno show was amazing and they nailed it and playing a set almost twice as long.

  • Eric

    the fox theatre in oakland is one of the best places to see a band.

    • ACoffinShip

      You certainly couldn’t tell by Saturday’s show. I honestly don’t know what the deal was, but I got there partway through Valient Thorr’s set and every single band sounded like shit. Vocals were pretty much lost in the mix across the board, High on Fire’s bass was cranked up way too high and their set was one massive, muddy mess. Baroness and Between the Buried and Me came out of it okay and Mastodon’s mixing seemed to start out okay but by The Last Baron shit was fucked, to put things mildly.

      That isn’t to say it wasn’t a fun show, this is the first time I’ve seen Baroness since the Blue Record came out and they absolutely blew me away. Despite their sound being shot to hell, High on Fire were a blast. But that was despite the horrible fucking sound.

      Throw in Brent’s tantrum and his supremely lackluster performance and it just was an unfulfilling experience. Troy’s vocals fucking slayed though.

  • Pete

    There were similar moments in Saureville NJ during “The Last Baron’. They had to play the intro 3 times because of problems with Brent’s monitor the first time, then with the guitar falling out of tune the second. I recall thinking of the occurence as a “hissy fit”, at first, but when he said something to the effect of “If I’m gonna do this, I want to be sure I’m doing it right,” I thought, “Well all right.”

    I think they might be burning out on playing the “Crack The Skye” set every night. They played the first 3 songs off that album really fast in Sayreville…

    • http://myspace.com/dementismetal666 Brendan

      I was actually at the Sayreville, NJ show. The Last Baron definitely counts as a hissy fit to me, there was some feedback from the subs (not really feedback as much as a low drone, like a loose cone), but he was still singing on key (not that his mic was loud enough to really effect the song anyway). He stopped it the first time by yelling “Stop! Stop!” into the microphone and even grabbed Brann’s cymbals to stop him. He started yelling “The sub’s too fucking loud! I can’t sing if I can’t hear myself!” While that would be “meh, whatever” if he was a heavily articulated lead vocalist who absolutely needs a perfect mix in order to sing, I’ve seen these guys play basement and bar shows with no sound board and minimal amplification and they were still spot on.

      The second time he stopped the song, he stated “If you’re not going to turn the fucking sub down then they can play the song without me, I’m not going to fucking sing if I can’t hear myself. I can’t hear and it’s bullshit, my fucking guitar is out of tune and it’s bullshit. This whole thing is fucking bullshit”. He also randomly shouted “I’m not a fucking pussy, I don’t wear ear protection!”

      After a few moments of his unfortunate guitar tech retuning the guitar, people darting around the stage, and the keyboardist cover for his diva behavior, he finally declared “third time’s a fucking charm”.

      That’s definitely not professionalism to me. If he’s so concerned with the quality of his performance he should wear in-ear monitors (the price definitely isn’t a problem for Hinds) or simply singing to the best of his ability without an ample mix. It’s more professional to botch the vocalizations of a single song than to make an entire set seem to come down around you.

      Then again, I guess BTBAM set the mood for the night when the singer stopped the set to yell at some dude who yelled “You suck dick!” haha

  • You Don’t Know Me

    As much as I hate to say it, if Brent has been acting like this, I’m expecting him to leave the band probably by the fall if not sooner. I don’t want it to happen, but I can see it happening.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Dan-Roshin-Wolfson/557092638 Dan Roshin Wolfson

    doesn’t he smoke crack?

  • Marlboro Man

    Brent Mustaine!

    • Beenyad

      Lol fucking exactly.

  • Jim Flames

    Having seen Mastodon over in Bristol, in the UK, only a couple of months ago where they were absolute top form – all four of them – this is a major disappointment to hear. Whatever is wrong with Brent I hope they sort it out. Mastodon is not only an excellent band, but they’re far too important to just crash and burn like this especially when it’s obvious that musically they could do just about anything.

  • Lucifersmile

    Having known Brent, I can’t say I’m surprised. I thought this would happen years ago.

  • kingheadcrab

    sound was bad and brent bitched out, this has been discussed. what i wanna know about is the guy who ran across the stage and got tackled at the end of crystal skull. or did nobody else see that?

    • Chazboski

      He did get laid the fuck out

    • Aaron

      lolololol

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jake-Ryan/596440962 Jake Ryan

    i saw mastodon at the fox theater in oakland on saturday (the 8th) and i know that they had played the same venue the day before so this must have been the night before i saw them. on saturday brent totally nailed it (as did the rest of the band) so i suppose they resolved any technical (or personal) problems from the night before. although brent DID skip out on the last song (blood and thunder) so i dont know what was going on there.

    • elston_gunn

      Jake — everyone’s talking about the same show you are. (Mastodon didn’t play the same venue the night before. On the 7th, they played The Fox in Pomona, not in Oakland.) It’s just that most people are exaggerating what happened. I was there, too, and — as my posts much higher up the screen indicate — I agree with you that what transpired really wasn’t so crazy or intolerable.

      • Coozer

        I was there too. I thought they played awesome. Yeah he left the stage leaving the lonely keybordist standing there in the corner. But we were all ok with it.(cool video kept us all distracted) From the other people that were there I heard no complaints. When they came back and left us all with Blood and Thunder I’m sure we were all satisfied lol. Even if they didn’t finish every song in the album. They played a great show on Saturday. Calm down, stop over reacting everyone. He threw a fit. Very unprofessional, but he doesn’t deserve to be fired or anything like that.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Dustin-Saulsbury/1422197225 Dustin Saulsbury

    He was acting like a dick at the NJ show. Someone fire this uninspired motherfucker already.

  • Killer Kovarik

    I’m seeing these guys on friday.
    They better not cancel, and Brent better be their!
    I’ll be pissed off if they do.

  • Beenyad

    Man, I am like Brent’s biggest fan and hes my biggest inspiration probably but hes been pulling some asshole moves lately. I mean I don’t know if its the alcohol or just him but its getting ridiculous. If your reading this Brent your making an ass out of yourself so fucking stop.

  • zach

    “Brent, thanked the audience for being there, and asked if we wanted one more. Bringing out another mic stand, Bill sang backups to ”Blood and Thunder” and gracefully let the show die out into the night with no trace of Brent.”

    I’m guessing that was a typo?

  • WV

    was spot on in pittsburgh

    i did however see him go in a bar few hours before the show

  • Danexmurder

    When they played in Baltimore a couple of weeks ago everything went well for them. Brent seemed high or drunk or maybe just tired, but he did all his parts just fine without any issues, even if he was a little on the low-energy side.

    Baroness, unfortunately, had a ton of guitar issues. It was their first night on the tour, and I felt really terrible for them. They powered through it though and put on one hell of a show. No bitching, no acting like babies, they were absolutely professional about the whole thing, apologized at the end of their set, and the crowd loved them that much more for it. They were the highlight of the night.

    Maybe Brent should have been paying attention.

  • BruisedMetal

    I was at the NE Metal and Hardcore fest and thought it was weird that when Brent sang it didnt even sound like words some of the time … I figured maybe he was too drunk or something but maybe it was just that time of the month for Brent

  • metalrenee

    I was going to get tickets to BlackDiamondSkye but decided against it because I would only really be going for Mastodon and tickets are way to expensive to justify it for the amount of times I’ve seen them. Now I REALLY don’t want to get tix if Brent is going to behave this way live. It’s disappointing and really worrying. I hope this isn’t idicative of a breakup!

    I was also thinking that it’s pretty selfish of Brent to get so wasted around Bill who is obviously struggling with alcoholism on the road to the point where he’s considering leaving. You’d think every member of the band would support him and try to make it as easy as possible for him, but I guess not.

    • sco703

      Where did you hear this about Bill struggling with alcoholism?

      • Aaron

        His pancreaititis is a result of his heavy drinking. AKA If he drinks, his pancreas becomes inflames. So he can’t drink. And he’s having trouble doing just that. AKA Alcoholism.

  • Eric

    they did blood and thunder without brent and i believe a roadie played guitar on the side of the stage…

  • Bowie Twombly

    yea it was a bit fucked up no doubt. i was at max 8 feet away from brents mic for their entire set and he was definitely having technical issues. During baronesses set i saw him watching them and drinking and i have no doubt he was drunk. he had all the lyrics printed out and taped between his monitors and he still didnt get them all. you could definitely see him getting more and more pissed off as the night went on, trying to signal people and eventually just trying to fix the amps on his own. troy and the others were great tho and i have tons of respect for them for playing on anyways

  • Josh

    Being from Australia, the first chance I ever had to see Mastodon was the Big Day Out festival
    while playing in Sydney on the first day of the festival, Brent continually called the mid-day mainstage crowd getting ready for alternative rock and pop bands shit, reffered to the festival as the “Shit Day Out” and played the entirety of the Last Baron behind an amp stack, coming out to sing a line or two
    the next day they played a much better set with Brent being involved completly and being brilliant. The man has bad days and good days, and if the crowd doesn’t suit him he can be an asshole

  • http://heavybrutal.com/ familyghost

    lol @ the few fanboys defending this redneck gaylord. mastadon is sweet but brent has always been a dillhole. I hope they fire his retarded ass.

    • SourDeez

      The problem is, he’s not really replaceable as a guitarist. He’s forged a signature sound that has become a staple of Mastodon’s signature sound. Where are you gonna find another guy who plays metal yet learned to play the banjo before he learned to play the guitar? He hurts the band sometimes, but his sound is too important to let go.

      • sco703

        Agreed. He’s too important to the band. And it’s not like this is the first time his behavior has been disruptive. We’re talking about a guy who used to drink and do drugs like crazy (and probably still does somewhat, but not as much since his incident). I just can’t see them getting rid of Brent. Doesn’t he write most of the music anyways? I’m pretty sure at least for CTS that he wrote most of the music and you can tell by the sound that he’s had to have been a large part in their previous stuff as well. I don’t even want to see Brent go. I just feel like this is a minor hiccup in their career. I don’t see anything too bad coming out of this.

  • Anon

    Such a shame, I really dig his guitar solos too.

  • Bucket0Bones

    I saw them a couple months back and I’m glad nothing like this happened.

    When I saw them Brent was the one getting the crowd pumped up, playing solos right in front of our faces, always interacting with the crowd.

    I guess he was sober.

  • Sin and Death

    Come on, everybody. We all know why this happened. Brent realized there was no way he could possibly follow-up Between the Buried and Me, and his fragile little mind couldn’t bear the stress. It happens…

  • douche cougar

    well damn.
    They were in RARE form in Grand Rapids sans Bill…

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ryan-Sean-Heron/9391234 Ryan Sean Heron

    how very axl rose like of brent.

  • eric

    anyone who thinks that oakland show was “ok” is easily impressed by mediocrity. they were terrible. production and performance. easily one of the worst ive ever seen for a band with such a cool album. yes its lo-fi with a crappy mastering job, but the songs come through good…

  • Kris

    Ive been listening to them for awhile, and honestly, with the kind of shit there passing as music these days I wouldnt shed a tear if they broke up.

  • SourDeez

    Mastodon is a very unpredictable band in a live setting. I’ve seen them many, many times and most of the shows have ranked around the top live experiences I’ve ever had. Great sound, great crowd energy, great stage presence, awesome visuals, and thoughtful setlist choices. However, I have been to a couple of their shows where Brent was too drunk to even be in public, let alone onstage playing a show. I view this as a tricky issue, because on the one hand I think rock and metal has become completely pussified lately. It seems like most metal musicians nowadays are average joes except with bigger beards and tattoos. There are no more volatile, cranky, unpredictable, substance-abusing rock stars, and I think there’s something wrong with that. That larger than life personality is something that absolutely belongs in the rock/metal scene, even if it means a show or two might turn into a fiasco. On the other hand, I do have respect for a certain level of professionalism. You do have a responsibility to your fans, what with them buying your shirts and coming to your shows and therefore ensuring your continued success and whatnot. When people pay to see you play, and you’re too drunk to give them what they paid for, that’s a real dick move. I fully support a certain level of arrogance and shitty behavior from rock musicians, in fact I think there should be more of it, but at the very least make sure you’re capable of doing your job.

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ryan-Sean-Heron/9391234 Ryan Sean Heron

      there can be a balance between professionalism and having a larger than life personality. Zakk Wylde has a mega larger than life rockstar persona and is known to be crazy rowdy drunk nearly all the time, however he always shows up on time and in shape to deliver a top of his game performance for every show.

  • rAULITO666

    i was there!..he’s such a bitch!…that’s all right cuz HIGH ON FIRE and The Baroness blew them out the water!..i know now why someone in vegAS busted his head open,not that condone that shit,but deserving!

  • http://www.flickr.com/photos/glittergina Gina C

    I saw Mastodon at Starland Ballroom and at NE Metal Fest and got a diva fit at each show from Brent.

    The NJ Starland show fit was slightly understood. Apparently the sound wasn’t to his liking and he stopped The Last Baron a few times to get the venue to fix the sound. He said that he wanted to make sure the sound was right because we (the fans) paid good money to see the band perform the songs the right way. I respect that BUT it wrecked the mood (it was at the end of the Crack the Skye performance) AND I didn’t hear any of the shitty sound issues Brent talked about. He also called out his own guitar tech for screwing up the tuning on his guitar and said it wasn’t the first time he fucked up. Ouch.

    During that same show, Troy (or Bill) had issues with his instrument but just played through as if the sound was OK and didn’t throw a fit (like a professional does it) but to each his own.

    At Metal Fest a few days later, I saw Brent before the Cro-Mags went on and stopped by to say hello. I thanked him for chewing out the Starland staff for better sound (that place can honestly blow when it comes to volume) and he said that he fired his guitar tech that very night. I laughed but he was serious and said they hired him a new one today (as in the day of Metal Fest). And he wasn’t too friendly of a dude (shocked?) but that’s life sometimes.

    The Metal Fest show was when shit got stupid. Brent definitely threw a tantrum claiming the same things (sound isn’t right, instruments aren’t tuned) and kept the crowd waiting for a good 10-15 minutes with the keyboard drones blasting (like the Oakland show). The band came back eventually with Brent standing in the back and not speaking while Brann thanked everyone for being patient. Troy hopped on the mic next and apologized for the delay and then said, “Life happens sometimes,” before they finished up with “Blood and Thunder.”

    Something definitely seemed off with those guys at Metal Fest and it’s a complete shame because they’re talented dudes and (from what fans told me in the crowd) the rest of the band is really chill.

    Wonder if the BlackDiamondSkye is going to turn into the BlackDiamond tour…

  • Noel

    Search jesus, some of you guys are so fast to say ‘oh, well, this band is done’ and ‘god, that guys a fucking piece of shit.’ if you werent at the show, than dont judge by one persons account. yes, he was drunk and not completing parts is very shitty, especially when our a huge act with loyal fans, but we like to forget these are real people, not action figures. they go threw stuff. i think it sucks he has to do it, but dont call the whole band out.

  • Jeff

    The reason Brent has been so mad is cause i hung out with the guy back last week at there gig at The Orbit Room in GR. He openly admitted to us he is board of the music and tired of Kelliher bullshit. He has a medical condition yes that doctors recommend that he DOESN’T drink but one night after a gig he over did it yet again and fucked himself over putting him in the hospital which made him miss out on the gig that i seem mastodon at and i guess a couple other shows. So don’t make Brent look like the asshole when he has to put up with that shit.

    • mom

      Well Jeff I can see why you and Brent got along . You’re both fucking idiots .

  • http://www.flamingtusk.com Zosimus

    My guess is that everyone in the band is going to start feeling a hell of a lot better once they put this whole “we’ve gotta play all of Crack The Skye every single night” thing behind them. C’mon, guys… it was cool for a little while after the album came out but please… for your sake and for ours, just go back to playing a regular Mastodon show and lose the gimmick.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Christopher-McEvoy/1634079002 Christopher McEvoy

    I saw Brent do the same thing back in 2002 for a Remission tour show. I don’t think it’s entirely out of character for him. However, reading through all these posts — It does sound like Brent and the rest of the band are totally burned out from nearly a year solid of touring. I’d rather see them knock off and take a year or so off than do this silly tour with the Deftones and AIC. I’m not going.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Dustin-Saulsbury/1422197225 Dustin Saulsbury

    I second this.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Chuck-Wagner/506137459 Chuck Wagner

    I saw Mastodon on the Dethklok tour in Minneapolis last October and they fucking kicked ass.

    Brent Hinds needs to smoke more weed.

  • angela

    Brent is one of the nicest guys I know,it’s really interesting to read this shit because people seem to forget the fact that their stage presence is exactly just that. Their a fucking Metal band…don’t expect them to be full composed and sing some feel good songs. Brent is a brilliant guy, he’s also hardcore fucking smart. He gets pissed easily because he’s constantly touring, and I’m sure people piss him off, in fact I know they do. But for the people that really know him, they know what he’s about.

  • SpeedBump

    I saw them on May 7th in Pomona with Baroness and BTBAM; they were horrible. We got to the venue late – just in time for Baroness’ last two songs (who. by the way, totally kicked it out). BTBAM were meh, but I’m not the biggest fan, which I’m sure most of the “meh”ness can and should be attributed to. Then Mastodon took the stage and got off to a very rocky start. I was posted up right next to the sound booth and immediately everyone in the same general vicinity began evil-eying the sound guy as if to say, “you need fix this shit.” Well, long story short, shit didn’t get fixed. Guitars sounded blown-out, and the vocals (when you could actually hear them) sounded like they were coming from some overzealous fan singing in the shower. Though, I must say, fresh-from-recovery-Bill seemed to have no problem holding down his axe and vocal duties. Kudos. Other than that, probably the most disappointing show I’ve ever been to. Sure as shit am glad I didn’t have to pay for those tickets; thanks Volcom.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Alex-De-Nicolo/728541634 Alex De Nicolo

    I was at that show in general admission. When they all finally got back out after Brent’s fit he was fucking up so bad on where strides the behemoth and crystal skull, then he just kind of gave up and walked off stage for Blood and Thunder, but i could still see him offstage playing guitar and talking to some girl. This sucks because on the Dethklok/ Mastodon headline tour they kicked ass

  • josh

    Just saw them 5/18/10. No problems. No fits. Just kickass rock and roll.

  • http://wearealone.tumblr.com dan

    I confirm josh’s statement, saw them on the 18th and they kicked ass. Blew away baroness in my opinion. They played crack the skye first and that was only okay, either because i don’t know those songs too well yet or they’ve had more time to practice their older songs live. The rest of the set was awesome though. Hope Brent’s got his shit together for good now. The sound did suck ass though but that’s not their problem.

  • anon

    i fully back his antics and i gotta say, yeah Mastodon has played in basements and toured for years- yeah that gets tiring man so just cause they made it and get a choice of beer in their concert riders and have a bus instead of a van now doesn’t mean shit hasn’t built up in all those years.

    and srsly- whats more rock and roll than getting pissed off and piss drunk? I hate to say it but when did Chris Cornell start sucking? yeah thats right, when he stopped drinking and got his life together! Next time your in NY, beer is on me Brent.