It feels like the rock world has been hit by some pretty devastating blows over the last month – first, we lost Ozzy. Now? We’ve lost Brent Hinds.
Brent Hinds, the former guitarist of Mastodon, passed away earlier this week after being involved in a motorcycle accident. And, in honour of Hinds‘ life, the band dedicated their entire recent performance in Alaska last night to their ex-guitarist.
And while tributes have been pouring out for Hinds, with artists like Queens Of The Stone Age, William DuVall (Alice In Chains), Lacuna Coil, Machine Head, Gene Hoglan, Dave Witt (Municipal Waste), Gary Holt (Exodus), Opeth, and so many more sharing their sentiments and stories of Hinds to various social media platforms, it feels fitting that Mastodon was the first band to pay tribute to Brent Hinds on stage. Last night was Mastodon‘s first show since the loss of Hinds, and at the end of the set, guitarist and vocalist Brann Dailor took a few moments to honour the ex-guitarist.
Dailor told the audience (as transcribed by Blabbermouth):
”We lost somebody very special to us yesterday. Brent Hinds, 25 years with us as our guitar player, one of the most creative, beautiful people that we’ve ever come across in this world, tragically left us. Very, very unfortunate. We loved him so, so, so very much. And we had the ups and downs of a 25-year relationship. You know what I mean? It’s not always perfect, it’s not always amazing, but we were brothers to the end. And we really loved each other and we made a lot, a lot of very beautiful music together. And I think that that’s gonna stand the test of time, evidenced by you people here tonight.
“So we will continue to play [Hinds]’s beautiful, beautiful music that he helped us make, that we formed this band together and traveled the world together, slept in a van together, laid our heads down on beds of fucking kitty litter, got way too drunk to remember anything the next day about a thousand, million times over and over again with the love that we shared and the beauty, all the audiences that we played, for all the stages we stepped on.
“I don’t know. We’re just at a loss for words. We’re absolutely devastated and crushed to lose him and to be able to never have him back again. But you guys made it okay for us to come on stage and do this tonight. So that was for fucking [Hinds], okay?! Thank you guys so much. We will see you real soon. Okay? I’m gonna give you guys some fucking pieces of wood, okay? We love you.
“Thank you, Alaska, for having us. It’s the 50th state for us to cross off of our bucket list. So thank you for the amazing milestone and thank you for helping us get through that one. It was fucking tough for us, but you guys are fucking amazing, so thank you, thank you, thank you once again. We’ll see you real soon, okay?! We love you, we love you, love you, love you so much. Good night.”
This comes after Mastodon issued a more official statement on Thursday (21 August), stating:
“We are in a state of unfathomable sadness and grief… last night Brent Hinds passed away as a result of a tragic accident. We are heartbroken, shocked, and still trying to process the loss of this creative force with whom we’ve shared so many triumphs, milestones, and the creation of music that has touched the hearts of so many. Our hearts are with Brent’s family, friends, and fans. At this time, we please ask that you respect everyone’s privacy during this difficult time.”
As previously reported, Hinds was killed in an accident on August 20 in a crash while riding a Harley Davidson when the driver of a BMW SUV failed to yield while making a turn an intersection.
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