Brent Hinds, former lead guitarist for the band Mastodon, died in a motorcyle crash in Atlanta on Wednesday. WANF reported the 51-year-old’s death, citing the Fulton County medical examiner’s office. Hinds was riding a Harley Davidson when the driver of a BMW SUV lost control, the publication added.
First responders described Hinds as ‘unresponsive’ at the scene, the Associated Press reported.
The band, mourning his sudden loss, shared: “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.”
Why Brent Hinds left Mastodon
Formed in 2000 alongside bassist Troy Sanders, guitarist Bill Kelliher and drummer Brann Dailor, Mastodon quickly emerged as one of the most innovative forces in heavy music.
Their third studio album, Blood Mountain (2006), marked their breakthrough into the Billboard 200’s Top 40, and the group would go on to achieve three Top 10 albums. Both Once More ’round the Sun (2014) and Emperor of Sand (2017) topped the Rock Album chart, with the latter earning them a Grammy win in 2017 for Best Metal Performance with Sultan’s Curse.
Hinds parted ways with Mastodon in March 2025. The band announced they had ‘mutually decided to part ways’, adding, “We’re deeply proud of and beyond grateful for the music and history we’ve shared and we wish him nothing but success and happiness in his future endeavors.”
However, social media posts from Hinds at the time suggested tensions with his former bandmates.
Mastodon earned six Grammy nominations over their career. Rolling Stone even ranked their 2011 release The Hunter among the year’s best albums, praising how they “streamlined their molten thrash into a taut thwump that doesn’t pull back one bit on their natural complexity of innate weirdness.”
Hinds had recently turned his attention back to Fiend Without a Face, the long-running side project he led during his Mastodon years, and was preparing for a European tour later this year.
(With AP inputs)
