"I'm just someone that really, really, really, thoroughly, and honesty enjoys playing guitar ... It makes me happy," exclaims Mastodon's Brent Hinds in the latest installment of the Atlanta band's The Making of Crack the Skye documentary series. "What I enjoy most is playing guitar solos."
The hesher says his secret to writing guitar solos lies totally in improvisation. He lets his brain slide into "autopilot" mode, saying, "the first thing I play is pretty much how the solo goes." An extended shot shows off Hind's mind-bending natural abilities in the studio, followed by him smiling during the playback and confirming he's happy with the outcome.
Focusing next on Bill Kelliher's role in the writing, the guitarist explains he tried to sit back a little in the mix so as not to over-complicate the outcome. "I always try to harmonize," he says, but he also "kind of laid back a little bit as well. I didn't want to go over the top too much."
Over the top would have been quite simple with the seemingly limitless amount of vintage equipment the band had at their disposal during the sessions. In a shot filmed while driving, drummer Brann Dailor tells the story of how Kelliher, Hinds, and bassist Troy Sanders had everything they could dream of at their disposal, all without the hassle of renting equipment to make the album. Hinds recalls renting a huge box truck and brought "shitloads" of amps, guitars, and various other goods into the studio. The rest of the video focuses on the minutiae of these finds, a gearhead's dream, before the crew blows off steam by sneaking into a closed pool to do cannonballs.
