🎸 Progressive Metal · 2004

Blood and Thunder by Mastodon (Riff · Distorted) — Guitar Tone

by Mastodon · riff

The Blood and Thunder by Mastodon guitar tone is built on a Marshall JMP Mark II Lead / Diezel VH4 into Orange PPC412 cabs, dialed in at gain 7.5/10, bass 6.5, mid 4.5, treble 6.5, presence 6 (community-researched baseline). Full breakdown below — then adapt every knob to your exact guitar and amp, free.

🎛️ These settings are for the original rig — re-dial them for YOUR amp in 10 seconds. Free, no signup →

Amp settings (0–10)

7.5

GAIN

6.5

BASS

4.5

MID

6.5

TREBLE

PRESENCE

REVERB

Community-researched baseline. Your rig is different — GuitarToneAdapt re-dials every knob for your specific guitar, amp and pickups.

How these settings compare

Measured against the 19 djent / progressive metal tones in our researched catalog: Gain 7.5 sits right around the djent / progressive metal average (6.8); mids at 4.5 are below average (5.6).

Original gear

Amp: Marshall JMP Mark II Lead / Diezel VH4 into Orange PPC412 cabs

Brent Hinds runs two Marshall JMP Mark II Lead heads and a Diezel VH4; Bill Kelliher uses a Friedman JJ Cantrell. D standard tuning (whole step down). Crucially they keep mids IN, not scooped, so the guitar is heard under the distortion — tight, sludgy low end. Settings per Guitar Chalk: gain 7.5, bass 6.5, mid 4.5, treble 6.5. Source: Guitar Chalk + Mixdown gear rundown.

Gear used on this tone

🎚️ Marshall songs & tones →🎚️ humbucker guitars songs & tones →🎚️ Diezel songs & tones →🎚️ Mesa/Boogie Mark Series songs & tones →🎚️ Friedman songs & tones →

Don’t own this gear? GuitarToneAdapt re-creates the sound on the rig you actually have.

Pickups

Humbuckers in D standard for a thick, sludgy, mid-present tone

Effects / signal chain

High-gain amp: Marshall JMP Mark II Lead / Diezel VH4 (Brent Hinds); Friedman JJ Cantrell (Bill Kelliher) into Orange cabs, Mids dialed in (mid ~4.5-5, not scooped) so the guitar cuts, Light reverb; the saturation is amp gain, no boost needed

Tone character

sludgy, mid-present, thick, galloping, saturated, tight low end

Recording context

Sludge / progressive metal, 2004; D-standard humbuckers into cranked Marshall/Diezel with mids dialed in

How it’s played

galloping, sludgy prog-metal assault — relentless main riff with a wild solo, fast, driving tempo, pummeling and dense dynamics · high-gain distortion. This shapes how hard the amp is pushed and where the EQ sits for the Blood and Thunder sound.

Difficulty

3.5/5 · Riff

A stamina and tone challenge — the galloping riff and dense, mid-forward sludge tone define it more than flashy technique (until the solo).

Level: Intermediate — see more intermediate guitar songs →

Worth knowing

Unlike most metal, Mastodon keep MIDS DIALED IN (not scooped) so the guitar cuts through the sludge. D standard tuning (whole step down) on normal-scale guitars for a tight, sludgy low end. Knob numbers are community-researched estimates per Guitar Chalk's Blood and Thunder settings.

⚡ Same tone, YOUR gear — re-dials the gain & EQ for your amp and pickups, free →

🎧 Can you guess the tone?

Recognise famous songs from just the amp dials — a quick 10-round game. Beat your friends. Play free →

🎸 Which guitar legend is your tone twin? Take the quiz & share your result →

Blood and Thunder guitar tone — FAQ

What amp settings do I need for the Blood and Thunder guitar tone?

Set your amp to roughly: gain 7.5, bass 6.5, mid 4.5, treble 6.5, presence 6, reverb 1. These are community-researched baselines — GuitarToneAdapt re-dials them for your exact guitar and amp.

What gear was used for the Blood and Thunder tone?

Original gear/effects: Amp: Marshall JMP Mark II Lead / Diezel VH4 into Orange PPC412 cabs; High-gain amp: Marshall JMP Mark II Lead / Diezel VH4 (Brent Hinds); Friedman JJ Cantrell (Bill Kelliher) into Orange cabs, Mids dialed in (mid ~4.5-5, not scooped) so the guitar cuts, Light reverb; the saturation is amp gain, no boost needed.

Can I get the Blood and Thunder tone on a different guitar or amp?

Yes. Different guitars and amps need different knob positions to sound the same. GuitarToneAdapt models pickup output and wood brightness, then compensates so you match the record on your own rig.

How do I sound like Mastodon on Blood and Thunder — what gear and pedals?

Start with Humbuckers in D standard for a thick, sludgy, mid-present tone, the amp EQ above (gain 7.5, bass 6.5, mid 4.5, treble 6.5, presence 6, reverb 1), and High-gain amp: Marshall JMP Mark II Lead / Diezel VH4 (Brent Hinds); Friedman JJ Cantrell (Bill Kelliher) into Orange cabs, Mids dialed in (mid ~4.5-5, not scooped) so the guitar cuts, Light reverb; the saturation is amp gain, no boost needed. Then let GuitarToneAdapt compensate for the guitar, amp and pedals you actually own so it sits like the record.

Share this tone

Sources

Free practice tools

🎤 Online guitar tuner → · 🎶 Guitar chords → · 🎸 Guitar tunings → · 🎚️ Tuning chart → · 🎼 Guitar scales → · 🎚️ Chord transposer & capo → · 🥁 Metronome → · 🎶 Song chords → · 🎧 Guess the Tone game → · 🎸 Tone Legend quiz → · 📊 Tone data report →

🔥 The most famous guitar tones of all time → · 🗂️ Browse tone collections (by genre & language) →

Songs by level: 🎯 Easy · 🎸 Intermediate · 🔥 Hardest — each with the amp settings.

More like this

🎸 more Progressive Metal guitar tones → · 🎚️ Mesa Mark settings → · 🎛️ best djent / progressive metal amp settings → · 🎸 more iconic guitar riffs → · 🎚️ Distortion tone guide → · 🎚️ Boost tone guide → · 🎚️ Reverb tone guide → · 🎯 more high gain tones → · 📖 New to amp settings? What every knob does →

Settings are community-researched estimates, not official. GuitarToneAdapt adapts them to your gear. guitartoneadapt.com