Mastodon are channeling profound loss into their next chapter. The stalwart progressive metal group just released a new single and announced a North American fall tour with Deafheaven in support, arriving ahead of an expected new album and in the wake of the unexpected passing of co-founder and guitarist Brent Hinds, along with drummer Brann Dailor’s mother. The new song, “Your Ghost Again,” is a deeply moving piece of writing, and the run promises a powerful live pairing.
The tour, dubbed “The Poisonous Weapons Tour,” opens Sept. 16 at Hard Rock Live in Orlando and rolls through markets including Pittsburgh, Boston, Brooklyn, DC, Buffalo, Chicago, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Boise, San Diego, and Denver before wrapping Oct. 24 at Sick New World Dallas. The dates add to previously announced European shows with Loathe in support of Anthrax. Ticket presales are happening now, with general onsale starting Friday, June 5 at 10 a.m. local time.
“Your Ghost Again” sees the group turn grief into one of the most emotionally charged compositions of their storied career, weaving together memory, resilience, and raw vulnerability. Produced by Patrik Berger and Kurt Ballou and mixed by Andrew Scheps, it previews what’s coming next. The song reckons with the sudden death of Hinds, who died Aug. 20, 2025 in a motorcycle accident, months after leaving the group in what was described as a mutual decision.
Dailor spoke openly about the song’s source. “For me, ‘Your Ghost Again’ is about when you lose somebody that’s close to you that you existed with for most of your life—or your whole life,” he says. “It’s those moments when you’re in those familiar places that you’ve always been with that person, and then, after they’re gone, you see them out of the corner of your eye, and it makes you sad because they’re not there. When we were in the studio recording, I kept seeing Brent. I’d see him on my right holding the guitar because that’s where he’d usually be. It’s the same with my mom: I keep seeing her. And you get a little jolt of excitement because you think you’re actually seeing them, but then you remember they’re not here and it takes you down a notch. So, it’s these big relationships for me that became the subject matter of the song. I was just singing about what I was seeing, and I was seeing ghosts.”