Tone library / Mastodon / Blood and Thunder

Blood and Thunder amp settings — Orange Crush 20

The Mastodon guitar tone for “Blood and Thunder”, dialed in for a Orange Crush 20 with a Ibanez SA. Studio version, Leviathan (2004) – Relapse Records

Original rig

Bill Kelliher: Marshall JCM800 + BK Butler Tube Driver + Gibson Les Paul Custom; Brent Hinds: Orange Rockerverb + Klon + Gibson Les Paul Standard. Both in Drop D.

Massive, mid-heavy wall of distortion with tight palm-muted low end and aggressive upper-mid bite—almost fuzzy saturation but retaining note definition
Amp settings — Orange Crush 20
CHANNELDirty channel
GAIN 9 BASS 6 MID 8 TREBLE 6 REVERB 0 MASTER 7
KnobSetting (0–10)
Gain9
Bass6
Mid8
Treble6
Reverb0
Master7
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Guitar
PICKUPbridge TONE8 VOLUME10
Signal chain

01Tube Screamer style overdrive (TS9 / Boss SD-1 / Ibanez TS Mini)

RECOMMENDED — not currently owned. Essential for this tone. The original used a Tube Driver to tighten the low end and push the amp into saturated territory. Without this pedal, the Crush 20's gain alone will be woolly and undefined. A Boss SD-1 or Ibanez TS Mini are budget-friendly options that nail this function.

Drive 3 · Tone 6 · Level 7
Why these settings

Your Orange Crush 20 already shares the warm, compressed midrange DNA of Hinds' Rockerverb—a significant advantage. However, the original tone relied heavily on a boost pedal slamming the front end for tight saturation. I've pushed mids to 8 (vs the original ~7) because the Crush 20's smaller speaker needs help cutting through, and the Ibanez SA's thinner single-coil-sized humbuckers lack the low-mid weight of a Les Paul. Gain at 9 compensates for the missing boost pedal, but expect some low-end flub without a TS-style in front.

PRO TIPTune to Drop D and attack palm mutes directly over the bridge pickup pole pieces with the meaty part of your palm barely touching the strings—this replicates Kelliher's percussive chunk. Roll your tone knob to 7 during the churning verse riff to thicken the attack, then open it back up for the galloping chorus.

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These settings are for a Orange Crush 20. ToneAdapt matches any song to whatever amp, guitar and pedals you own — first match is free.

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