"Don't Back Down" is a song by American rock band Mammoth. It was released on March 26, 2021, as a single from Wolfgang Van Halen's debut studio album, Mammoth WVH. The song topped the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart in September 2021.
| "Don't Back Down" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Mammoth | ||||
| from the album Mammoth WVH | ||||
| Released | March 26, 2021 | |||
| Genre | Hard rock | |||
| Length | 3:45 | |||
| Label | EX1 | |||
| Songwriter | Wolfgang Van Halen | |||
| Producer | Michael Baskette | |||
| Mammoth singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Don't Back Down" on YouTube | ||||
Recording and release
editAs with all tracks on the album, Wolfgang Van Halen performed all instruments on "Don't Back Down".[1][2] The recording features a Foxx Tone Machine fuzz pedal,[3] a Gibson ES-335, and a Fender Starcaster, which was played through an EVH 5150III head.[4] It also features a phaser pick slide at the end of the track.[3]
"Don't Back Down" was released on March 26, 2021, alongside the song "Think It Over", with both tracks made available for streaming.[5] An official live video was released on June 4, 2021.[6] The song was featured on the Madden NFL 26 soundtrack.[7][8]
Composition and style
editWolfgang described the song as having a shuffle feel and said that an early version was "very Sabbath-y".[3]
Critics described the song as a hard rock track with bluesy riffs and a glam rock-influenced chorus.[5][4][9][10] Loudwire described the song as featuring aggressive, fast-tempo rhythms,[11] while Blabbermouth described it as an "anthemic single" representative of the band's harder sound.[6]
Music video
editThe music video is set at 5150 Studios and features multiple versions of Wolfgang, with four shown performing the song and two depicted in production roles.[4] The video depicts him recording the song by himself, performing all instrumental and vocal parts,[12][13] and was filmed over two days.[14]
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Wolfgang Van Halen.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Don't Back Down" | 3:45 |
| 2. | "Think It Over" | 3:55 |
| 3. | "You're to Blame" | 4:06 |
| 4. | "Distance" | 4:12 |
| Total length: | 15:59 | |
Chart performance
editThe song reached number one on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart on September 11, 2021, making the band the first act since 2019 to send its first two entries on the chart to number one.[16] Wolfgang said that the song reaching number one proved that the success of "Distance" was not a "fluke".[17]
Personnel
editCredits adapted from Apple Music.[18]
Mammoth
- Wolfgang Van Halen – vocals, guitar, drums, bass, piano, songwriter
Additional credits
- Michael Baskette – producer, mixing engineer
- Jeff Moll – editing engineer
- Josh Saldate – assistant engineer
- Brad Blackwood – mastering engineer
Charts
editReferences
edit- ↑ Maxwell, Jackson (March 26, 2021). "Hear Two New Mammoth WVH Songs, "Don't Back Down" and "Think It Over"". Guitar Player. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ Carter, Emily (March 26, 2021). "Wolfgang Van Halen's Mammoth WVH unveil two new songs". Kerrang!. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Scaramanga, Jonny (June 8, 2021). "Wolfgang Van Halen: "Dad would rather people not try and sound like him but sound like themselves. I'm being myself – I'm not sitting there doing covers of Panama"". Guitar World. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- 1 2 3 Astley-Brown, Michael (March 26, 2021). "Watch 4 Wolfgang Van Halens jam fuzz-heavy new Mammoth WVH cut, Don't Back Down". Guitar World. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- 1 2 Kennelty, Greg (March 26, 2021). "Mammoth WVH Drops Two Killer New Songs "Don't Back Down" & "Think It Over"". Metal Injection. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- 1 2 "Wolfgang Van Halen's Mammoth WVH Releases Official Live Video For 'Don't Back Down'". Blabbermouth. June 4, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ "Madden NFL 26 Soundtrack". Electronic Arts. August 7, 2025. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- ↑ Keenan, Hesher (August 8, 2025). "Metallica, Korn, Judas Priest and More Named to 'Madden NFL 26' Soundtrack". MetalSucks. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- ↑ Fielder, Hugh (June 14, 2021). "Mammoth WVH's debut album is high-tech, energetic, relentless and thrilling". Classic Rock. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ Travers, Paul (June 9, 2021). "Album review: Mammoth WVH – Mammoth WVH". Kerrang!. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ DiVita, Joe (March 26, 2021). "Mammoth WVH Debuts Two New Songs, One Heavy + One Melodic". Loudwire. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ Mier, Tomas (March 26, 2021). "Watch Wolfgang Van Halen Play Every Instrument in His Band's Hilarious New Music Video". People. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ Edwards, Briony (March 26, 2021). "Wolfgang Van Halen's Mammoth WVH release not one but two new singles". Classic Rock. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ Price, Deborah Evans (June 11, 2021). "Wolfgang Van Halen on Forging His Own Musical Identity With 'Mammoth WVH'". Billboard. Retrieved May 6, 2026.
- ↑ "Don't Back Down - Single by Mammoth". Spotify. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- 1 2 Rutherford, Kevin. "Mammoth WVH Scores Second Mainstream Rock Airplay No. 1 With 'Don't Back Down'". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 23, 2022. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- ↑ Schaffner, Lauryn (December 17, 2021). "Mammoth WVH Is Our 2021 Artist of the Year". Loudwire. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- ↑ "Don't Back Down - Song by Mammoth". Apple Music.
- ↑ "CZ - Radio - Top 20 Modern Rock". hitparada.ifpicr.cz. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- ↑ "Rock & Alternative Airplay". Billboard. Archived from the original on August 30, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2026.
- ↑ "Rock & Alternative Airplay Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 19, 2026. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
- ↑ "Mainstream Rock Airplay Songs – Year-End 2021". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 2, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2026.