High on Fire

Like Christopher Lee's Dracula in the classic Hammer horror films from the early Sixties, speed metal cannot be killed off. Every time we think it's finally dead and done, a new band comes along and resurrects the art of the endless guitar riff. Power trio High on Fire is the...

By JosÃ© DÃ¡vila

April 13, 2006

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Like Christopher Lee's Dracula in the classic Hammer horror films from the early Sixties, speed metal cannot be killed off. Every time we think it's finally dead and done, a new band comes along and resurrects the art of the endless guitar riff. Power trio High on Fire is the new incarnation in a long line of metal bands that began the fateful day when Tommy Iommi and Ozzy Osbourne wrote the evergreen "Iron Man."

Formed by ex-Sleep guitarist Matt Pike, High on Fire effortlessly churns out the kind of riffs that would make your average Metallica fan run for earplugs. The band's latest record, Blessed Black Wings, employs the production of talented studio wiz Steve Albini, known best for his groundbreaking work with bands such as Nirvana and the Pixies. Albini breathes an air of modern indie punk into songs like the hair-raising Silver Black and the speed-metal pounding of To Cross the Bridge. But the show still belongs to frontman Matt Pike's terrifying vocals.

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