{"id":44407,"date":"2022-01-11T20:24:44","date_gmt":"2022-01-12T02:24:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/?p=44407"},"modified":"2022-01-11T20:33:55","modified_gmt":"2022-01-12T02:33:55","slug":"matt-pike-high-on-fire-sleep-goes-solo-releases-pike-vs-the-automaton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/?p=44407","title":{"rendered":"Matt Pike (High on Fire, SLEEP) Goes Solo Releases ‘Pike vs. the Automaton’"},"content":{"rendered":"

High on Fire’s Matt Pike to Release Debut Solo LP, ‘Pike vs. the Automaton’, February 18<\/strong><\/u><\/p>\n

\n

Iconic Heavy Metal Guitarist, Frontman Unleashes Diverse, Skyscraping Album Constructed during COVID-19 Pandemic; Debuts New Video “Alien Slut Mum”<\/em><\/strong><\/u><\/p>\n

From rewriting the hard rock rulebook with his Grammy award-winning trio, High on Fire<\/strong>, to reverse engineering doom metal with his genre-defining trio Sleep,\u00a0Matt Pike<\/strong> has channeled his natural talents and chiseled a steely path straight to the heart of modern-day metal\u2019s molten core. On February 18,\u00a0Pike\u00a0<\/strong>will release his debut solo LP,\u00a0\u2018Pike vs. the Automaton<\/strong>\u2019<\/em>, via MNRK Heavy. Pre-orders are live at\u00a0PikeVstheAutomaton.com<\/a><\/u>.<\/p>\n

Focus tracks: “Trapped in a Midcave”, “Land” (w\/ Mastodon’s Brent Hinds), “Alien Slut Mum”, “Leaving the Wars of Woe”.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Born out of the challenges brought on by a worldwide pandemic, birthed under hellish red-orange skies bred from rampaging west coast wildfires, and built amidst the yearlong political riots and rallies in Portland, OR,\u00a0Pike<\/strong>\u2019s solo debut,\u00a0\u2018Pike vs. the Automaton<\/strong>\u2019<\/em>, is both a musical and emotional release. The record was written by\u00a0Pike<\/strong> with drummer\u00a0Jon Reid<\/strong>, features contributions from a slew of family and friends, and was recorded with longtime conspirator\u00a0Billy Anderson<\/strong>, the producer who brought the best out of\u00a0Pike\u00a0<\/strong>previously on touchstone titles such as\u00a0\u2018Surrounded by Thieves\u2019<\/em> and\u00a0\u2018Sleep\u2019s Holy Mountain\u2019<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was just going bonkers during the pandemic. It was like really, truly miserable. And then all the riots here in Portland and all the political shit. I was trapped in my garage, which was the only place I could go and jam and do anything,\u201d confesses\u00a0Pike<\/strong>. \u201cI was trapped in there \u2018cause I couldn\u2019t go jam with High on Fire, I couldn\u2019t do this, I couldn\u2019t do that, no one could fly. I was going crazy. My friend Jon Reid, who was the original drummer for Lord Dying, had moved to Portland and was babysitting my dog, Crom, and he was drumming for my wife\u2019s band, so he had his drums already set up at my place. I finally said, \u201cDude, do you want to come over and just start jamming? So, I just started this thing with my friend Jon. I was like, \u201cDude, fuck it. Let\u2019s start a side band and we\u2019ll just demo this and act like we\u2019re starting it as teenagers, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n

‘Pike vs. the Automaton<\/strong>\u2019<\/em> is advanced by the bizarrely titled track “Alien Slut Mum<\/strong>“, which features\u00a0Pike<\/strong>, his bandmates and\u00a0Billy Anderson<\/strong>, adventuring through the woods in the most bizarre ways. A video for the song\u00a0premieres via\u00a0Decibel<\/em><\/u><\/a>, who adds,\u00a0“Matt Pike is a trailblazing visionary possessed by a mindset which, from the outside looking in, appears to be steeped in pure desperation.\u00a0Perhaps this is why the Sleep\/High on Fire shredder is still so creatively sharp in a moment when so many of his peers and devotees are stuck in \u201cecho\u201d phases while Pike continues to plant flags in new sonic and aesthetic territories.”<\/p>\n

When asked for comment on the clip,\u00a0Pike\u00a0<\/strong>cryptically replies, “Four friends enter the woods, for a getaway, little did they know they would never return! Dogmen, Sasquach, Reptilians, or alien slut mum?!?! Where have they gone??” Feast your eyes on “Alien Slut Mum” at\u00a0this location<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n

“Necessity is the mother of invention” is a well-known proverb that has proven itself true time and time again. When the need for something becomes imperative, you are forced to find ways of getting or achieving it. In this true story, the need for\u00a0Pike\u00a0<\/strong>was to create and play music with others at a time when that lifelong love was seemingly out of reach. Guest musicians on\u00a0\u2018Pike vs. the Automaton<\/strong>\u2019<\/em> include Alyssa Maucere-Pike (Lord Dying \/ Grigax), Chad “Chief” Hartgrave, Brent Hinds (Mastodon), Steve McPeeks (West End Motel), Josh Greene (El Cerdo), Todd Burdette (Tragedy), and\u00a0High on Fire<\/strong>‘s Jeff Matz, who lays down Turkish electric saz on the album’s towering closing track “Leaving the Wars of Woe”.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\u2018Pike vs. the Automaton<\/strong>\u2019<\/em> track listing:<\/p>\n

1.) Abusive
\n2.) Throat Cobra
\n3.) Trapped In A Midcave
\n4.) Epoxia
\n5.) Land
\n6.) Alien Slut Mum (watch\u00a0VIDEO<\/u><\/a>)
\n7.) Apollyon
\n8.) Acid Test Zone
\n9.) Latin American Geological Formation
\n10.) Leaving The Wars Of Woe<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
The album title, \u2018Pike vs. the Automaton\u2019<\/em>, wasn\u2019t an ego thing for me,” says\u00a0Pike<\/strong>. “Billy and Jon said, \u201cDude, you should use your name in this. This is your solo project.\u201d I said, \u201cI don\u2019t want to do that\u201d. The Automaton, in Greek mythology, is the big robot that\u2019s the guardian of the Gods, basically. It\u2019s a soulless, big machine named Talos. The big machine that\u2019s working against mankind at this moment. In \u2018Jason and the Argonauts\u2019<\/em>, Jason and the Argonauts have to battle this big machine guy that protects the island. Basically, what the album title is saying, metaphorically, is \u2018Pike against the World<\/strong>.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI made a psychedelic rock record that Sleep and High on Fire fans would like,\u201d Pike<\/strong> continues when asked for a CliffsNotes description of \u2018Pike vs. the Automaton<\/strong>\u2019<\/em>. \u201cAnd maybe if you\u2019re not a Sleep or High on Fire fan, you might like it too. I definitely think it\u2019s interesting; it has D-Beat punk, two-step. It\u2019s got everything and it still works together, it doesn\u2019t sound odd. It\u2019s just an off-the-wall psychedelic rock record.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pike Vs The Automaton<\/em><\/strong>
Matt Pike: Guitars, Vocals, Bass on 6 & 10
\nJon Reid: Drums, Percussion, Background Vocals
\nBilly Anderson: Samples, Bass on 3 & 4
\nChad \u201cChief\u201d Hartgrave -Bass on 1, 2, 5, 7 & 9
\nAlyssa Maucere Pike -Vocals on 8, Bass on 8
\nBrent Hinds -Slide Guitar, Lead Guitar on 5
\nSteve McPetes -Stand Up Bass on 5
\nJosh Greene -Synth on 10
\nTodd Burdette -Vocals, Lead Guitar and Knife Guy on 2
\nJeff Matz -Electric Saz on 10<\/p>\n

Produced by Matt Pike and Billy Anderson
\nEngine-Eared by Billy Anderson<\/strong>
\nAdditional Engineering: Ethan Stouder, Connor Reising
\nRecorded at The Hallowed Halls, Portland and Everything Hz, Portland
\nMixed by Billy Anderson at Everything Hz
\nMastered by Justin Weis at Trakworx, San Francisco
\nAlbum Art: Jordan Barlow<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
About Matt Pike<\/u>:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Matt Pike<\/strong> is an American musician known for his work as guitarist, vocalist and front man for Grammy Award-winning metal band\u00a0High on Fire<\/strong>, and guitarist and founding member of the influential doom metal trio\u00a0Sleep<\/strong>. Universally recognized as one of the most potent acts in music today,\u00a0Pike<\/strong>‘s\u00a0High on Fire\u00a0<\/strong>creates dynamic metal that merges primal fury and aggression, hesher bombast and hall of fame heaviness. Described as\u00a0“a supersonic exercise in conquest by volume,”<\/em> High on Fire<\/strong> has rewritten the hard rock rule book since its formation in 1998, forging a style and sound that is at once critically celebrated, extremely influential, and utterly unique. Follow\u00a0Matt Pike<\/strong> on Instagram @MattPike1972<\/a><\/u>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

High on Fire’s Matt Pike to Release Debut Solo LP, ‘Pike vs. the Automaton’, February 18 Iconic Heavy Metal Guitarist, Frontman Unleashes Diverse, Skyscraping Album Constructed during COVID-19 Pandemic; Debuts […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":44409,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39,41,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44407","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music-news","category-features","category-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44407","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=44407"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44407\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/44409"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=44407"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=44407"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=44407"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}