High On Fire - Snakes For The Divine

High On Fire
Snakes For The Divine
2010 E1 Music

High On Fire (or HoF, as I’ll refer to them throughout this review) have been one of the most consistent(ly awesome) bands of the 2000s, by churning out a thrash-meets-Sabbath-meets-Motorhead style of metal that has firm roots in the 80s, yet sounds more raw and vital than most modern metal. Their last release, Death Is This Communion, kicked up the speed and experimentalism a bit, but the band didn’t stray too far from their signature sound. I’m pleased to report that Snakes for the Divine is, again, a High On Fire album through-and-through, and a damn good one, at that.

Usually known for their downtuned, sludgy riffing, HoF kick off the new album with a surprisingly Maiden-esque guitar lick, something usually reserved for Matt Pike’s frantic soloing style. This isn’t to say that this opening title track lacks any heavy riffing; as soon as the full band kicks in, this is unmistakably a HoF tune, and a great opener for the album. The lead bass riffing during the choruses brings to mind Cliff Burton’s work on Kill ‘Em All, and that’s certainly a plus. At 8:24, this is an epic opener, but one that never gets boring.

Early leaks of the album had a lot of message boards up-in-arms over the production of the album, but I gotta say, I don’t think any of the complaints were warranted (although the production on the actual album release is much clearer and less overly-compressed than the leaks). HoF were never known for their great production prior to DitC, but the production on that release was clean, yet still very heavy, and that’s the case with Snakes.

“Frost Hammer,” the second track and first single/video, starts off like an oldschool HoF tune, but has a Mastodon-ish breakdown in the middle with a lot of vocal harmonies. It’s not as scary as it sounds, trust me, it works. The “Frost Ham-mer!” breakdown near the end brings a total metal anthem feel to the track, and the solo, of course, rips. “Bastard Samurai” opens with what sound like synths (!), but again, they are just there as an intro before the full band settles on a MASSIVE groove about a minute into the track. The verses are a lot quieter than standard HoF fare, which is a nice refresher, and makes the heavier parts that much more effective. Probably the heaviest HoF song to date, this is another winner.

“Ghost Neck,” partially based on the trials of drummer Des Kensel and his spinal fusion surgery (using a piece of cadaver bone as part of the surgery), opens with a series of low-end, legato riffing that creates a hypnotic effect. This song is one of the thrashiest on the record, bringing to mind early Exodus in the verses, with some awesome riffing in the bridges. So far, this is on pace to be a better record than DitC, which I was certainly NOT expecting.

Instrumental “The Path” serves as a breather from the thrashy onslaught, and gives us some nice, tasteful lead playing by Matt Pike for 1:20, before “Fire, Flood & Plague” kicks in. Another epic thrasher, the album has yet to produce a sub-par, or even forgettable, track.

“How Dark We Pray” is a slower, Sabbath-ish number that certainly brings to mind Tony Iommi with the lead guitar intro, and is one of the more melodic tracks on the whole album. Moody-yet-heavy, this is a more subdued HoF than we’re used to, but again, not boring or disappointing in the least.

The album concludes with the awesomely-titled “Holy Flames of the Fire Spitter,” (because, really, what is more metal than fire spitting? Oh, right, fire spitting HOLY flames…) and at 4:17, it’s the shortest proper track on the album. It ends things on a brisk note, as it’s mid-paced and fairly straightforward, but it’s almost as if the band ended with a more standard HoF track as if to say, “We’re still High on Fire, we’re not getting too weird on you.” Unlike, say, Mastodon, who ended Crack the Skye with one of their longest, most experimental tracks ever (“The Last Baron,”) HoF aren’t trying to reinvent the wheel, just expand it and make it a little more diverse.

And I’m MORE than fine with that, as long as they keep releasing albums that are THIS good. Is it better than DitC? I’m still torn, but it’s certainly AS good, and for a band to keep releasing albums as good as the last one, is no easy feat. I’m happy to say that HoF have definitely done that here.

A-

Matt Steele