Album review: High on Fire – Cometh the Storm

By DAN SOUTHALL

HIGH on Fire have been plying their ferocious sludgey riffs for a long time. But let’s face it, somewhere along the line they got bored with themselves and for the last couple of releases have just churned out the same old shit.  But with Cometh the Storm, something has lit a fire under riff-miester general Matt Pike and his men, making this album almost unmissable in scope and musical strength.

Maybe my assessment is a little harsh, but the band stopped thrilling my ears at Snakes For The Divine and for this I make no apologies.  Here though, the riffs are straining at the leash to tear atoms apart and create carnage. Little time is wasted as the opening one-two of “Lambsbread” and “Burning Down” set about wrecking speakers and ear drums with guitar solos that avoid meandering and thunderous drums courtesy of new sticksman Coady Willis as he ably fills the gaps between riffs with exciting fills.

The tribal nature of the drumming reaches its first real peak with the title track, before making a welcome return for three tracks on the back end of the album I have affectionally dubbed the ‘EP within an album’. If you were to put “The Beating”, “Tough Guy” and “Lightning Beard” together on an EP and named it something to do with Motörhead, it’s a best seller. Pike and the band reach right down to the greasiest depths they can and smash out three quick fire tracks in as much time as it takes to close the album out on “Darker Fleece”.  

Of course any HOF album wouldn’t be complete without a little tweak to the formula, and here that is “Karanlik Yol” as it ebbs and flows with acoustic guitars and hand claps, as well as being the only track that sees the new drummer reigned in to just hold a beat. On an album of crushers this comes as a quick piece of respite and as such stands out.

This is a tidy feather to a well-decorated cap. Those who have enjoyed High on Fire will find little surprises amongst the music but if – like some of us – you needed some respite, this album will drag you back in and lay a boot in for wandering off their path.

Buy Cometh The Storm on vinyl