From rewriting the hard rock rulebook with his Grammy award-winning trio, High On Fire, to reverse engineering doom metal with his genre-defining trio Sleep, Matt Pike has channeled his natural talents and chiseled a steely path straight to the heart of modern-day metal’s molten core. Pike's debut solo LP, Pike vs. the Automaton, was released in February via MNRK Heavy. Music, merch and more is available at this location.
In live news, Matt Pike has just announced the very first shows with his solo band, which includes drummer Jon Reid, bassist Chad "Chief" Hartgrave, guitarist Chris Evans (Lord Dying), and "possible special guests." The group has booked live dates in Seattle (May 5), Tacoma, WA (May 6), Port Angeles, WA (May 7) and Portland, OR (May 8) with additional live performances expected to be detailed soon.
On the topic of the first "Automaton" shows, Pike bellows, "Who's ready to be crushed by sound? Rehearsals for our inaugural shows have been deafening! We are primed and ready to deliver and destroy! See you soon!"
Pike vs. the Automaton live dates:
May
5 - Seattle, WA - Barhouse
6 - Tacoma, WA - Plaid Pig
7 - Port Angeles, WA - Devil's Lunchbox
8 - Portland, OR - High Water Mark
Born out of the challenges brought on by a worldwide pandemic, Pike vs. the Automaton, is both a musical and emotional release. The record features contributions from a slew of family and friends, and was recorded with longtime conspirator Billy Anderson, the producer who brought the best out of Pike previously on touchstone titles such as Surrounded By Thieves and Sleep’s Holy Mountain.
The album title, Pike vs. the Automaton, wasn’t an ego thing for me," says Pike. "Billy and Jon said, “Dude, you should use your name in this. This is your solo project.” I said, “I don’t want to do that”. "The Automaton, in Greek mythology, is the big robot that’s the guardian of the Gods, basically. It’s a soulless, big machine named Talos. The big machine that’s working against mankind at this moment. In ‘Jason and the Argonauts’, Jason and the Argonauts have to battle this big machine guy that protects the island. Basically, what the album title is saying, metaphorically, is Pike against the World.”
Amongst the album's slat of skyscraping songs, Pike vs. the Automaton features videos for the bizarrely-titled "Alien Slut Mum" (featuring Pike, Anderson, and the PVTA crew on an eye-opening wilderness adventure) and "Land" - featuring Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds -- which Pike describes as, "totally different, like an old blues song." Both videos can be seen below.
“I made a psychedelic rock record that Sleep and High On Fire fans would like,” Pike continues when asked for a CliffsNotes description of Pike vs. the Automaton. “And maybe if you’re not a Sleep or High On Fire fan, you might like it too. I definitely think it’s interesting; it has D-Beat punk, two-step. It’s got everything and it still works together, it doesn’t sound odd. It’s just an off-the-wall psychedelic rock record.”
Pike vs. the Automaton tracklisting:
"Abusive"
"Throat Cobra"
"Trapped In A Midcave"
"Epoxia"
"Land"
"Alien Slut Mum"
"Apollyon"
"Acid Test Zone"
"Latin American Geological Formation"
"Leaving The Wars Of Woe"
"Alien Slut Mum" video:
"Land" video:
(Photo: G. Florez)
