High On Fire

Around fifteen years ago, I remember trying to describe High On Fire to my mom. I was about to visit, and they were slated to play her town while I was there. And she knows Jeff Matz, High On Fire’s bass player, because he and I played in a band together and have known each other for almost thirty years. So I mentioned it to her, that they were playing, and I was planning on going. And she asked, “What’s Jeff’s new band like?” And I was caught short. What was I supposed to tell her?

“Well, their first record is largely stoner rock, a logical extension from the guitar player’s previous band Sleep. But since then, they’ve built on their original sound, morphed, evolved, incorporated various elements of metal, doom, punk, sludge, and thrash into a wild and heavy amalgam that flogs you regardless of the tempo at which the band plays. In other words, Mom, it doesn’t matter whether they’re playing slow, mid-tempo, fast, or scorching—they’re always pummeling everyone and everything within earshot. They’re the perfect exemplar of deft technical prowess producing visceral auditory mayhem. Oh, and the vocals sound like the Devil is yelling at you.”

I don’t remember what I said. But here’s what I wish I would have told her: High On Fire is a sonic cudgel. Wielded by an ice troll. From a dead planet. Which is what I wanted to draw for this shirt—but I’m not good enough at fantasy art. (Yet!) So I went for a realistic depiction of live performance. It’s an honor to do this shirt. I love the band and all its iterations through the years. But I can’t wait to see what Matt, Coady, and Jeff have in store for us next. They destroy live; eagerly looking forward to hearing the damage they will wreak in a studio soon. -Abe Brennan 

LIMITED TO 300. Printed on BellaCanvas soft spun cotton tees. LADIES’ SIZES RUN REALLY SMALL SO CHECK THE SIZE CHART.