Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
Back for another round of bludgeoning stoner thrash, Oakland, California's High on Fire unleash a brass-knuckled haymaker on their eighth studio long player, the punitive and workmanlike Electric Messiah. Working once again with producer and Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou, who helmed the veteran group's two previous outings, the nine-track set commences with the aptly named "Spewn from the Earth." Heralded by a tsunami of blast-furnace beats and pick slides, the song eventually yields to frontman Matt Pike, who delivers lungfuls of impressionistic, Cthulhu mythos-rich dread that invoke Lemmy by way of AC/DC's Brian Johnson. The former entity looms large over Electric Messiah, with the title cut paying homage to the legendary Motörhead frontman who passed away in 2015, and whom Pike acknowledges had a huge influence on both his writing and vocal style. While the thrash elements of Electric Messiah loom large, as purveyors of uncompromising doom metal, High on Fire remain at the top of their game, dropping epic, Sabbathy beatdowns like "Steps of the Ziggurat/House of Enlil" and "Sanctioned Annihilation," the latter of which clocks in at ten-and-a-half minutes, making it their longest track to date. Elsewhere, late-album highlight "Freebooter" is as kinetic and pugilistic as anything Pike and company have done before, and it bristles with the kind of energy that's usually reserved for bands that have yet to reach their 20-year mark -- the one sonic outlier is the surprisingly melodic closer "Drowning Dog," which hews closer to classic New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Electric Messiah proves that High on Fire can still blow the unholy horn of plenty, and while fans will know just what to expect when dropping the stylus, that knowledge takes nothing away from the Epicurean pleasure of sidling up to a favorite feast.
© James Christopher Monger /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From $16.65/month
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
High On Fire, MainArtist
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
Album review
Back for another round of bludgeoning stoner thrash, Oakland, California's High on Fire unleash a brass-knuckled haymaker on their eighth studio long player, the punitive and workmanlike Electric Messiah. Working once again with producer and Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou, who helmed the veteran group's two previous outings, the nine-track set commences with the aptly named "Spewn from the Earth." Heralded by a tsunami of blast-furnace beats and pick slides, the song eventually yields to frontman Matt Pike, who delivers lungfuls of impressionistic, Cthulhu mythos-rich dread that invoke Lemmy by way of AC/DC's Brian Johnson. The former entity looms large over Electric Messiah, with the title cut paying homage to the legendary Motörhead frontman who passed away in 2015, and whom Pike acknowledges had a huge influence on both his writing and vocal style. While the thrash elements of Electric Messiah loom large, as purveyors of uncompromising doom metal, High on Fire remain at the top of their game, dropping epic, Sabbathy beatdowns like "Steps of the Ziggurat/House of Enlil" and "Sanctioned Annihilation," the latter of which clocks in at ten-and-a-half minutes, making it their longest track to date. Elsewhere, late-album highlight "Freebooter" is as kinetic and pugilistic as anything Pike and company have done before, and it bristles with the kind of energy that's usually reserved for bands that have yet to reach their 20-year mark -- the one sonic outlier is the surprisingly melodic closer "Drowning Dog," which hews closer to classic New Wave of British Heavy Metal. Electric Messiah proves that High on Fire can still blow the unholy horn of plenty, and while fans will know just what to expect when dropping the stylus, that knowledge takes nothing away from the Epicurean pleasure of sidling up to a favorite feast.
© James Christopher Monger /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 9 track(s)
- Total length: 00:56:52
- 1 Digital booklet
- Main artists: High On Fire
- Label: eOne Music
- Genre: Metal
2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP 2018 Entertainment One U.S., LP
Improve album informationWhy buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.