Album Review: Matt Pike – Pike vs The Automaton (MNRK Heavy)

Born out of the challenges brought on by a worldwide pandemic, birthed under hellish red-orange skies bred from rampaging west coast wildfires, and built amidst the yearlong political riots and rallies in Portland, OR, Matt Pike’s solo debut, Pike vs The Automaton, is both a musical and emotional release. It will be released on the 18th of February via MNRK Heavy.

Matt Pike should need no introduction, if you’ve heard of Sleep then you’ve heard of Matt Pike. So considering the massive influence Sleep has had on the music scene, it’s no surprise that elements of the legendary band sneak their way into Matt’s solo offering.

That being said, this is not Sleep. It’s as though Sleep had a baby with High on Fire and the baby was on psychedelics. It’s a trippy, heavy rock record with elements of D-beat punk that seems determined to confound as much as entertain. This one will make your brain ache.

Kicking off with a more aggressive but groovy riff-heavy stance, Abusive has a ton of growl to it. A start that promises something different to what Matt Pike has done before.

That is then solidified with Throat Cobra, where things get a bit punkier and Trapped in A Midcave, where things get very weird and psychedelic. Try and not move to this latter track, it’s impossible, especially as it’s got a lot of fuzzy detail.

A breather is needed, and we get one, sort of. As Exoxia is just 49 seconds of ear-splitting guitar playing with a groovy undercurrent.

Following that, it’s back to doing something overtly diverse with Land. A desert-rock/country psych-rock combination, sunset going down, relaxed and tired from a long day, kind of track. Though Alien Slut Mum couldn’t be more different too as it’s a chaotic blast of dirty hard rock and punk. A frenzy of filthy instrumentation, complimented by Pike’s gruff vocal style, the mid-point tempo shift is very cool.

It’s another big one with Apollyon (nearly 9 and a half minutes long) and here we get one of the albums most trippy and eclectic songs. Where the hazy rock becomes thicker and thicker as it goes on. Then Acid Test Zone (definitely not a Sonic the Hedgehog level) goes for the jugular with a short, sharp burst of d-beat punk. Before Latin American Geological Formation combines the groovy psych parts of Pike with his penchant for making heavy noise. While refusing to ever hit anything that might not be incredibly disruptive to the mind’s faculties.

It has been one hell of a journey, but it’s not quite done yet. Going out with a bang, Pike vs The Automaton wraps up with the near 11-minute Leaving the Wars of Woe. Where body-shaking and head-banging riffs stand tall, Pike’s vocals get even gruffer and the doomy/stoner tinged rhythm blend perfectly with mind-altering twists and turns.

Matt Pike – Pike vs The Automaton Full Track Listing:

1. Abusive
2. Throat Cobra
3. Trapped in A Midcave
4. Epoxia
5. Land
6. Alien Slut Mum
7. Apollyon
8. Acid Test Zone
9. Latin American Geological Formation
10. Leaving the Wars of Woe

Links

Website | Instagram | Bandcamp | MNRK