Customer Reviews

Surrounded By Thieves

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Straight bludgeoning. Not a moment's rest. "Eyes and Teeth"'s opening bass rumble is the only serene moment on this disc. From there the album turns the listeners ears and intestines gelatinous, pounding relentlessly with an endless well of riffs, tribal drumming and scorched-earth vocals.

Gone are the paens to Sabbath and the Melvins that were found on "Art of Self Defense". In their place is a louder-than-nuclear-war homage to groups such as BoltThrower, Voivod, Neurosis and even "Jerusalem"-era Sleep, taken to atmospheric levels of woofer-destroying volume. Choice cuts are "Speedwolf", the dinosaur riff-maze called "Yeti", the powerfully intensive title track and the blasting "Hung, Drawn and Quartered". Upping the ante is the name of the game, and it's brutally frightening that this group is only on their second album!

High on Fire is truly a great band. "Surrounded By Thieves" is going to become one of the biggest underground metal classics this world has ever seen. BELIEVE the hype.

I've heard some sludgy music in my time, but "Surrounded By Thieves" is damn near impenetrable. The songs here are about as fast and lively as a funeral dirge, not to mention as heavy as the Oakland Raiders' offensive line (average listed weight of a Raider offensive lineman: 322 pounds). On this album Matt Pike continues to cement his place among metal's reigning guitar heroes, and the band's epic sound gives him plenty of opportunities to show what he can do. His twisted, mammoth riffing makes for one of the heaviest albums of the year, and he's well accompanied by Des Kensel on drums and George Rice on bass. Despite the obvious skill of the musicians, "Surrounded by Thieves" is far from a wankfest. Heaviness is the objective here, not speed or technicality, and every song thumps along very nicely, with some of the deepest and thickest grooves around. Still, for all the heaviness it's the nuances that make this a great album: Pike's screaming solos, Kensel's occasional drum rolls, and Rice's pummelling bass notes. I'll be the first to admit Pike's vocals are a little odd, and may take some getting used to, but with music this good it's easy to be patient. One of the most epic metal albums around, "Surrounded by Thieves" is sure to please even the most discrimating headbangers.

First of all, if you have even ONE Green Day song in your collection, even by accident, (I'm looking at you "IJ" from Puerto Rico) you are beyond help and have zero credibility when it comes to reviewing a metal album, or any album for that matter. Secondly, if you don't know what a death metal growl sounds like, please don't use the term, mmkay? Are the vocals sludgy? Yes. Is it death metal? No way.
This album will punch you in the face and make you love it. Pop it in, turn it up and watch it suplex you through your coffee table. This album has actually murdered other inferior albums in my collection - it's just that hardcore.

Warning: this album may cause sterility, or, may undue it depending on your problem. Imagine laying in the middle of the road and having someone drop 3000 pound anvils on your face from 6 stories up. You don't die, you just keep feeling the relentless crushing of your skull. It's a wonderful joyous thing. Indulge.

simply amazing... i had doubts they could cut another record as amazing as their first release, but alas, they have. from start to finish, this record hits you like a runaway freight train. even better live and without a doubt one of the loudest bands i've ever had the pleasure of seeing live. you need this record. get the re-release of the 1st cd, the celtic frost cover is killer! hopefully they'll record the venom tune soon that they play live.

This album contains the heaviest music known to man. It is not the "hardest" or the most technical, but the music hits you like a brick. It sounds like being in a battlefield full of warhorses and Byzantine elephants, the lyrics and artwork also relate to that feeling of a Lord of the Rings style epic battle, but from the view of the bad guys. The vocals are reminisant of Lemmy , alway a good thing. The drumming is also outstanding, a couple drum solos are also included(sweet!!). What dominates this album is Matt Pikes loud,long and deep riffing that seems to come from the bowels of hell. Sleep may have been a great band but Pike now has blown away all who consider them selves "Stoner Rock" with High on Fire. Also check out their dedut and try to catch them live. They rule the school. nuff ' said.

I've been trying to come up with something really cleaver to say about this band because, they blow me away. That's the problem though. I've been so rocked by High on Fire since getting this album that it's causing me brain damage. About 30 seconds into the first song I had ever heard (Hung, Drawn and Quartered); I could tell that this band had something that I loved. What is this you ask? The ability to rock you plain stupid. Don't think about it too much, just buy it.

Wow, this CD seems to anger some people! I'm not sure why. It is a bit muddy, but guess what, that is by design! This is mid tempo pounding metal. I'm not going to say the lyrics are great; I'm not sure what they are talking about. But I will tell you this - it is pounding metal. It does take a couple of listens to absorb. The drumming is unbelievable. I think the fact that it is not traditional thrash, and also is not death metal, that leaves some people wondering what the he!! it is. And that is what makes it great. If you don't bash your head into a bloody pulp listening to this it is because, in my humble opinion, you just didn't give it a good four or five listens. I've got a buddy who just swore he hated this. Then, about six listens later he couldn't stop. Give this a chance, it will bust your head!!!!

Matt Pike knows heavy, anyone who ever heard one not of his former band Sleep's music knows that. His new bandmates Des Kensel and George Rice seem to know heavy too. Their band High on Fire take's heavy to places Sleep could only dream of going. This is really hard to describe, but absolute sonic intensity is a good place to start. Massive elephantine riffs, amazing pounding/pummeling rhythm section and medieval lyrics. Everyone else on earth would make this formula sound like a cartoon, but Pike seems to make it work. Heavy stuff going on here.

Matt Pike, of the legendary stoner/doom metal band Sleep, has seen it fit ot grace us mortals with his new band, High on Fire. If Sleep got in a fist fight with a very angry Motorhead, and the whole debacle was refereed by the Melvins, you'd get High on Fire. Pike's vocals are VERY Lemmy-esque, and the thunder he and drummer Des conjure up here would do Mr. Kilmeister proud. "Stoner rock" doesn't really fit this music; certainly the gigantic Sabbath/Kyuss riffs are there, but I feel there is something more here. Matt's lyrics aren't obsessed with drug-addled pursuits, rather, he employs a lot of religious imagery and symbolism to create some unique statements. Overall, if the ultimate Dirge (Sleep's Jerusalem/Dopesmoker) has ever violated your ears, chances are you will enjoy this riff monster