Heaviest High on Fire Riffs | Matt Pike and Jeff Matz's Picks

Riffs are the most essential part of High on Fire. Guitarist Matt Pike and bassist Jeff Matz are total wizards at crafting humongous, boulder-crushing string parts that make you want to bang your head until your neck snaps. So we asked the shredders to pick and play the heaviest riffs in the entire High on Fire discography. See their picks above and let us know some of your favorite High on Fire riffs in the comments below!
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#highonfire #mattpike #sleep #jeffmatz #stonermetal #doommetal #sludgemetal #stoner #doom #sludge #snakesforthedivine #theartofselfdefense #deathisthiscommunion #electricmessiah #blessedblackwings #seger #dunable #orange #guitar #bass #metal #riff

[@brownmatt]

Easily 200% more shirts than I've ever seen Matt Pike wear before.

[@Hejirah]

easily my fave comment :D

[@jakebeaudrie]

You just won Today's Internet with that comment. LOL

[@andrewdewolfe2692]

😂

[@russiangoose7053]

And a button up with pockets too! Not just a t shirt 😂

[@sKatSteemins]

Like ×100

[@psylopanda2841]

Man, Pike is looking 10 years younger... Glad for him!

[@dahuka]

We love to see it.

[@declineofthewest.]

Sobriety baby 💪🏻

[@williamponton7005]

It's so great to see him looking healthy and kicking out the riffs

[@hudsondasilvabezerra4756]

Weed is the secret 😁

[@kowalski3769]

Great to see!!!

[@drewmarshall4422]

Matt is one of the great all time riff writers imo

[@mr.craysee3653]

*The Riff General*

[@jonkopp569]

@@mr.craysee3653 riff finder general

[@shaunrevell5594]

Definitely in my personal top 5.

[@dreamsinthewitchhouse]

matts power chord vibrato is utterly supreme

[@jasonmcf]

Seen them live many times, always up front. The sheer volume that beats you in your face for over an hour.... I know some people don't get it, and that's totally alright. Just glad I do. Hopefully Matt sticks around as long as Lemmy did. One of my favorite musicians.

[@UWPcustombaits]

I had tickets to see them but Matt got his toe chopped off and had to cancel, finally this past year I got to see them live and it RIPPED everything I imagined it to be !

[@Eliphas_Elric]

I’ve seen them live more than any other band… and only once was on purpose. They kept showing up at shows for bands I wanted to see and I eventually became a fan. Love Pike, dudes a treasure.

[@jasonmcf]

@@Eliphas_Elric Interesting fact, Matt was engaged to a friend of mines cousin around 10 years ago. He came to Soddy Daisy Tenn and stayed with my friends parents. They had a water leak or something, and he was out there in their yard, shirt off of course, digging with a shovel helping out. Can you imagine driving through a neighborhood and seeing Matt Pike digging a trench lol. They went to Gatlinburg Tenn, and from what I was told, they couldnt get him off the Nascar go cart track. I would have killed to see this.

[@resindoc]

probably the loudest show I've ever seen. Loud to the extent that I actually got dizzy and my high frequency hearing was shot for the next week.

[@Eliphas_Elric]

@@resindoc I never go to shows without earplugs. My hearing is already fucked, and I have tinnitus. No need to make it worse.

[@Javdoc]

Matt is hilarious. He's simultaneously so metal and such a nerd. Sick riffs.

[@musstakrakish]

Metal is at its best when its made by nerds.

[@IrateWizrd]

Man metal's a nerdy genre lmao. Not a bad thing

[@Chagrin-q5v]

How old are you?

[@Pananananananananify]

@@Chagrin-q5v 3

[@schwargo]

These two compliment each other so well.

[@anttam117]

Damn…. Mike’s guitar is one pretty beast. I love how Sleep broke up into the heaviest shit with High on Fire and the most atmospheric stuff with OM.

[@willhersey3884]

That's a seger, made by this dude named Dallas seger up in Bangor Maine. Super high end doom guitars

[@schillinger7814]

One of my favourite bands ever since they released "The Art of Self Defence". Too many good songs in their catalogue to mention. Pike is an absolute legend.

[@rikudrk]

Agreed.

[@SyphonHydra]

I've been listening to these guys for 15 years. Probably over a year straight of constant heaviness in my ears. God protect Matt Pike and Jeff Matz.

[@sethuberalles]

I love that after all these years of cranking out killer riffs Jeff and Matt clearly still have such a pure joy of playing with each other. They make a good team! I would have liked to see Blessed Black Wings and Turk included on this list but I can’t complain- you really can’t go wrong with any HoF.

[@68buglybug]

1st HOF show was them opening for Motorhead in LA house of blues, never heard of them and then BAM this sound and shirtless guy surrounded by green stacks lol , been a fan since . Was a fan of Zeke and then BAM Jeff is in HOF . Many shows later they are still the best .

[@garrydean3838]

Jeff matz is such underrated muscian! You can see n hear why the riff master pike picked him to be in hof! 🔥

[@jasonm3812]

Hes great, ive been seeing him live since the zeke and camarosmith days. Very cool dude also

[@mdwayne741]

Hell yeah....badass bassist....and guitarist!!!

[@SpaceWolfHudson]

I can listen to (and watch) High On Fire all day. Love the music, the riffs, the tones!

[@jonashermes]

High On Fire is criminally underrated in the overall Metal scene. Many fans of extreme stuff are missing the heaviest of the heavy shit out there.

[@TonyHookedonVanlife]

"Devilution" was the first High on Fire song I ever heard & immediately thought "whoa, now this is totally unique!!" Soooo heavy & aggressive! Damn, now I gotta go listen to it again. 👌

[@joshlantrip2640]

My favorite’s always been Romulus and Remus from De Vermis Mysteriis. Such a pounding riff

[@joemartinez8401]

Yes!!

[@YouGotTheMelvin]

That whole albums destroys. Bloody Knuckles is my personal favorite

[@jamiecunningham1565]

There's so many.... ....I forgot that one🤘🏻🤘🏻🔥🔥

[@riassslave558]

Yeah that's the kinda riffage that makes Lightning ⚡ God's look down and think, "F*¢k It! This guy with the growl-iest sounding riffs right here can finally after like 4000 yera's take over my job I just couldn't retire until I found a seriously committed human who understands what 'LOUD' truely can do when applied with a deft hand & serious intent!🐉🌩️

[@michaeldoerksen2841]

@@YouGotTheMelvin Bloody Knuckles and Romulas and Reamus are my 2 fav tracks from that album

[@coop1311]

I like how Jeff seems to write on guitar.

[@RuffisInc]

A lot of writing bass players do, much easier to get ideas across at first then jump on bass when you start jamming it

[@Builtlikekevinhart]

HOF is one of the heaviest, original and soulful bands on the planet

[@tompmusic9104]

Great video, but my favourite bit was probably at the end where Matt said: "...and we're working on a new album" 😀

[@tarquela]

I loved seeing/hearing Matt & Jeff talking about their creative process and High On Fire. The band is great, one of the best I know.

[@DavidTorrence]

Thank you Matt & Jeff & REVOLVER for sharing your time & talents. Much respect. This was wonderful!

[@thecampria]

My love for this band is endless

[@bradleyaustin4001]

I could watch videos like this all day. Really just want to watch all my favorite artists play and talk about writing their favorite riffs

[@robertm6312]

Having seen Matt play in the prime of his drinking, it really shows how much that stuff ruins humans

[@iandarke7417]

He’s so right on when he’s talking about Snakes for the Divine. Tell it like it is!

[@chadanderson9872]

Pike keeps saying these riffs “fall from the sky” because he is too humble to see that he is the modern day riff master.

[@erikberg8352]

Blessed Black Wings? That said, their ability to make relatively simple harmonies absolutely memorable and hard hitting by developing their style is awesome. High on Fire is an adjective for a style of riff.

[@bornstubborn1]

Legends and Lords. Praise High on Fire, truly an original band that never lets anyone down.

[@VanWhyDesigns]

I wish this was longer! Love these two and love HOF

[@CharlieWinterTV]

Outro riff from Cometh Down Hessian is the best riff ever written.

[@shillian4770]

The whole album is legendary, but the ending of Face of Oblivion takes the cake for me.

[@JMF_Productions]

I've never met Matt but he seems as genuine and human as a guy could be. I haven't gotten a single whiff of arrogance from any interview I've ever seen with him. It's like he doesn't realize how bad ass his music really is. I hope to see them live one day

[@stevenspiva2616]

I met Matt one night at a show in Knoxville. We smoked some cigs together and talked about music for at least 30 minutes. He was super nice, funny and genuine. And shirtless, of course, hahaha.

[@jherzog773]

God do I love these two men. The music they make is so powerful. Matt Pike once bumped into me at the double door in Chicago. I was like holy shit, it’s High on Fire!!!

[@garethsigrist8714]

The world is full of amazing guitar/bass players for who just one of these amazing riffs would be the best riff they ever wrote and here’s Matt and Jeff just making it rain with non stop riffs! High on Fire are up to their eyeballs in amazing riffs 🎸🤘

[@riassslave558]

These two created the soundtrack to my late 30's & my entire 40's decade truly amazing ! Adding Des in the mix and you've got blueprint perfection for a trio with power, tastiness & unobviousness which makes them astounding live! I've been lukcky enuf to see them twice but when i first saw them with gwar in vancouver at the pne they only were given enuf time to play 3 songs....disappointing to say the least! but being a musician myself i'm aware they had like 0% input on that time arrangement. Looking forward to anything new music or a vancouver tourdate i'm down for sither. keep on keeping on! L8rsk8rs!

[@butchvito]

Hopefully we see a new High on Fire album this year. I'd kill for a High on Fire/Crowbar tour.

[@r.edward5701]

Looks like next year

[@Jakethefartist]

Add Melvins and Eyehategod in there and you got a solid ass line up

[@xyanide1986]

Yo it's out

[@ImethIaddictI]

Love these dudes, been listening to Snakes and Death is This Communion for weeks on repeat, then saw this today!

[@kelseyadams7987]

Most excellent behind the riffing! High on Fire are one of those rare bands that doesn’t have a bad album.(only my opinion)Super stoked for new High on Fire!🤘🤘

[@czgibson3086]

Yep, no such thing as a bad High on Fire album.

[@lordundhimself1310]

*Facts

[@radakinryder2741]

God I hope I can find a musical bests like Matt and jeff, they truly bring the best out in each other musically!

[@williambryant7686]

My absolute favorite is "King of Days."

[@schillinger7814]

Horrendously good song and one of my favourites too.

[@Watainn]

That's a Matz riff too! Definitely some great alchemy between the two of em.

[@anundyingfire]

Mine too! De Vermiis has soooo many great HOF songs.

[@NIN-GISH-ZIDDA]

You two need to know how truly inspirational you are and have been....you look healthy and lucid and I will always be indebted for having the great fortune of getting my mind blown by your distinct gifts and discipline!

[@daviddevillers6790]

Saw you guys in Ventura, CA a while back. Rocked it. Pretty sure that was the beginning of the end for my hearing. Worth it, though. Thanks, gents!

[@MathiasMaximus]

Art of self defense and surrounded by thieves are criminally underrated albums

[@karstenhammerhansen]

Those are truely some of their finest riffs..

[@corntoes]

im surprised theres no riffs from surrounded by thieves, hung drawn and quartered is such a sick song

[@MathiasMaximus]

I love that album so much dude

[@corntoes]

@@MathiasMaximus crazy underrated album i love it

[@matte8439]

That's des's power album. The drum patterns he used are straight up savage. His toms definitely got a workout.

[@wc1994]

That's the first High On Fire song I ever heard. The video was on MTV and I've been a fan since.

[@hugocastor]

Snakes for the divine is the perfect High on Fire song. Couldn’t agree more!

[@ThisGuy7310]

10,000 years is still one of my favorite riffs to play

[@HighOnFire1997]

Arts Of Self Defence is just a crazy album. I hope they play 10.000 Years, Blood From Zion and Baghdad when I see them in Manchester next month

[@hussle2654]

Ripping a joint in High On Fire pit at Psycho Las Vegas in 2016 was definitely one of the best times I've had a show in my life

[@johnhotine4196]

Return to nod. From death is this communion has been on my daily play list for well over three years and i never get sick of that opening riff! Thanks for the music my dudes.

[@twontonamo]

High on Fire fucking rules. One of my favorite bands for sure.

[@rch317]

It's good to see Matt looking healthy again.

[@thraft]

That guitar tone is gnarly

[@indybingyi]

Man Matt really is the master of incredibly groovy and heavy riffs

[@chrisaldridge3117]

I’ve watched this like 5 times, so inspiring

[@DaisyHead666]

I watch this like near weekly lol. Pike is my spirit animal.

[@SpookyApparition]

Wow, cool to hear Matt talk about being inspired by The Haunted. their debut album is an overlooked classic. And I can totally hear some of their note choices worked their way into some HoF riffs.

[@samclemmons5373]

I used to love The Haunted Made Me Do It, but I haven’t thought about that one in years! I immediately knew what he was talking about when he said it though.

[@Dutchking-88]

Fantastic and super fun video. Respect on the Des praise. He is such a great dude and his work is master class.

[@MetalPersonJ]

This is amazing! Its especially great to see them jamming it out rather than Scott Ian just talking about it (nothing wrong with that). It's also interesting to learn what Jeff has written. I knew he wrote some stuff (Matt told me and my group of friends in Bloomington Jeff wrote half of Snakes For The Divine).

[@mattlauer6817]

Such great tone

[@akrmfk]

Damn that seger guitar looks badass

[@deanstanley2125]

Isn't that the company that makes SG copies for Tony Iommi?

[@akrmfk]

Im not sure, i just recently followed them when matt teased his guitar on IG. They do have a model called YG, kinda like a thick sg/yamaha sbg

[@thrasherftw]

@@deanstanley2125 no that’s Jaydee out of England. Dallas Seger makes guitars in Maine. Fuckin beautiful guitars.

[@aidselmo1]

Snakes....a perfect song. We dont get many of these, now a days. TY Mr pike and team!

[@matt_matt_matt6775]

Such an amazing catalog.

[@dimitriosilio3039]

wow, Thank you for this!!!! Keep em coming please !!!!

[@darrenfoleymusic3336]

Epic…met Matt in Tbay…had a beer with him before the show. They melted all faces, great performance. Great Guys Amazing band and music.

[@saltpeter7429]

Cometh Down Hessian and The Cave. Love em. I have absolutely no complaints regarding High On Fire. My buddy that introduced them to me said he was done with them because they went too" Metal". He went on to clarify that he identified strongly with the movement/ Idea of " Stoner Rock" and Matt's work with SLEEP was where his interest ended. I find the whole labels/ unlabeled thing kind of silly, whatever. If it's good I like it. And METAL will never be a bad word in my book, I dont give a shit what is going on out in the music world. Heavy Metal covers a myriad array of style and texture, if someone brings the excitement while playing a Bavarian cheese whistle I'm all in.

[@noogie1]

Love Matt, awesome video.

[@MrGunwitch]

Riff gratitude. Love it.

[@imgooley]

Snakes for the Divine is so good. Surprised not to see anything from Blessed Black Wings on the list.

[@hoofhearted6900]

Maybe my new fav vid on KZbin. Could watch them play all day.....FURY WHIP!!! Luv it

[@williambrown1451]

10,000 years, is one of the heaviest songs ever, those riffs and Des's drums - goddamn man

[@KamenMinkov]

Funny (or not so much) how with other bands I might remember choruses and other sung phrases and with High on Fire I get just riffs stuck in my head.

[@M4RCi92]

Same here, heheh. I sing/growl so I'm naturally drawn to the vocals and I'm super into lyrics, but with HoF you just can't. The riffs, man, they're just too fucking good. Even after the 100th time, it's just not worth it paying attention to anything else. Matt Pike is a genius.

[@Chef_Deth]

HoF rulesss…Matt pike is a god and you have no idea the power and the soundddd these guys until you see it live must see band will change your whole perspective on shit…Mouth of Architect is heavy as uranium and the chug riff after the soaring intro on drowning dog is golden and absolute banger of a song one of my fav HoF jamsssss cheers men keep on rocking come back to motor city one mo timeeeeee

[@aidselmo1]

I love that the amp i bought during covid is the the one Matt is running thru....Orange Crush 30....I love it!

[@batrider2985]

I saw them back in 08 at a small venue in Dallas. We went for another band that was opening for them and I hadn’t ever heard their music. Matt came out with his shirt off and they started playing Fury Whip and it blew my mind. I’ve been a fan ever since.

[@AzuraTM]

just imagine all the riffs Matt has forgotten because he can't remember what he played five seconds ago!

[@nitemareman1]

So glad Matt is healthy and doing well. We require another 30 years of straight doom metal power from him, at least.

[@shagstars]

Let's hope he can do 20. 30 might be a stretch after such a life

[@nitemareman1]

@@shagstars Aim high. I require 30 and will settle for nothing less.

[@andrewhuff5119]

Omg I wanted to have them keep going on fury whip! My absolute favorite HOF riff is the main intro to the verse….they stopped right before that!! Great way to start a Friday though.

[@Hejirah]

Baghdad has to be me one of my faves... so weird and incredibly groovy and boomy but yeah Fury Whip!

[@blackspring3207]

I'm so glad Matt Pike is looking so good and healthy, man.

[@paulh6673]

Matt Pike looking like he's ready to star in a Sam Peckinpah movie from the early 70s.

[@SamLibman]

One of the greatest bands ever!

[@MikeBurkard]

Love this! 'Blessed Black Wings' was the first album I heard, and I never looked back! 🤘😈

[@InspiretoVictory]

The first time I heard Fire, Flood and Plague, it crushed my fucking mind. An absolutely earth shattering riff. It made me have this fucking Mad Max type of fucking dream where a rat rod car was getting chased by an art deco style cop car through an apocalyptic urban wasteland. There were machine guns, explosions and lots of fire. The chase went through this long ass tunnel through a fucking mountain where a big ass fucking helicopter was waiting for them with a ton of missiles at the other end. It ended with the rat rod car getting fucking annihilated in an epic firestorm of missiles.

[@adammatthews1984]

Love this band!!!

[@luketaylormusic2807]

Snakes For The Divine is perfect, but my favorite High On Fire song/riffs are in Frost Hammer!!!

[@joeycalderon1556]

I love that they started with 10,000 Years, because that was the first HoF song I heard and it immediately made me a hardcore fan. Also, the fact that most of these riffs are from SFTD and before reflects my obsession of listening to the first 5 albums. Matt and Matz, love it

[@Namastay1]

Snakes for the divine riff is the one riff that hit me to the bones. Thats damn too good.

[@mojopin2000]

NOW YOU RE-A-LIZE!!! I love this goddamn band.

[@Pedaltvchannel]

Such a cool video 🤘🔥🔥🔥

[@nadussias]

Jeff Matz' bass tone is arguably heavier than Matt Pike's guitar

[@tyronem3328]

Sludge riff underworld. Fantastic.

[@Daniela-qs3fh]

Hooked since I first listened to Baghdad when The Art of self-defense was released!

[@DrewT92377]

Well they picked my favorite first shot with 10,000 Years. What a riff... the way the band just builds the layers behind it until its just a wall of sound. I guess if I'm picking one they didn't, I'd go with Blessed Black Wings. Its got Mastodon vibes to it. Also my favorite Matt Pike vocal. They way he stresses the chorus syllables on the downbeats is fucking crushing. Hopefully this video is a sign of a new batch of tunes coming... long overdue.

[@JBot1973]

That tone from those tiny amps! Amazing

[@chadwickbaxter8424]

What amps are those?

[@KOLBYWAN_KENOBI]

Never heard of these guys before standing front row for the set at Psycho Las Vegas 2022. Fuck they’re awesome! My damn ears hurt by the end of their set! Haha

[@Darrell-n3t]

Been impressed with him since I saw Sleep open for one of the many versions of Hawkwind. Back then, skinny broad shouldered perfect posture surfer lookin' dude with 'dreds. "Holy Mountain" tour in the Upper Midwest.

[@curtisrusko8908]

I could listen to Jeff and Matt play all day. But could you imagine the sheer power if HOF had two guitar players?? Holy shit.

[@christopherwilson5815]

Dude I need to know what that absolute piece of artistry Matt is playing is. That guitar is gorgeous.

[@grantotterson1925]

That’s a seger guitar. He talks about it in some video I don’t know where.

[@JerseyShoreImages]

One of the heaviest breakdowns is from Fertile Green. Absolutely brutal! kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKKUmJVrZc6imLc

[@evillynn4166]

Any HOF riff rules, but King of Days just crushes!!!

[@wassup287]

Cant believe they didnt pick any songs from Vermis, bloody knuckles blows my socks off every time