by JOHNSON CUMMINS

If Black Sabbath were stoner rock’s messiahs, then Sleep’s 1995 epic masterpiece Jerusalem is surely the genre’s equivalent of the second coming. Easily one of the heaviest things ever to hit tape, Jerusalem was one hour-long song and has always been the measuring stick for High on Fire’s Matt Pike—previously the guitar player in Sleep.

Like all genius recordings (see the Beach Boys’ Smile—yep, it’s that good), it struck the record label as largely unmarketable and was shelved. Thanks to tape traders, bootleggers and a 2003 official release of the demos called Dopesmoker, the record’s legacy among aggressive-music listeners keeps growing—but at the same time, it hasn’t eclipsed the far more metallic efforts of High on Fire.

The Oakland trio—already on their third release, the critically acclaimed Blessed Black Wings—are hardly resting on the laurels of past accomplishments. “I’m really surprised about how people are still talking about Jerusalem,” says Pike. “It’s kind of turned into this cult thing that we didn’t think would’ve happened when we were making it. With High on Fire, I really wanted to go in a different direction, as kind of a sign of respect for my brothers in Sleep.”

With Joe Preston of the Melvins, Sunn O))) and Earth now adding the low end muscle in High on Fire, the band could easily branch out into more experimental realms, à la Isis, or at least mount a return to Pike’s Sleep days, but he insists that the band will never opt for the easy way out. “I think a lot of metal bands are just rehashing the same kind of chug-chug thing. A lot of metal bands I see are just trying to get the crowd on their side. We give them what they don’t expect and kind of hit them from the other side. We sure didn’t do it the easy way.”

With the Bronx, Buried Inside and Big Business at la Sala Rossa on Tuesday, Feb. 7, 9 p.m., $15

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