Matt Pike’s solo album, Pike VS. The Automaton, will be released February 18 via MNRK Heavy. What makes this solo LP interesting is that it’s coming from indie rock’s undisputed renaissance man. Not only was he integral in co-founding a musical style and movement via his bands Sleep and High On Fire, he recently released his first book, Head On A Pike: The Illustrated Lyrics Of Matt Pike, to critical acclaim. The idea to do a solo record happened while Pike was dealing with some of the biggest challenges we’ve seen in our lifetime—the Pandemic, political upheaval, and raging wildfires, all of which happened in and around his home in Oregon, which affected him in a profound way. Pike and drummer Jon Reid wrote the lyrics with contributions from family and friends...