title: Hot Snakes created: 2026-04-07 updated: 2026-04-07 type: band tags: [band, post-punk, garage-punk, era-2000s, era-2010s] sources: [raw/articles/hot-snakes-wikipedia.md]
Hot Snakes
San Diego, California. Formed 2000 by John Reis (guitar/vocals, ex-drive-like-jehu, rocket-from-the-crypt) and Rick Froberg (guitar/vocals, ex-Drive Like Jehu). Post-punk/garage-punk. The band where the Reis/Froberg partnership — one of punk’s greatest creative duos — reached its most focused expression.
Key Releases
- Automatic Midnight (2000, Swami Records) — Debut. “I Hate the Kids,” “Salton City.” Darker than RFTC, more angular than Jehu.
- Suicide Invoice (2002) — “XOX,” “Gar Forgets His Insomnia.” The Reis/Froberg sound at its peak.
- Audit in Progress (2004, Sub Pop) — Signed to Sub Pop. “Brain Trust,” “This Mystic Decade.” Most accessible.
- Jericho Sirens (2018, Sub Pop) — Reunion album. Proved they hadn’t lost anything after 14 years apart.
The Reis/Froberg Axis
John Reis and Rick Froberg first played together in Pitchfork (1986-1990), then Drive Like Jehu (1990-1995), then Hot Snakes (2000-2005, 2011-2014, 2018-present). Three bands, three decades, one creative partnership. Reis’s guitar work is complex and rhythmic; Froberg’s is raw and emotional. Together they created a sound that was simultaneously math-rock and punk.
Why Hot Snakes Matter
Hot Snakes proved that the Jehu/RFTC legacy could continue without repeating itself. They’re more concise than Jehu, more serious than RFTC, and more direct than either. The band’s post-punk influence (Wire, Gang of Four) gives them a different energy from San Diego’s hardcore roots.
Related
- drive-like-jehu — predecessor band
- rocket-from-the-crypt — Reis’s other band
- san-diego-scene — their home
- post-punk — their influence