The World/Inferno Friendship Society (also referred to as World Inferno, or Inferno) is an American band from Brooklyn, New York. Its style merges punk, soul, klezmer and jazz, while its collective membership features horns, piano and guitar and has a membership of about 40 players, of whom only about seven to ten active members usually perform at a time. The group was led by singer Jack Terricloth, who was the only constant during the group's history. Terricloth was known for his pointed commentary during shows; his monologues touched on politics and his transformation from the "old school".
Its lyrics often concern historical or biographical subjects, such as Weimar-era Germany, Peter Lorre, Jeffrey Lee Pierce of The Gun Club, Paul Robeson, Leni Riefenstahl, Dante Alighieri, Philip K. Dick, and Jonathan Fire*Eater.
While over 40 Society members have come and gone, Terricloth has maintained that the group was "always meant to be this way", and are more of a gang than an actual band. Many members continue to collaborate with the group, but do not join them on tour.
Bandleader Jack Terricloth died in May 2021; no information on the future of the World/Inferno Friendship Society has been released following his death.