| In the Name of Suffering (CD) | 1992 | Century Media |
This is some dirty, hideous music that was no doubt spawned on the spot and with heavy drug usage. The whole album sounds like one long jam session broken up into songs with heavy squealing feedback. If you have never experienced the sound of sludge before, expect a slow, heavily distorted, heavy, droning mass of sound that is comparable to crawling through the trenches on the western front in World War 1. It is a suffocating sound to say the least, and Eyehategod alongside Grief are probably the masters of this particular misanthropic brand of music. The music is driven -unsurprisingly- by guitars that actually, as much as I hate the word, sound groovy, with huge hints towards the godfathers of metal, Black Sabbath. The guitars churn out their dirty sound backed by a low end wall of sound provided by the bass and the drums, whilst over the top of it all, vocals are spewed forth by Mike Patton, who rants and raves about the depravity and filth of humans, most of which is unintelligible, which is probably a good thing as they are no doubt drug induced, insane rantings. With song titles being what they are, and lyrics along the lines of "Throat dried out/No more alcohol to vomit/Skin dried up/Sick cunt slut/Tied up on the floor/I lose myself on Sundays", you know you're in for something special (albeit misanthropic to the extreme) with Eyehategod.
This is definitely recommended for fans of extremely dirty music and for fans of sludge but make no mistake, this is doom.
1. Depress
2. Man Is Too Ignorant To Exist
3. Shinobi
4. Pigs
5. Run It Into The Ground
6. Godsong
7. Children Of God
8. Left To Starve
9. Hostility Dose
10. Hit A Girl
Approx. ?? minutes
| 13 / Eyehategod Split (7") | 1994 | Ax/ction Records |
Except for their bassist, 13 has always been an all girl band. Their vocalist, Alicia Morgan, must be one of the most extreme female vo-killers ever. She easily matches the vocalist of Eyehategod when it comes to harsh and brutal screaming. The rest of their music could probably best be described as slow, vomiting sludge, with slight stoner elements. The interresting thing about the stoner elements is that they weight down the track with heavyness, but just enough to create the edge that makes the final touch of illness.
Eyehategod is far more famous than 13, although the bands had a pretty close relationship at one point [Ed note: judging from the music both bands are playing, it must have been a very romantic one]. This probably explains why they decided to do two splits together. In many ways the sound of the music isn't that different, but there are certain things that do set the bands clearly apart from each other as well. Eyehategod lies much heavier on the stoner side. IN their case the music seems to bounce slightly up again due to these stoner elements. They are also nowhere near the tormented slowness of 13.
No, Eyehategod relies more on the hardcore anger to carry their music through. Their music is intense and filled with plenty of sped up sections that fill the songs with rage. In many ways I guess you could say that one of the main differences between the bands is that Eyehategod lies much closer to hardcore in general. Thus, although the bands are so similar, they still do take on two different sides of sludge.
Not many copies of this split have been released and it is impossible to track them down in a store. It is however a must have for fans of Grief, Noothgrush and similar harsh sludge bands, so it might just be worth the while to do the tour around town to check out all the used vinyl stores.
13:
1. Whore
Eyehategod:
2. Serving Time In The Middle Of Nowhere
3. Lack Of Almost Everything
Approx. 12 minutes
| Eyehategod / 13 Split (7") | 1994 | Slap A Ham |
The quote is taken from the text on 13s side of the inlay. Here they have copied a fair portion of the chapter 'Question VI: Concerning Witches who copulate with Devils. Why is it that Women are chiefly addicted to Evil superstitions?' in 'Malleus Maleficarum', also known as 'The Witchhammer' (the text can be found here: http://www.malleusmaleficarum.org. The book discusses a lot of other matters concerning witchcraft and the ways of the stars and fallen angels. However, the quoted part in the inlay basically describes the inhumanity that (the authors believes) lies naturally within women. Carnal lusts is their nature and it would drive them all to sexual intercourse with demons unless the men watch over them. The title of the track, 'Wrong', clearly illustrates what the three ladies in 13 think of this.
Of course, with such a background for a track you can also expect something really ugly. And those expectations won't be put to shame. This is perhaps filthier, more fucked up and grimmer than any of their other works. Once again Alicia Morgan does a great job on the vocals, making growls so dark that few men can stand comparison. This is one of the most extreme sludge/doom tracks ever made.
'Southern Discomfort' is one of Eyehategod's rarest tracks. It's slow, heavy and definitely some of their fouler stuff. I cannot imagine any Eyehategod fans that would be dissapointed by this.
This split is somewhat hard to get hold of and it is usually not sold very cheaply either. However, should you ever be in the possition to get this, then do so. Anyone who likes underground sludge/doom cannot go wrong with this. A classic in dire need of reprinting.
"And blessed be the Highest Who has so far preserved the male sex from such a crime: for since He was willing to be born and suffer for us, therefore He has granted to men this privelege."
Eyehategod:
1. Southern Discomfort
13:
2. Wrong
Approx. 11 minutes
| Southern Discomfort (CD) | 2000 | Century Media |
'Southern discomfort' is not a new cd, but who cares? The sludgy, hatecore-doom that this American quintet serves us, is once again outstanding. Elementary, ultra heavy guitarriffs in the vein of bands like Sleep, Crowbar and Black Sabbath plough themselves slowly forth through a landscape of misery, anger and hate. Singer Michael D. Williams spits to everything that evokes his frustration, while his throat is twisted by pain. Managing to listen the whole way to the end of 'Southern discomfort' means forty minutes of suffering and drudge.
Those who enjoy the immensely hard sludge doom like Grief, Crowbar or Burning Witch, can not ignore this Eyehategod collection.
1. Ruptured Heart Theory
2. Story of the Eye
3. Blank/Shoplift
4. Southern Discomfort
5. Serving Time in the Middle of Nowhere
6. Lack of Almost Everything
7. Peace Thru War (Thru Peace and War)
8. Depress
9. Dopesick Jam
Approx. 40 minutes
Translated by: Kostas Panagiotou
| Confederacy of ruined lives (CD) | 2000 | Century Media |
A short description for those who don't know the band: Eyehategod shits on everything that looks pretty and succesful, something that is in particular emphasized by enfant terrible Mike Williams who is spitting his hate and frustration. Another typical element of the sound of this band, is the sludgy, ultra heavy, rounded wall of guitar sound that gives you the impression that you wade knee-deep in the hazy swamps of Louisiana. You can easily compare Eyehategod with Sleep or Grief.
The music on 'Confederacy' is (fortunately) not yet beautiful, but it's still very addictive. Fellow doomfreaks, Eyehategod sounds even more eager and heavier than before, so make sure that you don't miss this cd!
1. Revelation/Revolution
2. Blood Money
3. Jack Ass In The Will Of God
4. Self Medication Blues
5. The Concussion Machine Process
6. Inferior And Full Of Anxiety
7. .0001%
8. 99 Miles Of Bad Road
9. Last Year (She Wanted A Doll House)
10. Corruption Scheme
Approx. 42 minutes
Translated by: Kostas Panagiotou
| Soilent Green / Eyehategod Split (7") | 2002 | Incision |
Eyehategod's half isn't as doomy as they can be either. Whether one could say that the hardcore in the music dominates or not, it's hard to tell. But basically I wouldn't really call it a doom track.
The bands do have a lot in common. Both bands really do sound utterly pissed and quite filthy. Not to mention that both drummers undergo quite a workout and the insane guitars seem to try to wander off from time to time.
I must admit that this isn't one of the split albums that I'll listen much to. At least I think that Eyehategod did a much better job on the splits with 13. Fans of hardcore would probably think that my opinion is utter bullshit though because there is indeed a lot more to be enjoyed by corers than doomsters.
Soilent Green:
1. They Lie To Hide The Truth
Eyehategod:
2. The Age Of Bootcamp
Approx. 10 minutes
| Preaching The "End-Time" Message (CD) | 2005 | Emetic |
The music itself is quite heavy and at the same time a bit bouncy. The bounce in the music comes from what has been called Southern sludgecore. It's a genre that Eyehategod claim as their own creation and also claim the throne as the genre's biggest name. Despite that genre classification it should also be duly noted that not only is the music mostly doom, they have also been a huge influence to the whole sludge/doom genre.
The first half of this CD consists of tracks from various compilations and rare splits. Some of them are alternate versions of tracks from other albums. So basically, if you missed out on any of the rarities, then you can still get hold of them on this CD. Track 6 and 7 are live tracks that were recorded the 3rd of september 2002 in Tokyo, in a place called Club Quatro. The final three are demo versions of tracks that might see the light on a future album.
This compilation contains tracks from various points in the band's history. Even as far back as 1993. This means that for people who just want to check this band out, it might be worth considering. Needless to say, but the band's fanbase would probably be interested in it as well. Even if I'm still convinced that the genre has better bands to offer, these guys are still essential.
1. Methamphetamine (alternate version of a song that originally appeared on 'Cry Now, Cry Later Compilation')
2. Serving Time In The Middle Of Nowhere (alternate version of a song that originally appeared on 'Gummo', the soundtrack of the movie with the same name)
3. Sabbath Sam (originally appeared on 'In These Black Days: A Tribute To Black Sabbath Vol. 1', a split 7" with Anal Cunt)
4. Age Of Bootcamp (originally appeared on the 'Soilent Green/Eyehategod Split')
5. I Am The Gestapo (originally appeared on the 'Eyehategod/Cripple Bastards Split')
6. Jackass In The Will Of God(live)
7. Revolution/Revelation(live)
8. International Narcotic
9. 36 Beers And A Ball Of String
10. Turn Troubled Tables
I've taken the liberty of adding the text behind track 1-5 for the sake of information.
Approx. 39 minutes