Eyehategod

Eyehategod
Background information
Also known as	Snuffleupagus on Acid (1988) EHG, ExHxGx
Origin	New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Genres	Rock and Roll, Sludge Metal, Crust Punk
Years active	1988 - Present
Labels	Century Media, Emetic, Housecore Records
Associated acts	Outlaw Order, Soilent Green, Down, Debris Inc., Corrections House, The Mystick Crewe of Clearlight, Crowbar, Arson Anthem, Goatwhore, The Guilt Øf..., Drip, Mountain of Wizard, Superjoint Ritual
Website	Eyehategod Official

Eyehategod (also abbreviated and referred to as EHG or ExHxGx) are an American rock and roll band from New Orleans who formed in 1988. They have become one of the most well known bands to emerge from the NOLA metal scene. For many years their core line-up has remained, with the exceptions of the bass guitarist, a slot in which several musicians have played and the death of drummer Joey LaCaze in 2013. In recent years vocalist Mike IX Williams took time off from the Spring of 2016 to the summer of 2017. due to health issues with various vocalists filling in. Longtime guitarist Brian Patton would leave in 2018 though would return in 2019 when band founder Jimmy Bower would leave for personal reasons (Though Bower would return in 2020.).

Eyehategod have noted Melvins, Carnivore, The Obsessed, Discharge, Black Flag, Corrosion of Conformity, Black Sabbath, Celtic Frost, Confessor and Saint Vitus as key influences to their sound. Heavy, detuned, and bluesy guitar riffs dominate the band's discography, often mixing up with more up-tempo and speedy compositions, drawing odes to grindcore and crust punk. They are combined with walls of feedback and tortured vocals to create a harsh misanthropic vibe. The lyrics, mainly penned by Williams, deviate into misanthropy, nihilism, mental abuse/illness, crime, poverty and other means of internal and external suffering.

Although Eyehategod are considered a seminal, pioneering band in sludge metal, the band themselves refer to their music as "Rock and Roll". The band has released five studio albums to date with a sixth in the works and have toured all over the world in a career spanning over thirty years.

History

Founding and In the Name of Suffering (1988 - 1992)

Little is known of the early stages of Eyehategod but it is known that Jimmy Bower and Joey LaCaze founded the band on 20 April 1988 in accordance to cannabis culture, initially under the working name "Snuffleupagus on Acid". Steve Dale, Mark Schultz and Mike Williams would round out the remaining founding members. The band was initially intended as a joke and not to be taken too seriously, created as a rebellion to the "norm of underground music at the time". The band's earliest known live performance would take place on 30 September 1989 at The Lion's Club in New Orleans, with sporadic shows in the Louisiana scene.

The band would independently record two demos to send to various labels: 1989's Garden Dwarf Woman Driver and 1990's Lack of Almost Everything. They eventually got signed to the small French label Intellectual Convulsion and released their debut album In The Name of Suffering circa 1990, after recording the album themselves in Kenner, Louisiana for roughly $1000. The album had a far more primitive and raw sound than later releases (as it was recorded very cheaply and the band members were fairly inexperienced), and had a more hardcore feel to it. The label dissolved with only a couple of thousand copies having been printed, so the band had to find a new label. They soon signed with Century Media however, who re-released In the Name of Suffering on 1 December 1992, with later versions featuring the Lack of Almost Everything demo as a bonus. The band would share the stage with the likes of Anal Cunt, GG Allin, Corrosion of Conformity and Crowbar among many others in their earliest years.

Take as Needed for Pain (1993 - 1995)

Eyehategod would take time to record a new album at Studio 13 in New Orleans, a small label working from the 13th floor of an abandoned department store on Canal Street in New Orleans. The band would practice daily to put down new songs for the album. At the time, Mike Williams was homeless (having been thrown out by his former girlfriend) and living in an abandoned, flea-infested room above a strip club just a few minutes away from the studio. Eyehategod's second album Take As Needed For Pain would be released on 22 November 1993, displaying a cleaner, more distinct sound with better defined riffs with the southern rock, blues and doom influences are also more distinctly felt on this album. Notably this would also be the first album with longtime second guitarist Brian Patton while Mark Schultz would switch to bass duties.

After the release of the album, the band toured extensively with acts such as Chaos UK, Buzzov*en, Sourvein, Pantera, Obituary, Pitch Shifter, White Zombie and Corrosion of Conformity among many others. Between touring the members of Eyehategod would branch off to other projects. Mike Williams would become a regular contributor to Metal Maniacs magazine. Brian Patton would also remain active with Soilent Green, a mix of sludge, death metal and grindcore. Jimmy Bower would briefly join Crowbar in 1996, contributing to the band's fourth album Broken Glass, released the same year. Bower also began contributing and performing live on a more frequent basis with the Southern Metal supergroup known as Down, whose debut album NOLA saw release in 1995. Lastly Bower and LaCaze would form a psychedelic instrumental group known as The Mystick Crewe of Clearlight in 1996 with various members of the NOLA heavy scene.

Dopesick (1996 - 1999)

Eyehategod would record several demos through 1994 and 1995 building up to the band's third album, seeing release on several compilations and splits (Two of which with 13) but would truly begin work on the third album in the Fall and Winter of 1995. Produced by Billy Anderson and Pepper Keenan along with featuring Vince LeBlanc on bass, this third album would be recorded at Side One Studios in New Orleans, Louisiana. Mike Williams had to travel often between there and Clinton Hill, Brooklyn in New York City, where he was living at the time and therecording sessions were notoriously chaotic with the studio owner reportedly calling Century to ask if the band were insane, and threatening to kick them out. This particular incident occurred after Mike Williams had attempted to record the sound of smashing glass for the introduction to the album, by smashing a bottle on the floor of the studio. In the process he slashed his hand open badly and bled all over the studio floor (this recording did make it to the record as the introduction to the first track, "My Name is God (I Hate You)"). One of the band members then apparently smeared the words "Hell" and "Death to Pigs" in Mike's blood.

Dopesick, Eyehategod's third album released on 2 April 1996, was far more chaotic than their previous yet still retained the distinct southern, bluesy feel, distancing it from In the Name of Suffering. It has been regarded as a seminal sludge album and to some fans as their finest work. The band then embarked on a US tour in the spring of 1997 to support the album, supporting White Zombie and Pantera and bringing their music to a far wider audience while earning their place as one of the key acts in the NOLA metal scene. The band would go through a series of internal disputes and went on a brief hiatus from 1998 - 1999 as it's members would remain active with other projects.

Confederacy of Ruined Lives and Brief Hiatus (2000 - 2009)

Eyehategod's hiatus would snap as the band would release a compilation of demos from the Take As Needed For Pain and Dopesick sessions entitled Southern Discomfort on 25 January 2000. In the Spring of 2000 as the band toured Europe with Crowbar and Soilent Green with a new bassist in Daniel Nick, followed with the band recording in June and July with Dave Fortman at Balance Productions in Mandeville, Louisiana. Confederacy of Ruined Lives saw release on 19 September 2000 to positive reception as the band toured the United States in 2001 and then Japan and Europe in 2002, the latter surrounding an appearance at Morrowfest, a tribute to Johnny Morrow of Iron Monkey notoriety. Notably due to commitments with Down at the time as that band began touring more frequently it would be the band's first shows without founding member Jimmy Bower, with Mader taking his guitar spot while Marvin Gauntlett (Varukers, Armour of God) would perform on bass. Preceding those Japan and Europe tours the band would also recruit their fifth and longest tenured bassist Gary Mader (Hawg Jaw) in January 2002 with his first appearance with the band on 10 February 2002 at the Shim Sham Club in New Orleans.

On 9 July 2001 Eyehategod would release a live album (Also featuring demos) in the form of 10 Years of Abuse (And Still Broke) as a contractual obligation, ultimately their final release with Century Media. The band would announce this officially at the end of 2002 and eventually would sign to Michigan-based label Emetic Records in 2005. Notably members of Eyehategod would form Outlaw Order, a sludge spin-off that features all members of EHG except Bower, who was largely busy with Down at the time. Another spin-off group would form in Arson Anthem, an anarcho-punk/hardcore group featuring Williams, Phil Anselmo, Hank Williams III and Collin Yeo.

On 27 May 2005 the band would release a compilation album entitled Preaching The "End-Time" Message, featuring demos, rarities and three new songs recorded on 10 March 2005, while work began on a 2-CD tribute album on Emetic. The band would tour extensively as mention of a fifth album was in the works. Two very notable gigs happened on this tour. The first would be on 1 June 2005 with Anal Cunt in what was Seth Putnam's first live appearance since suffering from a seizure induced by a drug overdose in 2004, rendering him comatose for months and paralyzed with extensive rehabilitation. Vocalist Putnam would perform seated in a chair for the entire set, notably working in the song "You're in a Coma" as a self-deprecating joke. The other notable gig would be the last date of the tour at CBGB's on 16 August 2005, featuring Phil Anselmo as a fill-in guitarist in what was notably the Pantera frontman's first public appearance after the death of his Pantera bandmate Dimebag Darrell on 4 December 2004.

From 23 to 31 August 2005 the category five Hurricane Katrina would make impact through Florida and Louisiana, especially causing catastrophic damage in New Orleans and killing over 1,200 people. Many bands were affected by Katrina which included Eyehategod. By September it had been revealed at the time that all members of the band, past and present, were accounted for except vocalist Mike Williams. Williams would be found "alive and well" on 14 September 2005, having survived the hurricane. On 1 October 2005 Williams, along with then-girlfriend Alicia Morgan were arrested and interred at Morgan City Jail, later revealed to be "narcotics charges" along with being on probation at the time. Williams would spend 91 days in jail, ultimately released on 9 December 2005 with help of one Phil Anselmo. It had been noted that while in jail Williams managed to kick his heroin habit for good and that he had split up with Morgan, whom he was in a relationship with for thirteen years.

Eyehategod's first shows since the Katrina catastophe would be on 10 December 2005 at Juan's Flying Burrito in New Orleans and at the 2006 Mardi Gras Festival. Work would begin on Down's third album III: Over The Under (Released 24 September 2007) so Bower would remain busy with that band, performing sporadic gigs with EHG as he toured extensively with Down from 2007 to 2009. Outlaw Order would re-form for a time, including a handful of short tours. On 20 March 2007 Emetic Records released a 2-CD compilation entitled For The Sick, featuring thirty eight bands. On 29 August 2008 Eyehategod would celebrate their twentieth anniversary alongside Crowbar at One Eyed Jacks in New Orleans. 2009 would see the band performing at various festivals such as Murderfest, Chaos in Tejas and Hellfest, along with short tours.

Resurgence and Self-Titled Album (2010 - 2015)

Eyehategod, though never going on a full hiatus, would see a sort of resurgence as the band would begin touring more frequently in 2010 alongside the likes of Totimoshi, Nachtmystium, Brutal Truth, Phobia, Goatwhore and many others. Notably the band performed two nights at the 2010 edition of Roadburn Festival, due to the ash cloud from Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano. The band also performed a special gig at Emo's in Austin, Texas on 7 May, performing the entirety of "In The Name of Suffering" and "Take As Needed For Pain". 2011 would see the band on short tours along with an appearance at SXSW before embarking on a tour of Europe with Church of Misery, including festival appearances at Hellfest, Kristonfest and Roskilde Festival. In regards to the latter festival the band would premiere a brand new song in New Orleans is The New Vietnam, which would later be released on 30 August 2012 amid touring of the United States, Europe and for the first time, Australia.

In 2010 Jimmy Bower would announce that a fifth album was in the works and recording on this record would begin. However tragedy would befall the band on 23 August 2013, when drummer and founding member Joey LaCaze died from respiratory failure, three days removed from a tour of Europe in celebration of their 25th anniversary and not long after his 42nd birthday. While having to cancel a Halloween show in the process the band did find a temporary drummer in Dale Crover (Melvins) for their appearance at Housecore Horror Fest on 27 October. On 31 October 2013 a new drummer would be revealed in Aaron Hill (Missing Monuments, Mountain of Wizard) as the band embarked on a short tour of the United States that November.

Details on the band's self-titled fifth album would surface in March, when it was revealed the band had signed with Housecore Records. On 11 March 2014 a new song in "Agitation! Propaganda!" had been revealed along with a May release date. A second song in "Robitussin and Rejection" would be unveiled a month later. On 27 May 2014 Eyehategod would be released to positive critical acclaim and appearing on several charts including the Billboard 200 (#92), Billboard Rock Chart (#24), Billboard Indie Chart (#12) and Billboard Hard Rock Chart (#4) in it's first weeks of sales. An album outtake in The Liar's Psalm also saw release that month as part of the Decibel Magazine Flexi Series.

The sessions would prove to be LaCaze's final recordings with the band and thus the album was dedicated to him. It should be noted that LaCaze's drums were recorded at The Living Room by Billy Anderson, the vocals were recorded at Nodferatu's Lair by Phil Anselmo and the bass and guitars would be recorded at The Riff Room by Stephen Berrigan. Daniel Majorie and Chris George would handle additional engineering, Sanford Parker would handle the mix and Collin Jordan handled the mastering. Following the release of Eyehategod the band would tour extensively in support of this fifth album.

Instability and Recovery (2015 - 2020)

In recent years since the self-titled album the band had been forced to cancel a string of tours due to ongoing health issues with frontman Mike Williams, physical and mental. It would be later confirmed to be issues with his liver and kidneys. A string of shows in the United States and tours of Australia, Mexico, Japan and Europe would be canceled between 2013 and 2015.

In 2016, not long after a performance in Louisville, Kentucky, Mike Williams was hospitalized, canceling the remainder of their US tour. A follow-up tour with Discharge was rescheduled after issues with Discharge's travel VISAs. Because of the ongoing health issues, Eyehategod recruited Phil Anselmo and Randy Blythe as fill-in vocalists for a string of live shows. Along with crowdfunding for Williams' medical bills and getting him a new liver, a benefit weekend in New Orleans was arranged for February 2017 under the title of IX Lives with guest vocalists.

On 25 January 2017 Eyehategod was announced for the fourth edition of Berserker Fest with Mike Williams slated to return on vocals after a successful liver transplant. The band returned to touring with the Return of Mike IX Tour and Left to Starve Summer Tour 2017. Eyehategod is also in the beginning stages on a sixth studio album. The band began 2018 by embarking on a 30th Anniversary tour alongside Black Label Society and Corrosion of Conformity, now performing as a four-piece. In early 2018 Brian Patton would leave the band for family reasons as Eyehategod would tour extensively with Corrosion of Conformity, Black Label Society and many others.

The band would tour extensively in 2019 with a whole host of different bands. Notably Aaron Hill would get stabbed after a gig in Mexico on 8 July 2019. Hill would offer an update following a canceled date thanking the fans for support as he recovered, eventually wearing the bloodied shirt at recent shows as sort of an onstage ritual. Following further worldwide touring, band founder Jimmy Bower would leave the group for personal reasons, listed by the band as "seeking help for visions unknown". Brian Patton would rejoin for the fall string of tours through the rest of the year in his place and as of 2019, Eyehategod has had every founding member leave at some point. Paul Webb (The Mystick Crewe of Clearlight, Mountain of Wizard) would take over guitar duties for the band's tours overseas in the fall of 2019. Bower would return to the band in time for a tour of Europe in 2020 though three dates would be canceled due to the CO-VID19 Pandemic. Work would begin on a new album, with Williams recording vocals by the Summer.

A History of Nomadic Behavior (2021 - Present)

On 17 November 2020 Eyehategod would announce that they had re-signed with Century Media Records and along with the re-signing, announced that a new album entitled 'A History of Nomadic Behavior would be released in the Spring of 2021.

Discography

Studio Albums

• In The Name of Suffering (1990, Intellectual Convulsion; 1992, Century Media)
• Take as Needed for Pain (1993, Century Media)
• Dopesick (1996, Century Media)
• Confederacy of Ruined Lives (2000, Century Media)
• Eyehategod (2014, Housecore Records)
• A History of Nomadic Behavior (2021, Century Media)

Splits

• Whore/Untitled (Split with 13) (1994, Ax/ction)
• Loud & Ugly Vol. 2 (Split with Floor, Despise You, Apartment 213, Thug) (1995, Bovine Records)
• Wrong / Southern Discomfort (Split with 13) (1995, Slap A Ham)
• In These Black Days: A Tribute To Black Sabbath Vol. 1 (Split with Anal Cunt) (1997, Hydra Head Records)
• Eyehategod / Soilent Green (Split with Soilent Green) (2002, Incision Records)
• I Am the Gestapo / Self-Zeroing' (Split with Cripple Bastards) (2004, Southern Lord Records)
• Eyehategod / Psycho (Split with Psycho) (2015, F.O.A.D. Records)
• Eyehategod / Bl'ast (Split with BL'AST!) (2016, Rise Records)

Other Releases

• Garden Dwarf Woman Driver (Demo) (1989, Self-Released)
• Lack of Almost Everything (Demo) (1990, Self-Released)
• Ruptured Heart Theory (EP) (1994, Bovine Records)
• Southern Discomfort (Compilation) (2000, Century Media)
• 10 Years of Abuse (And Still Broke) (Compilation / Live Album) (2001, Century Media)
• Century Media 10th Anniversary Party - Live (Split Live DVD) (2002, Century Media)
• 99 Miles of Bad Road (EP) (2004, 2+2=5 Records)
• Tokyo Japan - March 19th, 2002 (Live DVD) (2004, Self-Released)
• Preaching the End-Time Message (Compilation) (2005, Emetic Records)
• Live (Live DVD) (2011, MVD Visual)
• New Orleans Is the New Vietnam (Single) (2012, A389 Records)
• The Liar's Psalm (Flexi Single) (2014, Decibel Magazine)

Personnel

Current Members

• Mike Williams – Vocals (1988 – 2016, 2017 - Present)
• Jimmy Bower – Guitars (1988 – 2019, 2020 - Present)
• Gary Mader – Bass (2002 – Present), Guitar (2003)
• Aaron Hill – Drums (2013 – Present)

Former Members

• Joey LaCaze – Drums (1988 – 2013) (Died 2013)
• Steve Dale – Bass (1988 – 1992)
• Mark Schultz – Guitar (1988 - 1992), Bass (1992 – 1995)
• Brian Patton – Guitar(1993 – 2018, 2019)
• Vince LeBlanc – Bass (1996 – 1999)
• Daniel Nick – Bass (2000 – 2001)

Live-only/Fill-in Musicians

• Seth Putnam - Vocals (1996) (Died 2011)
• Sammy Pierre Duet - Vocals (1998)
• Marvin Gauntlett - Bass (2002)
• Phil Anselmo - Guitar, Vocals (2005, 2009, 2016, 2017)
• Dale Crover - Drums (2013)
• Randy Blythe - Vocals (2016)
• Bruce Lamont - Vocals (2017)
• Ben Falgoust - Vocals (2017)
• Kate Richardson - Vocals (2017)
• Shawn Knight - Vocals (2017)
• Hollise Murphy - Vocals (2017)
• Michael Kozlovsky - Guitar (2019)
• Paul Webb - Bass (Unknown Time Period); Guitar (2019)

List of Known Tours

NOTE: The majority of known shows by the band can also be sourced from their official page.

• 1993 European Tour (With Crowbar) (1993)
• October 1993 North American Tour (With Buzzov*en) (1993)
• Summer 1994 North American Tour (With Buzzov*en) (1994)
• 30 Days of Roadkill (With Anal Cunt, Sourvein, The Candy Snatchers) (1994)
• 1994 European Tour (With Obituary, Pitch Shifter) (1994)
• Fall Tour 1995 (With Anal Cunt, Sourvein) (1995)
• War of The Gargantuans (With Pantera, White Zombie) (1996)
• 1997 North American Mini-Tour (With Pantera, White Zombie) (1997)
• The South Shall Rise Again (With Crowbar, Soilent Green) (2000)
• 2000 North American Tour (With Suplecs, ISIS) (2000)
• Confederacy of Ruined Lives North American Tour (2001)
• 2002 Japan Tour (With Soilent Green) (2002)
• 2002 UK Tour (2002)
• 2005 North American Tour (With Buried Inside, Byzantine, Triac; Partially Canceled) (2005)
• 2007 Mini-Tour (Canceled) (2007)
• 20th Anniversary Show (With Crowbar) (2008)
• 2009 East Coast Mini-Tour (With Goatwhore, Strong Intention) (2009)
• 2009 West Coast Mini-Tour (2009)
• 2010 European Tour (With Totimoshi) (2010)
• Summer 2010 North American Tour (With Nachtmystium, haarp, Various Other Supports) (2010)
• Fall 2010 North American Tour (With Phobia, Goatwhore) (2010)
• February 2011 Mini-Tour (With Misery Index) (2011)
• Retox & Nihilism Over Europe (With Church of Misery) (2011)
• Spring 2012 Shows (2012)
• Europe Is The New Vietnam (2012)
• 2012 USA Mini-Tour (2012)
• 2012 Australian Tour (2012)
• 2013 European Tour (2013)
• 2013 North American Tour (2013)
• 2013/2014 Winter Tour (Select dates with Cattle Decapitation) (2014)
• 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Australian Tour (2014; Canceled)
• Undermining Society's Rules Since 1988 West Coast Tour (2014)
• 2014 Japan Tour (Canceled) (2014)
• April 2014 North American Mini-Tour (2014)
• Self-Titled North American Tour (With Ringworm, Enabler) (2014)
• July 2014 North American Tour (With Vektor, Iron Reagan) (2014)
• Flag and Cities Unbound Fall Tour (With Power Trip, Iron Reagan, Today Is The Day) (2014)
• January 2015 West Coast Tour (2015)
• 2015 Australian Tour (Canceled) (2015)
• February 2015 East Coast Tour (2015)
• 2015 Mexico Tour (Canceled) (2015)
• 2015 European Tour (Spring) (2015)
• May 2015 West Coast Tour (2015)
• 2015 European Tour (Summer) (2015)
• September 2015 North American Tour (Canceled) (2015)
• The Road to Psychotic Disorder Is Not Elsewhere Classified (With Fight Amp on select dates; partially canceled) (2016)
• 2016 European Tour (Canceled) (2016)
• September 2016 North American Tour (Canceled) (2016)
• October 2016 North American Tour (With Toxic Holocaust, Discharge; Randy Blythe on Vocals) (2016)
• The Return of Mike IX Tour (2017)
• June 2017 West Coast Mini-Tour (2017)
• Left to Starve Summer Tour 2017 (2017)
• Winter 2017 Mini-Tour (2017)
• 30th Anniversary Tour (With Corrosion of Conformity, Black Label Society) (2018)
• March 2018 North American Tour (With Cro-Mags; Buzzov*en on select dates) (2018)
• 30th Anniversary European Tour (Spring) (2018)
• 30th Anniversary European Tour (Summer) (2018)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (West Coast/Asia Part 1) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (Spring) (With The Obsessed, ANTiSEEN) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (East Coast) (With Negative Approach, Sheer Terror) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (Europe) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (Eastern USA, Part Two) (Select dates with Come To Grief) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (West Coast Part Two) (With Negative Approach, Sheer Terror, Final Conflict, The Accused) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (Japan) (With Church of Misery, Black Rhend) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (Australia) (2019)
• 4 Strikes...From The Elementary To The Penitentiary (Indonesia) (2019)
• Campaign For Musical Destruction 2020 (With Napalm Death, Misery Index, Rotten Sound, Bat) (2020)
• Scumdogs 30th Anniversary Tour (With GWAR, Napalm Death, Madball) (2021)

External Links

• Eyehategod Official
• Eyehategod Facebook
• Eyehategod Twitter
• Eyehategod Myspace
• Eyehategod Instagram
• Eyehategod Bandcamp

Archival Links

• Past Gigs
• Arkansas Senator vs. Eyehategod
• 2004 Gig, first since 2002
• Robbed 2014
• Ripped Off 2014