Eyehategod

NOLA sludge purveyors Eyehategod finally offer up a new release with seven-inch single New Orleans is the New Vietnam. Although it only features one single song, the title track (with an etched B side) is well worth it. And at this rate, with their last album being 2000's Confederacy of Ruined Lives, any tiny morsel of new material from the legendary outfit is ravenously devoured. Having become a staple in their live set for the last little while, it's fantastic to finally hear a recorded version of "New Orleans is the New Vietnam." The track is classic New Orleans sludge, starting off with some distorted guitar feedback that kicks into a killer riff, with some ultra-heavy chugging, courtesy of guitarists Jimmy Bower and Brian Patton. Mike Williams' trademark indecipherable ranting/tortured screams dominate over the bluesy grooves, and with very raw production, it's as if the song is a lost recording from 1993's Take as Needed for Pain. "New Orleans is the New Vietnam" encapsulates everything you love about Eyehategod, and if it's any indication of what to expect from their upcoming full-length (whenever that may be released), the anticipation just multiplied tenfold.