Despite having one of the best band names of all time, I never really followed Eyehategod all that much past "Take as Needed for Pain", and always preferred "In the Name of Suffering" over everything else. I don't why. But whatever the case, this odds and ends collection sees the band delivering 40 minutes of what they do best: Nasty, bitter, churning, depraved, dilapidated southern fried sludge with acidic vocal sneers and plenty of grit 'n' grime. A slightly overly raw alternate recording of "Methamphetamine" from the "Cry Now, Cry Later" compilation kicks things off, but this is not an indicator for the rest of the disc, as everything steps forward from there. "Serving Time in the Middle of Nowhere" follows, another alternate take, this time of their contribution to the "Gummo" soundtrack, which sounds a little more balanced and certainly kicks ass - making for one of the more churning and memorably twisted moments herein. "Sabbath Jam" was the band's largely instrumental six-minute contribution to Hydra Head's "In These Black Days" split 7" series in tribute to Black Sabbath in 1997 (where they shared an EP with Anal Cunt); and interestingly enough, "Age of Bootcamp", which I had never heard before, comes from the band's 2002 split 7 with Soilent Green: Proving that Eyehategod does indeed sound identical in this day and age to what they did five to eight years prior! The recording is just as raw and rugged, the tune as dingy and thickly distorted, the vocals as venomous, etc. "I Am the Gestapo", from a 2004 split 7" with Cripple Bastards, follows to nail that point home, sounding ever so slightly crisper but certainly not lacking a sense of warm density and distance to its pounding surges of power chords and feedback. The next two tracks were recorded live in Japan in 1992 and for the most part sound about on par with anything else the band has released - live or not - just with a little less low-end and with more dominant vocals. The absence of oppressive thickness and the dominance of vocals does make the tracks a hint less enjoyable, but they actually fit in very well considering. Closing things out and further solidifying the band's enduring consistency are three brand new demo tracks recorded in March of 2005 on a 4-track using only two microphones. Apparently these songs will be re-recorded for the band's forthcoming full-length, but they'd probably be fine using a 4-track if they could figure out how to get more low-end in there! There's a little bit of tape hiss, and of course the vocals are leaning up front with the drums a bit far back, but for the most part this is one of the most effective 4-track recordings I've ever encountered. If they could find a way to get more pulsing low-end in there they could easily record tracks for split EP's or something in this manner and pull it off entirely convincingly. The new tracks play almost back to back with a few Charles Manson samples in between and throw down plenty of crushing rhythms ("Turn Troubled Tables") and fiery little southern tinged lead riffs ("36 Beers and a Ball of String"), all delivered in fine form. As usual with Eyehategod the packaging looks great and includes lots of handwritten text and collaged black and white imagery with a killer visual aesthetic, including some recording credits, etc. Portions of the lyrics seem to be included for the new tracks, including such lines as, "You are pollution and poisonous skies, you are the bus fumes in this city's eyes..." So don't expect much outside of bleak predilections! This is actually a really solid collection, better than many might expect, so if you don't have most of these songs from other sources this handy CD's worth looking into for longtime fans. Personally I now think I have some earlier Eyehategod records to track down!
[Emetic]
Running time - 39:36, Tracks: 10
[Notable tracks: Serving Time in the Middle of Nowhere, I Am the Gestapo, International Narcotic, Turn Troubled Tables]
Emetic Records - http://www.emeticrecords.com
