Words – Clare
Photos – Mitch
Sludgier than the Louisiana bayous and more blackened than Cajun catfish, Friday night was full up with Nola double-header Eyehategod and Goatwhore. Rounding off the trio of quartets for the evening were Melbourne locals, ya favourite choofters offering up outlaw grind, Choof.
Choof slayed through a set that was simultaneously sloppy and sharp and also provided a good amount of entertainment. We had the barefoot vocalist Jake spitting into the centre of the pit, the bassist Jackson flipping off the crowd and axeman Adam clapping back at a drunk heckler ‘Does anyone have subtitles for this cunt?’. They played tracks from their album Dimwitted Amoral Exploitation released just last year which included Skull Archery, Epileptic Exorcist and Duct Tape Mummy while also including MDK from their demo tape. Highlights included a mic passed down to crowd member Wayne for guest backup vocals, Jake pouring beer into the mouth of a front-row pit goer and the main mic ending up in a pint glass which got thrown against the emergency exit door.
Goatwhore got weird with that ‘deep south shit’ blasting tracks from their 2022 album release including Death From Above, Born of Satan’s Flesh and the title track Angels Hung from the Arches of Heaven with frontman Louis Benjamin Falgoust II taking time to fist bump, high five and shake hands with fans in the front rows ‘y’all are fucking maniacs!’. A slight pause occurred after Alchemy of the Black Sun Cult from the 2006 album A Haunting Curse due to technical difficulties with the drum kit that was not housing the band drummer Zack Simmons as he did not make it into the country due to visa issues, but li’l Frankie did a bang up job filling in. From their sixth studio album Constricting Rage of the Merciless FBS brought an onslaught of solid guitar play while Apocalyptic Havoc from Carving Out the Eyes of God received a huge reaction from the crowd.
As Goatwhores drum kit was broken down a smaller kit appeared unexpectedly at the front of the stage where you would typically see a support band set up. Then, Eyehategod vocalist casually shuffles out to deliver bottles of water around the stage before heading back into the wings. That’s the experience of seeing Eyehategod in a nutshell, a highly notable and brutal sludge metal band with decades of tours under their belt. Yet their DIY approach gives the same thrill as watching a great new local band jamming out in an intimate dark band room. With no set list in play, the band ad-libbed tracks, dragging out the intro and sound check with uncomfortable feedback and distortion playing an integral part of the set’s overall vibe. Guitarist Jimmy Bower flips off the audience while Mike periodically interjects with random comments like ‘I don’t really like humans. But you are ok’ and ‘Sometimes I feel like we’re circus freaks…. We are’. The track Sisterfucker energised the room as did Agitation! Propaganda! And their closing track Every Thing, Every Day From their most recent album release A History of Nomadic Behaviour.
Big thanks to the Max Watts crew for having us and a special thanks to Dysie at Cult Editquite PR for arranging media access.
EVERYDAY METAL – SUPPORT LOCAL HEAVY METAL
