Top 5 NOLA Albums

Quick disclaimer...these are my favorite "NOLA metal" albums.  This isn't a list for anyone hoping to plunge into the arcane depths of the scene.  You'll notice that my picks aren't terribly underground.  Reason being, I don't live in New Orleans!  I would make a list of the top five bands from Hickory, North Carolina, but folks, that would be one pathetic list.

5. FLOODGATE - Penalty

I'm going to cheat for this entry.  I already reviewed this record, and you can read that sumbitch right HERE.

4. GOATWHORE - Carving Out the Eyes of God

One of the self-imposed rules that I'm following bars me from enumerating multiple albums by the same band.  Unfortunately, I'm forced to leave out killer stuff.  On the other hand, you know that I'm listing stealthy, high-grade records.  I'm told that cream rises to the top.  That sounds like a lewd euphemism to me, but whatever.  Carving kicks ass.  It's actually what I'm listening to at this very moment.  It's my favorite concentration of Goatwhore's rectitude for a couple of reasons.  First off, it's their most diverse album in terms of mood and tempo.  Also, this is where Sammy started to play more guitar solos, which can only be an awesome thing.

3. CROWBAR - Sonic Excess in its Purest Form

I don't know that this is my favorite Crowbar platter (2011's Sever the Wicked Hand might have something to say about it), but I do know that it was my introduction to the world's heaviest sludge savants.  Sonic Excess is just massive.  The riffs pummel you.  They smite your vital organs, or at the very least, they lace into your neck muscles.  And the opening notes of "The Lasting Dose" are f*cking perfection.  What else can I say about this record that hasn't already been said about nuclear proliferation?  The production is fine-tuned to the point where you can practically see glass shattering in the recording studio.  To build a mountain takes a long, long time indeed.

2. ACID BATH - Paegan Terrorism Tactics

Well, what do you know?  I reviewed this album, too.  Click HERE.  I should note that you could just as easily slot When the Kite String Pops into this position, but hey, it's my website.

1. DOWN - NOLA

Doesn't this album have to occupy the top spot?  For my money, it contains Phil Anselmo's best vocal performance to date (post-falsetto, yet pre-heroin).  The riffs have reached near-mythical status, but the focus is on songcraft.  "Lifer," "Rehab," "Eyes of the South," "Losing All," "Hail the Leaf," and "Stone the Crow" are personal favorites.  You won't find a weak track in the bunch.  The fact that the line-up featured on this record is a veritable supercluster of stars from most of NOLA's heavy-hitters essentially cements it as the apotheosis of "Southern metal."