Sludge Metal Pioneers Eyehategod Celebrate 30th Anniversary of Take As Needed For Pain, Capping a Year of Impressive & Eclectic Shows at Flying Panther

Sludge Metal Pioneers Eyehategod Celebrate 30th Anniversary of Take As Needed For Pain, Capping a Year of Impressive & Eclectic Shows at Flying Panther
by Jack Martin

December 2023

Monday, December 11, 2023 saw another addition to the recent list of impressive do-it-yourself shows at Roanoke’s local heavy music haven, Flying Panther Skate Shop. This time, the shop put on an impressive, metal-centric bill featuring New Orleans’ sludge-metal pioneers Eyehategod, who debuted in 1988. The band came through Roanoke as a stop on their current tour celebrating thirty years of their landmark album Take As Needed for Pain. The show was a consistent, unconventional, and brutal evening of entertainment, and one that further cemented Flying Panther as a reckoning force in Roanoke’s cultural sphere.

The night featured support from several notable local and regional metal and hardcore acts. The most remarkable being Virginia and North Carolina’s Heavens Die, a metalcore band that enjoyed great regional notoriety during their active years in the mid to late 2010s. Their appearance at this show marked their first in Virginia in five years, and only their third show since their surprise return in July. Beckley, West Virginia’s Agency, and Roanoke’s Human Infection and Orenda rounded out the lineup, creating a diverse but consistent sonic atmosphere for the night.

Just like the Terror show in September, this was another sold out event for Flying Panther. The crowd was very obviously made up of more metalheads than punks or hardcore kids despite hardcore crossover being a large part of Eyehategod’s history. Demographically, the crowd seemed significantly older compared to the one of similar size at Terror. Eyehategod’s extreme longevity likely brought out many people who had been attending shows since they were much younger. The energy was clearly excited and passionate, but perhaps less chaotic than at the Terror show.

Eyehategod delivered a blistering, brutal set that proved the seasoned band extremely capable of an engaging audience rapport and an interesting show. Vocalist Mike Williams exuded great charisma, and his brief interjections of humor between songs kept the crowd hooked beyond the strength of the band’s music. The setlist consisted, as expected, of mostly songs from Take As Needed, which translated to an extremely crowd-pleasing experience. The band was tight and efficient, sounding almost exactly how they do on record. The same level of expert performance from the record was found in the live set as well as the record’s crushing atmosphere.

Overall, Eyehategod at the Flying Panther was another immersive and thrilling experience. Perhaps DIY music’s greatest strength is its ability to close the gap between fan and performer. Flying Panther continues to demonstrate this by bringing in monolithic acts to smaller crowds resulting in unforgettable, intimate shows that allow Roanoke’s heavy music scene to experience their favorite bands in a fashion that was previously unavailable in the city. <>

Photo credit: Openhead Takes Photos