# NOLA (album)

NOLA is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Down, released on September 19, 1995, by EastWest Records. The title is the abbreviation for New Orleans (NO), Louisiana (LA).

## Production
### Writing and recording

NOLA was written mainly by Phil Anselmo and Pepper Keenan between 1990 and 1995. Throughout 1991 to 1993, the band released three demos, a three-track demo (1991), a four-track demo (1992), and a ten-track demo (1993). Originally, the band made the three-track demo for underground trading. The demo featured the tracks "Losing All", "Temptation's Wings", and "Bury Me in Smoke". In an effort to build a fan base, the band would ask heavy metal fans if they had ever "heard of this band, Down" and hand them copies of the tape without telling the person that they were in the band. In 1992, the band recorded a second demo, this time featuring the same track listing as the original but with an intro. In 1993, the band made the Demo Collection 1992–1993 which is a ten-track demo featuring all the songs that would make the album cut except "Rehab", "Pray for the Locust", and "Underneath Everything". Anselmo solely wrote only three songs on the album ("Hail the Leaf", "Pray for the Locust", and "Pillars of Eternity"). Eventually, the original demo tape was distributed throughout the United States and Down played a small concert in its home town. A record executive from EastWest Records was attending the show. When he found out who the members of the band were, he signed Down to a recording contract. The band began recording the album in the summer of 1994 at the Ultrasonic Studios, New Orleans, Louisiana, and completed the recording sessions by January 1995.

### Influences

The band cites as influences 70s heavy rock bands such as Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, Southern rock bands such as Lynyrd Skynyrd (in the song "Stone the Crow") and ZZ Top (in the rhythmic style of "Rehab") and Doom metal bands such as Witchfinder General, Pentagram, Trouble, Saint Vitus (especially album V) and The Obsessed.

### Artwork

The booklet art is by Jim DeBarros and David Manteau and makes extensive use of vintage photographs by Clarence John Laughlin.

## Release and reception
### Commercial performance

NOLA was released in September 1995 and would peak at number 57 in October 1995 on the Billboard 200, and remain on the chart for six weeks. The album spawned four singles in "Stone the Crow", "Lifer", "Temptation's Wings", which were released in 1995, and "Bury Me in Smoke" in 1996. However, only "Stone the Crow" would achieve commercial success when it reached number 40 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks charts, becoming Down's first and only top 40 song.

### Critical reception

Professional ratings :
| Review scores ||
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | |
| Chicago Tribune | |
| Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal | 9/10 |
| Kerrang! | |
| laut.de | |
| MusicHound Rock | |
| Rock Hard | 9.5/10 |
The album received acclaim from critics. AllMusic reviewer David Reamer praised the songs "Temptation's Wings", "Stone the Crow", and "Bury Me in Smoke", stating that "this is a landmark album that combines the talents of dedicated rock musicians, and should be included in any collection of heavy metal music." In 2006, Oliver Badin of Terrorizer wrote that Down "succeeded where most supergroups fail: truly being the perfect sum of [its members] parts. But what makes [NOLA] so great is its forcible seizure of the Sabbathian legacy and how it soaked it in the filthy swamps of New Orleans."
Rock Hard ranked the album at number 244 on their list of the "500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time".

## Tour

Down supported NOLA with a 13-date concert tour. The band went on hiatus in 1996 as all members continued their main projects. They would reunite in 1999 to make a second album, Down II, released in 2002.

### Tour dates

| Date | City | Country | Venue |
| An Evening with Down ||||
| September 20, 1995 | New Orleans, Louisiana | United States | Rendon Inn |
| September 21, 1995 | Dallas, Texas | United States | Deep Ellum |
| September 24, 1995 | Chicago, Illinois | United States | The Vic Theatre |
| September 25, 1995 | Detroit, Michigan | United States | Saint Andrew's Hall |
| September 26, 1995 | Cleveland, Ohio | United States | The Odeon |
| September 27, 1995 | New York City, New York | United States | The Academy |
| September 29, 1995 | San Francisco, California | United States | Fillmore West |
| Headlining with Far ||||
| September 30, 1995 | Los Angeles, California | United States | The Palace |
| An Evening with Down ||||
| December 27, 1995 | San Antonio, Texas | United States | Sneakers |
| December 28, 1995 | Houston, Texas | United States | The Millenium |
| December 30, 1995 | Shreveport, Louisiana | United States | The Warehouse |

## Track listing

All tracks written by Phil Anselmo and Pepper Keenan unless noted.

## Chart positions

Album – Billboard (United States)
| Year | Chart | Position |
| 1995 | Billboard 200 | 57 |
Singles – Billboard (United States)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
| 1995 | "Stone the Crow" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 40 |