HELLYEAH

Hellyeah is an American heavy metal supergroup, consisting of Mudvayne vocalist Chad Gray, former Nothingface guitarist Tom Maxwell, bass player Kyle Sanders, guitarist Christian Brady and former Pantera and Damageplan drummer Vinnie Paul. The idea to form a supergroup originated in 2000 on the Tattoo the Earth tour, although plans were constantly put on hold due to scheduling conflicts. The summer of 2006 allowed the band to take the project seriously and record its first album. Recorded at Chasin' Jason studio in Dimebag Darrell's backyard, a self-titled album was completed in roughly one month. Released on April 10, 2007, the album entered the Billboard 200 at number 9, selling 45,000 copies. AllMusic reviewer William Ruhlmann stated the album is "a competent example of its genre" awarding the album three and a half stars.

Paul described the band's sound as "a familiar groove, with a new sound". Blabbermouth.net reviewer Don Kaye commented "with little of the complexity of Mudvayne or angularity of Nothingface and much more of the full-on, pedal-to-the-metal style of Vinnie Paul's previous work". However, Kaye said the songs "Star" and "Thank You" border on musical cliché. Andrew Depedro of KNAC.com stated "'Alcohaulin' Ass' showcases Gray's hidden talent as an outlaw country and western-type crooner in the intro", although he thought the band's lyrics were repetitive. Hellyeah has been categorized as groove metal.