NOLA supergroup “Down” have returned with the second in a series of E.P’s that make up “Down IV”.
Its been a rocky few years for Down, personal issues and tragedies aside, the first instalment of Down IV was the first release since the departure of long serving ex Pantera bassist Rex Brown, and between then and this second instalment they have also parted ways with one of the founding members, Louisiana sludge legend Kirk Windstein of Crowbar.
So the lineup for this release stands as : Philip Anselmo – Vocals, Jimmy Bower – Drums, Pat Bruders – Bass, Pepper Keenan – Guitar and newcomer Bobby Landgraf – Guitar.
Given Kirk’s style and input I was eager to hear what the band would sound like with a new guitarist, and thankfully newcomer Bobby fits in perfectly with the lineup. He has been in close contact with the band for a long time both supporting them in his other band “Honky” and acting as guitar tech for Down also, so he obviously has a great understanding of what Down as a band is about, and the fact that he is also a long time fan not only makes his contributions to the writing a perfect fit but it seems to have had a very positive effect on the rest of the band and the injection of some new blood has lit a fire under their asses.
This E.P is Down doing what Down do best, straight up sludgy Sabbath worship delivered with a southern twang. The lyrical themes are very deep, personal and insightful as always, but that is offset brilliantly against the fact that they really sound like they are having fun on this release.
It gives off that vibe I have always loved about Down, which is the sense of a bunch of friends getting together and rocking out, completely ignorant to modern trends in the music scene and just playing good old fashioned heavy music because its what they want to do, and if you feel the same way then you are welcome to join in, crack open a cold beer and hail to the riff, if not then as Mr.Anselmo himself would put it “Fuck off and listen to something else”.
The E.P, although only containing 6 tracks, clocks in over 35 minutes, which for an E.P, I found to be a very generous amount of music to sink my teeth into.
From the outset its clear that this one of, if not the heaviest Down release to date, its all about big crunchy riffs and head banging Southern grooves from start to finish, and Anslemo’s vocal performance on this release marks a real return to form in my eyes, I have loved everything he has ever done, but his voice on this E.P is the most powerful, honest and focused performance I have heard him deliver since Pantera’s “The Great Southern Trendkill”, he really is on fire on these songs and more than justifies his status as a legend in the scene.
I loved every song on this almost equally, but a couple of stand outs are “Hogshead Dogshead” which is delicious slice of Southern groove with sludgy guitar leads all over it, that sounds like it could of been ripped straight from Down II (my personal favourite), and “Conjure”, which is eight and a half minutes of pure Black Sabbath worship, it’s almost like they condensed the “Master of Reality” album into a single song and cut out all the filler, and that can only ever be a good thing.
So if you are a Down fan, then there is no question that you will love this E.P, easily the best thing they have released since Down II in my eyes, and if you are not familiar with their previous output then don’t worry because with this being a perfect example of what Down are about, this is as good a time as any to get onboard.
(9/10 Mark Gleed)
23/05/2014 at 1:03 pm
Just waiting for my copy to arrive through the post; I’m sure this will be on the car stereo on the way down to Bloodstock 2014 for their headlining set.