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Down at The Wiltern

AllAccessMagazine.com By Aniruddh Bansal Editing by Alison Cohen I arrived at the Wiltern around 5:00 PM and waited in line until 6:30 PM before they opened the doors. Luckily, I got the perfect spot. I was up front against the barricade in the center. The show started at 7:15 PM with opening band Danava, who were a trio that played mostly instrumentals. They were interesting to an extent but couldn't hold my attention for the whole set, even though they only played 30 minutes. The next band, Weedeater, started at 8:00 PM and played for the same duration. They didn't impress me much either. However, they had some good hooks and riffs, and were better than Danava. The Melvins were next to hit the stage at 9:00 PM. They played for 45 minutes. I found them to be quite boring and I have no idea why they are on this tour as the main support band. After a 30 minute wait, Down hit the stage at 10:15 PM with opener “Eyes Of The South.” The crowd was really into it, singing along to each and every song. The Wiltern wasn’t packed to capacity, but that didn't seem to matter, as the people who were there more than made up for it! It was amazing to see Phil Anselmo from so close. After all, this is the guy who did vocals on all those great Pantera albums from the 90’s and three Down albums! Down’s bass player Rex Brown was sitting out the first few shows on the North American tour to address some personal issues, and ex-Victorian Blitz bassist Danny Theriot was filling in. I was disappointed, and I’m sure other fans were as well. I hope he returns soon to full part in the studio for their upcoming recording in October. They continued the show with songs like “N.O.D.” and “New Orleans Is A Dying Whore,” after which came the Dimebag Darrell tribute song titled “Lifer.” This song was the best of the night in my opinion. I really enjoyed it and everyone else seemed to enjoy it a lot too. “The Path” followed “Lifer.” Phil talked a lot in between songs, thanked us for being there and then introduced the stand-in bassist. Phil has some of the best stage presence I’ve ever seen. He had the whole crowd under his control. When he told us to head bang, we did it! When he told us to sing, we did it! They played “Lysergik Funeral Procession” and “On March the Saints” after this. Then they went back to the “NOLA” album to play “Losing All,” another great song. Then came “Beneath the Tides” from the 2007 album “Over the Under.” “Hail The Leaf” was played after this. Then another great sing-along “Nothing In Return” followed. They left the stage and came out again for the encore among loud shouts of “Down! Down! Down!” Phil came back and told us how much he loves us and playing in L.A. He said that we always give them a great response, and dedicated “Temptation's Wings" to everyone there. The crowd went nuts! I heard many people from the back shouting out for this song the whole time, so I could definitely tell by their volume that they felt great when it was played! They closed the night with “Stone the Crow.” I felt their set was too short for a headliner, but Down only has three albums of material so it must be hard to make a good set list in terms of selection and duration. Overall, I don't approve of the supporting line-up, but Down made up for it with their highly energetic and captivating performance. The stand-in bassist did a good job. The other members of the band, guitarists’ Pepper Keenan and Kirk Windstein and drummer Jimmy Bower were good on stage, although Phil was the major driving force for their stage performance. At the end of it all I also managed to score two Rex Brown bass picks!! I am glad I got to see this show again on Tuesday, August 18th. The set list included: 1. Eyes of the South 2. N.O.D. 3. New Orleans Is A Dying Whore 4. Lifer 5. The Path 6. Lysergik Funeral Procession 7. On March the Saints 8. Losing All 9. Beneath the Tides 10. Hail the Leaf 11. Nothing In Return (Walk Away) 12. Temptation's Wings 13. Stone the Crow

Phil Anselmo: mellow metal dude?

LasVegasWeekly.com By Josh Bell When I saw Pantera at the Thomas & Mack Center in 2001, frontman Phil Anselmo seemed determined to terrorize the audience. At one point, after admonishing everyone to get on their feet, he told the crowd to kick the ass of anyone left sitting down, and he didn’t sound like he was joking. For years Anselmo carried a reputation for his hard living, drug addictions (he nearly died of a heroin overdose in 1996) and volatile personality. But the murder of ex-Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell in 2004 seemed to be a wake-up call for Anselmo, and at tonight’s House of Blues concert by his current band, Down, the metal legend was downright mellow. That’s not to say the music wasn’t intense—even with bassist Rex Brown sitting the tour out, Down still tore through a heavy set of powerful groove metal, and Anselmo led the charge with enthusiasm. He was also in a friendly mood throughout the show, lavishing compliments on the small but eager audience (“Money sucks in America right now, and you’re here”), dedicating “Lifer” to fallen ex-bandmate Dimebag and gleefully singing a short a cappella Led Zeppelin medley as the crowd was filing out. The band hit the stage on time, played its venue-mandated shorter set and left the place wanting more. Anselmo drank only water onstage, and even his encouragement that “Everybody smoke some dope” was a celebration of togetherness. Around the fourth or fifth song, two guys in front of me got into a fight, and by the time security arrived to break it up, they were hugging.

Meet American metal's sludgiest supergroup, Down

InThisWeek Kirk Windstein has earned a little R&R. The 44-year-old dipped his big mitts into Louisiana's underground metal scene in 1987, and hasn't silenced his guitar since. In 1989, he created the genre-storming sludge-metal band Crowbar, and in the 2000s, he started up a side project with Hatebreed's Jamey Jasta called Kingdom of Sorrow. Windstein's also a founding member of New Orleans metal quintet, Down; the band -- if you walked down the hall of heavy metal history -- you'd see on display as "Best Metal Supergroup: 1991-present." Down's members come from some of the most worshipped bands in modern American metal: Pantera (vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown); Crowbar (Windstein); Eyehategod (drummer Jimmy Bower); and Corrosion of Conformity (guitarist Pepper Keenan) -- just to name a few. This combination of seasoned talent has given Down a back-breakingly heavy and simultaneously sorrowful sound that sets it apart from the rest with roots in southern rock, as well as sludge, grunge and groove metal. So it's only fair that Windstein -- the musician who earns just enough money to "keep the lights on and a roof over my head" -- gets to eat like a king before heading out on tour. "I just ate two pounds of crawfish, a pound of shrimp, a couple of crabs, and had like six beers," says Windstein in a kind, leisurely Southern drawl somewhat unfitting of his bouncer-like stature and mountain-man beard. "When I'm on the road I try to eat correctly, keep my drinking to something under control at least, and you know, warm up on guitar. But I'm not on tour yet!" In the past, Down's genre-less sound has put them on tour with acts ranging from Brit-rock band BADDIES to prog-metal vets Voivod. The trend continues today, as Down is currently headlining a tour that bills legendary grunge metal band The Melvins as the opening act. The tour stops in Salt Lake City at In The Venue on Friday, Aug. 21 marking the band's first return since opening for Metallica last November. "The Melvins are some of my idols -- very big influence on Crowbar, one of my other bands, and also on Down a bit," says Windstein. "I'm looking forward to hanging out with the guys, a lot of camaraderie, and a little bit of beer-drinkin' of course. Just havin' a nice time with the fellas and doing what touring's supposed to be -- enjoying yourself with your friends." While we chat, Windstein and his girlfriend Kate -- whom he refers to as his wife because they "had our own special vow thing" -- are driving just outside New Orleans. We're bullshitting about the weather (rainy and hot), his kid (a 6-year-old daughter named Hailey) and his favorite bands ("Fuckin' Mötörhead -- sorry for cussin' darlin'."). After we're both warmed up, I dip into more sentimental territory. I ask him how well he gets along with his bandmates, particularly the insanely talented, volatile vocalist, Phil Anselmo. "We call ourselves a brotherhood, and we do mean that," he says. "And brothers fight, a lot. We fight a lot -- I'm not gonna lie to ya -- but at the same time, we all respect one another very much and love one another very much. I'd die for any one of these dudes in my band." Windstein lightens the mood by telling me he's excited Anselmo recently signed Crowbar to his label, Housecore Records. "We're releasing like nine of the previous Crowbar records, and we're also releasing a new live record and a new studio record," he says. "So when I get back from the Down tour, I'm going to pretty much dive back into the Crowbar world." Windstein says the Crowbar stuff will be "coming out a-plenty later this year and especially next year." He also plans on doing "as much as I can" with Kingdom of Sorrow. But musical ambition aside, Windstein says sorry fans, the rumored fourth Down album ain't comin' anytime soon. "We're looking forward to getting in the studio and gettin' things rollin,' but we're not really trying to write right now," he says. The insight is flowing like cold beer on a hot NOLA day -- until nature calls on the other line, and Windstein picks it up. "I talked to Philip this evening about release dates -- hold on a second, I'm trying to get ATM cash out -- I need more food, I'm fat. Um, hang on ... you know what? Fuck it -- I gotta pee. Stay on the phone. The ATM wasn't workin' but that's OK. If you hear a noise, I'm tinkling." I try not to listen to him finishing business, then fight to hear him give his wrap-up speech over the fury of an automatic hand dryer. "Amanda, darlin'," he drawls. "Every single time I hit a chord, a part of me dies, in a good way. We're all gonna die anyway -- ain't nobody gonna escape the reaper. It's not like I'm stabbin' my self with an ax or nothin'. But if music doesn't bring a tear to my eye or give me goosebumps or something good like that, then it ain't worth a shit. That's why I hate mechanical-sounding crap because it's all computers and it's not (sighs) from the heart." The hand dryer shuts off and we say our goodbyes. And as we hang up, he leaves me with a gem so particularly Windsteinian that I can't help but smile as I stop the recorder: "Pretty eloquent for a fat old bald guy, huh?" To read the original article, click HERE.

Concert Review: Down, Melvins, Weedeater In L.A. (With A Pound Of Pics)

Indiepit.com   Down, Melvins and Weedeater delivered something fierce in Los Angeles on Saturday night at the Wiltern (LG or whatever). And all day today, we’ve been flabberjawed by the fact that our ear drums are not only intact, they’re not ringing at all. Our ears had been prepared to meet their doom. But even right up front, the show was awfully quiet - maybe because the heavy-rock heavyweights are getting old (doubtful) or maybe because they play music that is tuned so low (less doubtful).   The three doom raiders were also joined by Danava, but because the anorexic longhaireds started shortly after doors opened, and because we hadn’t camped out at the venue the night before, the long lines killed our chances of being able to catch their whole set. But what we did see was downright cataclysmic, like how Hawkind musta sounded in concert in their heydey. Or maybe we’re just saying that because we’ve been listening to a lot of Hawkwind lately.   Still early in the evening - we’re talking before 9 - Weedeater crawled onto the stage and started sending shock waves through the theater. We’ve been meaning to see these guys for ages, and the payoff was there in a big way.   The Southern Lord deacons play songs that sound like an extreme-doom version of Nirvana’s “In Bloom”: simple, slow - and very deliberate. Remember last year when that big snake tried to eat that alligator, only to burst open - giving new meaning to the phrase “your eyes are bigger than your stomach”? If that were a band, it’d be Weedeater.   Tough dudes who wear hats low tend to be dicks, but in Weedeater’s case, the choice of fashion added to the evil everymen’s shadowy mystique.     Occasionally, to provide a foil for their really slow stuff, the band would get a little bit faster, calling to mind Karma to Burn. And they did this cool thing where they shook their heads side to side in fast motion, like those drugged-up soldiers in “Jacob’s Ladder.”   But while their pace was mostly snail-like, they banged out each riff as if it were their last gasp, muscling out the chords like Thor hammering the ground. Commander “Dixie” Dave Collins looked deadly serious as he glared at the crowd, while the mesmerizing band seemed to be drawing everyone into a cult.     Collins was wearing a Saint Vitus shirt, which was a funny coincidence, because during his band’s set, we sat next to original Vitus vocalist Scott Reagers. He told us Anselmo insisted that he come to the show. We talked with him about Wino, Trouble and some other bands. Cool dude.     While Weedeater have been around for 12 years and carved out a solid niche for themselves, they’ve got nothing on Melvins in terms of longevity or underground status (the 18-year-old Down are about nine years younger than them too). And good for Melvins, the crowd seemed aware of that.   It’s not common to see an opening band get such a strong reception - and to see a very veteran opening band get the reception they truly deserve. About eight years ago at the Wiltern, we caught Tool, who were preceded by King Crimson. Even though the latter were hugely influential on the headliner and hugely respected in prog-rock circles, they drew little love from the mostly underage crowd.   The warm welcome for Melvins was also reassuring because just about everyone was there primarily to see Down. Melvins play L.A. all the time, while Down do not. And aside from the Slayer shirts at Mayhem, we can’t remember another show this year where so many people were wearing tees for the band they had come to see. (Curiously, though, there were very few Pantera shirts.)   Despite all the above, from the sound of the crowd, Melvins could have even been worthy headliners as they riveted with a surgically precise set. We’re starting to wonder if the real reason they now have two live drummers is so they can show off just how tight they can still perform.     And Buzz, well, his last name may as well be Aldrin instead of Osborne: He is the most accomplished explorer of the far-reaches of sludge-metal, if not of the last 25 years than maybe ever. It didn’t occur to us until Saturday night how Buzz’s weird frizzy halo of whitening hair suits his style so well: Like Jack Nance in “Eraserhead,” he seems out of this world, receiving radio messages from distant planets.         After witnessing three standoffish frontmen, it was refreshing that the night was capped by a singer who spends virtually every moment onstage playing to the crowd. That would be Phil Anselmo. Phil Anselmo the chatterbox. Phil Anselmo the smoldering singer. Phil Anselmo the consummate metal showman.       Pretty early in the set - during which the band liberally mined its whole catalog - Anselmo used some of his banter time to recognize the absence of Rex Brown, who hasn’t toured lately with Down due to “personal issues” but is set to rejoin them August 24 in Texas, according to Blabbermouth.   “We’re going to stand by Rex no matter whatever he’s going through,” said Anselmo, making it sound like he didn’t have any more insight on the ”personal issues” than the people in the crowd. “He’s still our bass player. But for crying out loud, I’d like to introduce you to one of the handsomest devils out there, Danny Theriot.” What a good sport.   Anselmo didn’t just have Down on the brain, though. The singer - who always seems to have his hands in many jars - gave ample publicity to his Arson Anthem project, which also features members of Eyehategod and Superjoint Ritual. He wore an AA tee and ranted about them a bit.   The prosthelytizing stoner also reassured worried fans that he hasn’t given up on weed, saying, “Those of you who don’t smoke it are on probation.”     While the opening bands threw down in a big way, Down’s set raised the crowd’s response to new heights: Theirs was an interactive, participatory performance that reassuringly preached to the converted. Anselmo, Pepper Keenan and the others beckoned fans to raise their hands and clap - at a doom-metal show, mind you. And the disciples obeyed.   Everyone knew the words to the songs. Everyone had songs to request.     We might get scorned for saying this, but really, Down are, at their essence, a doom-pop band. Their songs aren’t terribly long - not for a sludge-metal band, at least. There’s more singing than screaming. Their songs are groovy and, again, Anselmo can play the role of crowd-pleaser quite well.   And for that reason, it made sense that the crowd was as refreshingly diverse as it was (for a metal show). Young and old - big and small! - the varied types who turned up were proof of Down’s somewhat broad appeal.     Because the show was just that good, Down consciously broke the Wiltern curfew, returned for an encore and busted out “Bury Me in Smoke.” And with that they put the casket into the coffin and called it a night.     Gracias to Philip Allen for the pics.

Band mixes variety of influences, twisting old into something new

Hard rockers Down -- from left, Pepper Keenan, Jimmy Bower, Rex Brown, Phil Anselmo and Kirk Windstein -- are a Southern supergroup of sorts, consisting of current and former members of bands such as C.O.C., Pantera, Crowbar, Eyehategod and more.



He remembers waking up on the floor of his hotel.



In the hall.



And he sounds mildly taken aback that he remembers anything at all, his voice tinged with a kind of affable awe.



"When I was younger, I used to push it pretty hard there in Vegas," Pepper Keenan says with a knowing laugh. "I'm a little older now, so I've done that."



Keenan's calling from a tour stop in Fargo, N.D., where his band, Dixie rock supergroup Down, is playing the second date of their current tour.



The veteran guitarist recalls the past like the dogged road warrior he is, chuckling over former hijinks while anticipating plenty more to come.



Times have changed for Keenan, who first made a name for himself by gene-splicing white-knuckled hard-core with high-velocity metal in Corrosion of Conformity, before later taking over singing duties in that band and exploring their rootsier, more hard-rockin' side to great effect.



These days, Down occupies most of Keenan's time, and deservedly so.



The group, which also features a pair of former Pantera members in singer Phil Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown, in addition to Crowbar frontman Kirk Windstein on guitars and Eyehategod guitarist Jimmy Bower on drums, is in many ways a modern day classic rock band, with Black Sabbath as an obvious point of reference in terms of thick, enveloping riffing that you can feel in your sternum.



But there's an abundance of influences that the band twists into something new.



The soulful rebel yells of Lynyrd Skynrd, the thick-as-tar power chords of the Melvins (whom Down is currently touring with) and the dusky mysticism of the band members' native New Orleans all figure into the group's earthy jams, which can be searching and contemplative or as combustible as swamp gas.



On past tours, Down would precede its time on stage with a series of vintage performance clips by the likes of Thin Lizzy, Kiss and AC/DC, and it felt like the perfect precursor to a band that seemed to be born of a different, bygone era.



But rather than simply recycle the past as so many Sabbath sycophants have done, these dudes scrape the mold off various '70s hard-rock touchstones until they're reborn on the bayou.



The band's most recent record, 2007's "Down III," is a monolithic chunk of sub-Mason-Dixon line rock 'n' roll, a sweaty, stoned survey of steel-toed dirges, a touch of boogie rock swing and some heavy emoting by Anselmo via traces of moody melancholia.



"We try and make timeless sounding things, that was part of our goal," Keenan says of the band's three records. "Hopefully, we're not making anything that sounds dated. You put it on, and it still sounds refreshing a couple of years later."



In this way, the band is a bit of an anachronism.



Even the way Down has built up its fan base hearkens back to the halcyon years of hard rock. The band has been on the road virtually nonstop since the spring of '07, gradually broadening its audience one gig at a time.



"It's just touring, touring, touring. That's the way you do it, man. You do it the old-school way like that, and it works every time," Keenan says. "Every time we played somewhere for the first time, we were kicking people's asses. So we decided to do it like Iron Maiden did it in the old days, and just play around the globe as many places as we can and try and create a bigger scene. It's really worked quite well."



After this final leg of roadwork, the band intends to write its next record this coming January.



"This new one that we're doing, we're going backwards," Keenan says. "We're gonna really strip it down and just do two guitars. I like doing all the textured stuff, I like all the big, epic stuff, but from playing live so long, we've really gotten it down now. We really want to focus, and just strip it down, AC/DC-style. Just simplify. It's time to spin it around a bit, you know?"



Maybe so, but in the meantime, there's a few thousand more miles to be traversed.



Tomorrow, there's another show in another city.



It's a routine, practiced by a band that's anything but.



"People have seen a lot of bands, but maybe not a lot of real ones," Keenan says, "I'm not trying to brag," he notes, "but ..."

Guitarist Pepper Keenan discusses his band's current U.S. tour, their next album, Jaws and a whole l

ArtistDirect.com Pepper Keenan can sling an axe with the best of 'em. On III: Over the Under, the Down guitarist anchors the songs with sludgy, infectious guitar riffs and hypnotic, hulking leads. Keenan's fretwork seamlessly swings from death rattle distortion to magnificently mournful blues. He's a modern Southern guitar god, and he's one of the reasons that Down is so poignant. Keenan complements co-guitarist Kirk Windstein's dirge distortion perfectly. The combination of their riffs and Phillip Anselmo's [Pantera, Arson Anthem] voice channels Page and Plant—but with way more balls. At the moment, Keenan is wandering around Amoeba Records in San Francisco looking for new albums to spin. "It's too overwhelming in there," he laughs about the store's massive stacks of music. "I'm lucky I got out of there alive [Laughs]." While making his narrow escape from Amoeba, Pepper talked to ARTISTdirect.com in this exclusive interview about Down's current headline tour with The Melvins, Danava and Weedeater, the next Down record, movies and how the road has stayed the same. So how is this tour? It's absolutely ridiculous! No one should expect anything less. Yeah, it's one of my favorite bills of all-time. If I wasn't in the band, I'd be here [Laughs]. It's great. Down hasn't done a proper package tour in the U.S. Right, this is the first time we've ever brought anybody with us. It took awhile for us to figure it out because we really wanted to make it something special and bring bands that we truly like. It's hard to find bands that all of us like that aren't from the '70s or the '80s [Laughs]. We were shooting the shit with The Melvins, and we just finally got it all organized. It happened from there. The fans are flipping out and so are we. Danava and Weedeater are two totally opposite bands but they're equally crushing. It's been some time since Over the Under dropped. How have those songs changed on the road? They've evolved a little bit live. We change our set every night so we don't get too stuck on anything. If anything, those songs got faster. Maybe that's not a good thing [Laughs]. We keep an eye on everything, and we change the set up so much that the individual songs don't change too much. There are a couple of solos that change and we groove a little differently, but it's still fun to play them. That record came out two calendar years ago now, and we're still on the damn road. It's crazy. We just got back from Europe. We did seven or eight weeks over there, and our last show was in Tel Aviv, Israel. Then we came home and started ten days later. On Over the Under, it felt like everything you'd been moving towards since Nola had come to fruition. Do you feel like that was the case? Yeah, I think that's true for the last record. On the new one, after touring so much, I think we're going to go backwards even more towards the feeling of the first album—the directness of it. I think we maybe won't spend as much time in "studio mode." We'll make it stripped down and go that route. The last two records have been pretty elegant with lots of parts and sounds to them. [On the next album] I think we're going to strip it down—AC/DC, Ramones-style—and do what Down did on the first record for shits and giggles. Even a longer epic song like "Nothing In Return" still has that raw edge that Nola has though. Yeah, we play it live and it blows people minds. It's the last song we do, and people are like, "Oh my God, I can't believe they're playing it!" Believe me, I love writing songs like that. Believe me. The last few records have had pretty good content of that—like "Landing on the Mountains of Meggido" from II. We're going to strip it down and kick it up a little bit. We've already got a pretty good arsenal of those types of epic songs. Now we need to write some more shit-kickers. Have you been writing new music on the road? We've got riffs here and there, and we keep lists of things. We're going to try to start really writing in the new year, like early January. Then we're going to try to have something out by the early summer. Do you go down to Nodferatu's lair to write? It depends. We're probably going to record some stuff down there. We're definitely going to do the record in Louisiana. Is it going to be another one of those nonstop 16-day sessions where you bang out a whole record? Don't know! We might [Laughs]. We're excited. Everything's all good, man. You've always written very visual songs. Do you watch a lot of movies? No, I simply like that kind of songwriting. I wouldn't mind doing some movie soundtracks one of these damn days. I've been asked about that a couple of times. I like epic shit, man—Pink Floyd. What are some of your favorite movies? Jesus, I don't even know where to start [Laughs]. Jaws! There are a hell of a lot of movies out there, buddy. What are the chances of you guys busting out acoustics on stage? It's possible. We've done "Jail," but we just do it on an electric guitar. We haven't actually whipped out acoustics yet. We've talked about it, but we'll see what happens. I've gotten nothing against it that's for sure. Does the road ever change? It changes, and it evolves. You play different places. Going to new places is always exciting. You get used to it, but you've got to keep your head straight. Don't get too far out there on powders and liquids, and you'll be fine [Laughs]. That shit'll kill you! It's funny because I just got to San Francisco. Even when Corrosion of Conformity was in a van starving to death, we'd head straight to Poncho Villa's Mexican Restaurant in the Mission. Now we're playing this big old joint with Down and I still do the exact same thing [Laughs]. I go to Poncho Villa's and get a seven dollar burrito. Some things will never change. Exactly [Laughs]. Has the rebuilding finished in New Orleans after Katrina? New Orleans will never be the same. We've lost so many monumental things that I grew up with, but it's still an ever-evolving city. It's been through civil war, yellow fever—everything. It's slowly rebuilding, brick by brick. How's your bar, Le Bontemps Roule, been? How can you juggle running that on the road? It's great! Come on down. I've got people I trust, and they understand what I'm trying to do. I just keep them drunk [Laughs]. The reason I got involved with that bar is it's a critical place for New Orleans musicians to do their thing. I felt strongly about that. I get my ass handed to me every weekend that I'm down there. There are so many badass musicians that come through. Does that keep you inspired? Big time! There's nothing like seeing some drummer you've never seen before blow you away for a two dollar cover. It's completely inspiring. —Rick Florino 08.14.09

Philip Anselmo Performs Live with Voivod

WorldMovesFast.com DOWN/ex-PANTERA frontman Philip Anselmo joined Canadian metal innovators VOIVOD on stage at the August 11, 2009 concert in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada to perform the song “Nothingface”. Fan-filmed video footage of his appearance can be viewed above (clip shot and uploaded by Ryan Stroud). “Infini”, the new album from VOIVOD, sold around 840 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The CD landed at position No. 67 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200. VOIVOD’s final album featuring the group’s late guitarist, Denis “Piggy” D’Amour, “Infini” was released in the U.S. on June 23 via Relapse Records. The CD, which was issued in Europe via Nuclear Blast, contains the last thirteen songs written by Piggy and again features bassist Jason “Jasonic” Newsted (ex-METALLICA). Jason played bass on all the songs and mixed the album, which was released as a deluxe, digipack CD and was also issued on vinyl as a double LP. “Infini” was built from the final songs created by the band with D’Amour. All his original demo guitar tracks appear as they were recorded — with no re-amping and no overdubs; just Piggy as he played the tracks he envisioned in his small bachelor apartment, the amp in the bathroom, capturing his performance with the laptop given to him by Jason.

Vancouver Show Review

Exclaim.ca Down / Voivod / Danava / Weedeater Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver, BC August 10 By Greg Pratt Although New Orleans stoner metallers Down were headlining this bill, in a way the night belonged to Canuck metal heroes Voivod, not to mention pot. Starting things off were Weedeater, whose excellent set may have been a bit too aggressive for many in the crowd, with their feedback-laden slow-mo sludge bringing to mind Eyehategod in all the right ways. The night's next act, Danava, were a throwback to the '70s in more ways than one: the noodling songs, the love of drawn-out proto-doom, the geeky vocals and the even more geeky appearance. Props, though, for a Running Wild shirt and a bassist who looks like a young Cliff Burton. With Blacky on bass and new guy Dan Mongrain kicking ass on guitar, Voivod kicked off their set with "Voivod," "The Unknown Knows," "The Prow," "Ravenous Medicine" and "Tribal Convictions," and it was obvious these guys are back in top form. It wasn't just the crowd who thought so: Down's Jimmy Bower was watching in admiration at the side of the stage and his front-man Phil Anselmo came out for a duet of "Nothingface," yelling "Voivod!" into the mic and bowing to the band like a teenage fan. The Canadian metal heroes played a set of classics and even threw in one tune off their new disc, Infini, which fit in the set perfectly. By the time Down came on, the sold-out venue was a haze of smoke as the touring bands partook in the BC bud experience. The headliners tore through their set, drawing from all their albums and proving that tunes like "Ghosts of the Mississippi" and "On March the Saints," as we all suspected, do sound really fucking good live.

Supergroup Heavy Metal Band DOWN to Perform this Weekend

Examiner.com Supergroup Heavy Metal band DOWN, featuring vocalist/songwriter Phil Anselmo of Pantera, guitarist Pepper Keenan of Corrosion of Conformity, second guitarist Kirk Windstein of Crowbar, bassist Rex Brown of Pantera and drummer Jimmy Bower of Eyehategod, is set to perform two shows in Southern California. Joining them is grunge legends The Melvins. Tickets are on sale now. DOWN formed in 1991 and made a three track demo for underground trading asking heavy metal fans if they have "heard of this band DOWN" without telling the person that they were in the band. Eventually, the tape was distributed throughout the United States and DOWN played a small concert in its hometown where a record executive from Elektra Records was present and signed them to a recording contract. DOWN’s debut album NOLA was released in 1995 and debuted in the Billboard 200, the album has been certified platinum with Allmusic giving it 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising the songs "Temptations Wings", "Stone the Crow", and "Bury Me in Smoke". In 2002, DOWN came back from hiatus with Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow which debuted Top 50 on the Billboard 200. They then toured with Ozzfest in 2002 and again entered an indefinite hiatus to focus on their respective bands. Newly signed to Warner Bros. Records, DOWN reformed in 2006 and released Down III: Over the Under in 2007. Down III covered many subjects such as the breakup of Pantera, the murder of ex-Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell and Anselmo's recovery from back surgery and drug addiction. Debuting at #26 on the Billboard 200, the album was released in September of 2007 to positive reviews. Decibel Magazine stated "For almost an hour, it’s like the metal world was set right again." In February DOWN announced it will tour the USA making a stop at The Wiltern on August 15th and in March DOWN posted a statement saying they will be back in the studio in October recording what will eventually become Down IV. Joining the bill is the legendary Melvins (The). With over 25 years and over 25 albums, The Melvins are considered the godfathers of grunge and in July of 2008 released their new album Nude With Boots. Catch both bands at one of two Southern California show. The tour will play at The Wiltern on Saturday Aug. 15 an the House of Blues in Anaheim on Tues. Aug 18. Tickets on sale now at www.livenation.com

Down, but they're not out

  thegauntlet.ca After cancelling Canadian gigs, heavy metal supergroup are raring to show their stuff. By: Mike Tofin After having to cancel a few shows the last time they were through Canada, due to lead singer Phil Anselmo's throat problems, drummer Jimmy Bower and the rest of Down are set to rip through Canada. This time with a unique tour providing fans the opportunity to purchase tickets for a meet-and-greet and a free T-shirt for involved metal heads to include in their daily rotation of band tees. "I think our fans are united in [their] lifestyle," says Bower. "We always walk around and talk to everybody and try to be personable with everybody. I think a meet-and-greet will make things that much better." After touring, the group plans on heading into the studio starting October or early November to record a new album. This process is one that Down has become both famous and infamous for. Their second album, Down II: A Bustle In Your Hedgerow, was recorded amidst a 28-day bender -- producing an album that ended up a cult classic despite bombing critically. "I think with this one we are just going to go into the studio, jam and try to come up with it on the spot," says Bower. "Kind of like we always do. That always seems to work the best." With their last album, Down III: Over the Under, gaining commercial and critical success, Bower suggests that the band is more confident for a return to the feel and creative synergy of an impromptu visit to the studio. "Since we have taken Down a little more serious over the past few years, [going into the studio] has become more of a tight knit thing and a lot more of a comfortable feeling," explains Bower. "Everybody has the same mind set now. There really is no brain surgery to it, it's just us trying to be Down. So we opted this time to go in the studio and say let's just do this. Just go for the throat."

Twisted Roots

ffwdweekly.com Down puts a Southern spin on power metal Published August 6, 2009 by Christine Leonard in Music Previews “We don’t like to talk about that,” says Down drummer Jimmy Bower when asked about the disaster that struck the band’s hometown of New Orleans not so long ago. While living in a so-called post-Katrina state has darkened the band’s view of the future, it hasn’t dimmed the metal supergroup’s determination to continue pumping out Southern-tinged hardcore music of the highest calibre. “It hasn’t always been easy,” says Bower, formerly of the sludge metal outfit EyeHateGod. “In fact, we’re about to release a live DVD of a tour we did in Europe back when we had absolutely no promotion and no label to speak of, yet we sold out every show. Now that’s gotta tell you something. We’ve worked really hard. We edited it down and filled in some footage; I think it came out really, really well. Looking back at those shows, it’s surreal to see how we’ve gotten better over time.” With 18 years of experience melding aspects of rock, blues and metal on a series of groundbreaking releases such as 1995’s NOLA, 2002’s Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow and 2003’s Down III: Over the Under, Down is surprisingly eager to conquer new vistas. Finding solace in the heartbeat behind the music, this amicable amalgam of industry stalwarts including vocalist Phil Anselmo (Pantera), guitarists Pepper Keenan (Corrosion of Conformity) and Kirk Windstein (Crowbar) and bassist Rex Brown loves to show off its musical roots. Mining its heritage for cultural gems has become one of the band’s biggest passions; faced with an onslaught of up-and-coming hardcore acts that amount to what he describes as “cookie cutter paint-by-numbers wastes of recording contracts,” Bowers prefers to focus on authenticity and originality. “I try to put a lot of blues in whatever I do,” the drummer says of his down-home influences. “Getting behind the beat is the key to playing the blues. I think I learned it from watching Mardi Gras bands. It’s a signature that all the grind bands use; you’ve got to hit it at the last possible moment. The last chance, man. You’ve got to be really laid-back, like you’ve already had three or four beers and barely nailed it. If any metal band was ever a blues band, it’s Down. We love playing with different jams and dynamics and putting metal into unlikely situations. That’s what Crowbar and EyeHateGod were all about. They all bite their strings. They’re all southern metal. But, north or south, it doesn’t matter as long as it’s got its ass in that groove.” Famous for infusing mammoth metal riffs with swampy born-on-the-bayou sentiments, Down has long stood apart from its black-clad brethren. Then again, Down isn't your typical metal band. Wearing its New Orleans roots with pride, despite being long overlooked by a local music scene that is more inclined to celebrate its mainstream artists, the band has weathered real hurricanes and emerged all the stronger for it. “I think we’re a lot smoother than before,” Bower says while tamping his hand-rolled cigarettes loudly. “The last four years have seen a lot of drama, but we’ve put our misfortunes behind us because we knew it was time to get back out there. We’re turning people who are already familiar with our style of music on to different stuff, while at the same time introducing the classic forms to a new generation. It’s important to me to go back and study the roots of metal and the blues and to become enlightened about the great players of the past. For the cost of a Rock Band video game you could buy a guitar or bass or a small drum set. I’m self-taught. I just listened to the records and tried to go figure it out. No coloured lights. No dots.”

DOWN With Adversity

Winnipegsun.com By Darryl Sterdan, Sun Media Things are looking up for Down. After weathering a series of personal storms over the past several years, the southern-metal supergroup is finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel, says drummer Jimmy Bower. "We're looking forward to the future right now," the 40-year-old says from his home in New Orleans, prior to a week of Western Canadian dates that start tonight at Winnipeg's Burton Cummings Theatre. "I'm feeling very positive right now. And it's about time, you know? We've all had our personal tragedies to deal with and work through." To call that an understatement is an understatment itself. In 2004 and 2005, Down -- which also features former Pantera singer Phil Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown, along with Corrosion of Conformity singer-guitarist Pepper Keenan and Crowbar guitarist Kirk Windstein -- were devastated by a one-two punch that would have killed many bands. First came the horrific onstage murder of Anselmo's former guitarist and bandmate Dimebag Darrell Abbott, who was shot to death during a show with his new band Damageplan. Less than a year later came Hurricane Katrina, which flooded Bower's home and destroyed Anselmo's house, taking his musical memorabilia and personal possessions along with it. "My house wasn't too bad, but Phil lost pretty much everything," Bower says. "We didn't lose any gear, but almost everything else was gone." But as the saying goes, what didn't kill them made them stronger. Six months after Katrina, they regrouped and decided to make Down their No. 1 priority. And they channelled all their grief, frustration and anger into their tellingly titled 2007 album Down III: Over the Under, exorcising their demons in songs such as Mourn, On March the Saints and I Scream. "We were just trying to get something positive out of all the negativity and tragedy that was surrounding us," Bower says. "Everyone knows that when something tragic happens, you have to vent in some way. And what better and more honourable way for us to vent than through music? Of course, it was emotional at times, but in the end, I think the record was a very healing experience for us -- hence the title." The album also served notice on fans, reminding them that Down's members have not only perfected the sludgy blues-rock riffs and Sabbath-inspired boogie beats of Southern Metal -- they pioneered them nearly 20 years ago with their previous groups. "At one point, there was seven or eight dudes who played in every band," laughs Bower, who also plays guitar in EyeHateGod and is known as the Godfather of Southern Metal for his two decades of service. "It used to be a pretty tight-knit scene. But now, years later, it's caught on. it's like what happened in Seattle with grunge. There are a whole slew of new kids coming up, picking up on the influence we gave them -- not to blow my own horn, but I'm proud of what we've achieved." After tonight, Down plays Friday at the Events Centre in Edmonton, Saturday at Mac-Ewan Hall in Calgary and next Monday at the Commodore in Vancouver. They return to Canada Sept. 18 to play Toronto's Koolhaus. DARRYL.STERDAN@SUNMEDIA.CA

Message from Rex

To the Down Brotherhood,



It is with my deepest apologies to let you know that I will not be joining the band on the 1st leg of the forthcoming US/Canada tour. It has been mutually agreed upon between myself and the guys that I take this time to address some personal issues. Make no mistake I will be joining my brothers on the 2nd leg of the tour and in the studio in the very near future. This is of utmost importance at this time. Thank you all for your support and understanding. I will see y'all really soon!



With much respect,

Rex Brown

Down and Baddies to Roskilde

Roskilde Festival American heavy rock and a high-flying British hope join the line-up this Wednesday. We continue in the rocking groove again this week. We are proud to present this infrequent visitor in Scandinavia. A band that has been ranked high on the rock crowd's request lists year after year. DOWN (US) is an all-star metal band with Phil Anselmo from now-defunct Pantera on lead vocals. Members from Corrosion of Conformity, EyeHateGod and Crowbar also join in on the hard-rocking fun. The band from the Southern States is for everyone with a penchant towards droning, stoner metal with the heritage from Black Sabbath in place. We let this strongly requested band stand side by side with a brand-new, more melodic rock band. BADDIES (UK) could be a qualified guess of a 'band of the year' in 2009, says a consenting team of critics. The band leans against the driven and cool beat as found with Queens of the Stone Age, while at the same time they have that unmistakable British attitude known from Arctic Monkeys or Kaiser Chiefs. More music Thursday, Friday and Saturday We have only started this week's band announcements. Soon the Norwegian music business festival by:Larm will begin. Several employees from Roskilde Festival head up to Oslo where the event takes place from Thursday to Saturday this week. While the Norwegian capital hums with concerts, meetings and panels, we will announce exciting Norwegian acts. Look forward to new music on Thursday, Friday and Saturday this week – for Norwegians, participants at by:Larm and all music lovers in general. To read the original article, click HERE.

Axe to Grind: Heavy Metal in New Orleans

BestofNewOrleans.com Internationally known New Orleans metal bands power what's still a locally underground scene Heavy metal stars Pepper Keenan and Phil Anselmo and their band Down just completed a tour opening for Metallica at the New Orleans Arena. Along with Mike IX Williams, they are three of the city's best-known musicians — outside of New Orleans. "You know, I can remember being nominated four different times, back when I was in Pantera, for Grammys," Anselmo says. "And they'd have on the news all the local New Orleans stars who were nominated. My name was never up there. And nothing against them — the Harry Connicks and the Aaron Nevilles. I even went to Lakeview high school with Harry Connick, and summer camp. But Pantera, we sold more records than them. So I always took it with a grain of salt." In the early '90s, he and Keenan were both living outside New Orleans and playing in hugely successful bands: Anselmo in the metal megamonster Pantera and Keenan in Corrosion of Conformity, a North Carolina-based band. Though they visited New Orleans often and remained a part of the fast-growing scene, they then — and now — received very little notice from the city's music industry. "They acted like we had leprosy," Keenan says. The three rockers don't seem to hold a grudge. In fact, with cash and name recognition to work with, they're more dedicated to the city's underground music scene than ever. Now that he's back in New Orleans, Anselmo is, along with Williams, focusing his energy on Housecore Records, an indie label on which he hopes to recreate the honest, DIY energy of two decades ago. In the late '80s and early '90s, New Orleans' underground punk and metal scene was thriving. Artists like Keenan, Williams and Anselmo emerged from a close-knit crowd of tape traders and zine makers, and they became international celebrities, selling millions of records and influencing generations of new bands claiming New Orleans metal as an inspiration. The idea for Housecore dates back to his Pantera days, when Anselmo was shuttling back and forth between New Orleans and the band's Texas base. His Lakeview house became a regular stomping ground for local musicians who hung out, played together and formed bands. "A good majority of bands would hang out there," he says. "We were making so much music coming out of that house, it was unnatural. It was just an idea at first, because I was so busy touring and whatnot with Pantera; it was a hard thing to organize and make a realistic approach to attack it. So my God, 20 years later-plus, it's finally a reality." More than two decades ago, punk rock and metal shows at clubs like Jed's, the Rose Tattoo, Andy Capp's and the Franklin Avenue VFW Hall attracted a small corps of dedicated young punk rockers and metalheads rabid to hear — and eventually play — loud, hard, nasty music. There was no Hot Topic, and MTV's Headbangers Ball, which started in 1988, was only a rumor from the few people who had cable. New Orleans' better-known musical heritage influenced some of them, alienated others, and did both for a few. "Back in the day, the Meters were a very vicious band," Keenan says. "You couldn't touch them with a 10-foot pole. They had some songs that were heavy as lead. But I did not want to play a hollow-body guitar and jangle around." Sometimes, New Orleans music and metal didn't mix. Keenan remembers a show at Jed's when Dave Turgeon of the Sluts, with a 100-foot mic cable, ran out of the club and into the Maple Leaf across the street to continue singing — in the middle of a jazz set. Another time, opening for the Circle Jerks with his band Graveyard Rodeo at Tipitina's, the two groups decided to fill gift-wrapped boxes with raw fish and throw them into the crowd. "So the crowd was tearing open these boxes and they were full of fish, and they started slinging fish all over Tipitina's," Keenan recalls fondly. "So that kind of ended that. We never played there again." New Orleans rose to the top of the national metal scene in the '90s. Pantera's superstar presence and its New Orleans-born frontman did a great deal to solidify the city's fame. (Fact: Louisiana is the only state with its own full page in the Heavy Metal Fun Time Activity Book, published in 2007.) But in a story that's typical of New Orleans' music history, a local underground sound subtly changed the path of American music. Mike IX Williams, one of the most influential musicians in New Orleans metal, was actually born in North Carolina. He lost both parents as a child and moved to New Orleans in the care of a brother 15 years his senior. Williams' first band, Teenage Waste, began playing at the Rose Tattoo when he was only 15. When he wasn't playing, he remembers going out to see early local punk acts like the Sluts, Shell Shock and Graveyard Rodeo. His brother would sneak him in to see seminal New Orleans punk bands like the Normals "Back then, a big punk show at the Rose Tattoo would be about 50 people," he remembers. "Jimmy Bower became the drummer for Shell Shock, and me and him started hanging out." Williams worked as a roadie for Shell Shock on an early U.S. tour, and the two became friends. By 1987, the seeds for Eyehategod — the band most pointed to as the root of the New Orleans metal sound — were planted and starting to sprout. "We started talking about it and saying, man, we've got to do a punk band that plays really slow." The band didn't take the idea seriously at first. "It was mainly to open for some of the faster metal bands in New Orleans and play really slow, and kind of piss everybody off," he says. "Lots of feedback and noise. But it ended up being taken seriously, and we ended up getting a record deal out of that from a French label called Intellectual Convulsion, and that's where it all started, really." Brian Patton, guitarist for the veteran thrash-band Soilent Green, who also plays in Eyehategod, says the sound gained quick recognition. On Eyehategod's first national and European tours in the early '90s, the press had already recognized it as the next big thing. "It's a bluesy, slower sort of sound. What Soilent Green does is actually the opposite — we're a fast thrash-metal band, which was a big thing at the time, and the slow stuff that's now the New Orleans sound was kind of a rebellion against that. That's what Eyehategod was all about. They were tired of the fast stuff. They wanted to play slow and just aggravate the f—k out of everybody. And it worked, man. Eyehategod was hated in the metal scene when they first came out." Eyehategod progressed from hated upstarts to godfathers of a new sound that swept through the city and the metal scene at large. At the same time as Eyehategod was attempting to irritate audiences with slowed-down crunch and grind, the short-lived band the Slugs (featuring members of the early thrash/hardcore band Shell Shock) also began playing slowed-down, drop-tuned metal in the style that would soon be recognized as New Orleans' signature. The Slugs featured Jimmy Bower on drums and Kirk Windstein (later of sludge-metal band Crowbar) on bass and guitar. Eyehategod continued to tour the U.S., Japan and Europe and put out several albums, building an international cult following. Williams' band Outlaw Order existed on a virtually parallel timeline to Eyehategod, and features the same members except Jimmy Bower. Williams lost his house to a fire after Hurricane Katrina and left town, but he's back and working on the Housecore label, as well as shopping an expanded version of his 2005 book of lyrics, poems and short stories, Cancer as a Social Activity. Outlaw Order recently released a new album, Dragging Down the Enforcer. In 1995, Bower, Windstein, Anselmo and Keenan released NOLA, their first album as Down — a supergroup of members still partly from the underground — which went gold. "When the Down thing started, we focused on making the licks real slippery and not mechanical," Keenan says. "I don't know if it was Southern, but you could tell we weren't from Berlin. It was very not what other bands were doing, trying to sound like machines. That whole attitude was very influenced by New Orleans, the feel of it, the greasiness." Years later, the Sabbath-via-swamp sound continues to re-emerge in iterations of sludge, doom and stoner metal, in popular bands like High on Fire, Mastodon and the Australian group Wolfmother, to name a few. Chris Terry, a musician from Hot Springs, Ark., traveled to New Orleans in late January to shoot parts of his documentary on Southern metal, Slow Southern Steel, which he expects to release in the fall. He's interviewed metal bands in six Southern states, and Louisiana's impact on the sound has been something he can't ignore. "Oh, man, it is such an influence on the scene," he says enthusiastically. "Eyehategod, obviously. It was New Orleans who really hooked it up and infected the underground with such a cool sound. To me, the New Orleans sound is what really helped to give birth to the sound I'm trying to capture in the movie." "I've always felt that New Orleans bands in general have something other bands do not have," Anselmo says. "It's tough to pinpoint. I could point out several different details — the drummers know how to play behind the beat, the feel of the riffs is more slippery, the attitude, the frontmen — I hate to use the word flavor, but New Orleans definitely has its own style." At the end of 2008, Housecore put out its first two releases: a self-titled demo from Anselmo's longtime black-metal-influenced project Christ Inversion (whose MySpace page describes its sound as "the venomous vomit of Satan!") and a vinyl EP from Arson Anthem, a thrash/hardcore band featuring Anselmo, Williams and Hank Williams III. In 2009, Housecore's scheduled releases include a compilation of early Soilent Green recordings featuring Glenn Rambo, the band's first singer, whose death by drowning during Katrina was the focus of a fall 2005 Revolver cover story on the state of the New Orleans metal scene. The label also plans to put out new full-length releases from Arson Anthem, the heavily Metallica-influenced, Memphis-based thrash-metal throwback trio Evil Army, avant-garde tape manipulators the Sursiks, and the up-and-coming New Orleans sludge-metal band Haarp (of whom Anselmo says, "They're the best f****n' New Orleans band I've seen since the late '80s. I saw them last Friday and they ripped a hole in New Orleans via Fat City.") As it's shaping up, the label will be a collection of Anselmo's side projects and personal enthusiasms. "With Housecore, I want to bring a bit of realism back," he says. "Whether it be hardcore, noise and kind of extreme metal-ish music, beautifully played acoustic music, anything." Housecore, on its Web site (www.thehousecorerecords.com) also features original radio and video content from Anselmo and Williams. Yet for all the accolades heaped on New Orleans metal by international fans and media, its major bands still receive limited attention in their hometown, which is usually quick to celebrate homegrown talent. So why would bona fide rock stars choose to keep living in their own underappreciative backyard? "It sucks you in, man," Anselmo says. "There's no place like it; there never will be. We might be the next Atlantis, but till that time comes, I will sit back in a recliner, and in a couple of years, they can find my skeleton underneath all that water with a Saints shirt on and a fleur de lis tattooed on what's left of my flesh. I'm stayin'." BestofNewOrleans.com

Philip has contributed a poem to boxinginsider.com

BY PHILIP H. ANSELMO, Boxinginsider.com A trained; composed; skilled fist can strike out at an opponent for only so long before it connects directly into the hearts of loved ones closest. A pugilistic dementia reaction of habit with a system in slow motion. Done by thirty-three and bitter about it. What could have been! Not a single promise kept. No limelight. Golden gloves trophies, colorless ribbons and lost timelines… gather dust next to a stack of unopened mail; forgotten for months. Or years. Bloodstains on a battle tested brain. A warrior fed back to the cruel streets unwanted and left to cope alone with predictable failure lying await in ambush ticking like a time bomb inside of himself. Whether it be nerve-damaged ticks violent, abrupt outbursts fists through framed family photos or bottom shelf tequila— this man is but a trapped, wounded hero with torn pride inside. A sad baggage to heave around with nowhere to put it, nor knowledge of how to. The Retired Journeyman will be remembered as the portrayal of a man that left his mark as the loser of boxing matches by those of us who lived through his losses and have scorned his name because of them. But let us take a moment to allot compassion for him because to remember his name is to know the unparalleled and oft-misguided courage it takes to climb through the ropes, and into the ring with nothing left. For every champion, they must first meet The Journeyman… who’s scarred face serves its purpose and with every punch it receives, it only serves as a detriment to this man’s health and further distances him, from him. Woe to The Journeyman— a hollow young man with only directionless; puzzled memories of combat left on his head. Bereft of family or friends sitting quietly in his lonely squat— uninvited, yet familiar company is kept and can always be found seated in an opposing corner of the house in a dimly lit smoker waiting for the bell to ring in The retired Journeyman’s aspiration-dead imagination. Read this article HERE...

Phil has posted a blog on the Headbanger's ball site.

"We wont waste time filibustering. We’ll just say if you’re not down with Down, you suck. And if you don’t want to see the band open for Metallica, you suck more. The new Down video for “N.O.D.” will receive its on-air debut tonight on MTV2 at around 10 p.m. EST in celebration of the 20th anniversary of “Headbangers Ball.” The video will also be included on the DVD of the upcoming deluxe reissue of the band’s 2007 album Over the Under. If you need to see it now, click “more”. But first, check out our new guest blog from singer Philip Anselmo. "Last time we talked, we were just about to go on the road with Metallica in Europe, and by God, it was awesome. Having never been to Bulgaria or Istanbul and a few other less traveled countries, they took to us like the starved to food; it was amazing. We had no idea we had fans in those countries." Read the rest of the blog entry HERE...

Check out Philip's Down blog for July '08

Well, once again it’s been TOO long since I last contacted all of you—but here it is!



We’ve been hammering Europe to pieces as of late, & today is our last of 4 shows in Gothenberg Sweden. Two shows earlier we were in Germany, which was a blast (awesome crowds!). When we played Hamburg, as a boxing journalist/enthusiast, I snuck away on the day off there & hung out with the World Heavyweight Champion Wladimir Klitchko & his trainer Emanuel Steward for the day and into the evening! What a blast!



That experience itself has me so fucking pumped up for the upcoming 5 Metallica shows, that take DOWN to uncharted territory for us like Latvia, Bulgaria, & Istanbul, Turkey. Unbelievably Down ends the tour by playing Tel Aviv, Israel on our own. We come in peace! (Let’s hope we make it out of there in one piece!).



***ALSO!!! –We’ve been fucking around with some new material, & we’ve got enough material already recorded (at least 6 new songs) as well as some unreleased stuff from the OVER THE UNDER sessions. It’s definitely enough for an awesome EP, with some surprises within.



We are dying to get back home to the US & do some touring! There’s WAY too many cities we haven’t hit, and the big cities NEED to have another jam session with us. It’s coming… I promise! We’re in the process of putting a tour together as I write, so be ready when the time comes.



Until the next time, on behalf of DOWN



— Philip H. Anselmo

Philip on boxinginsider.com once again

  BoxingInsider.com Philip Anselmo is a rock and roll icon, having sold over 30,000,000 records with Pantera, Super Joint Ritual and currently Down. The Louisianan’s passion is boxing and one of his favorite practitioners of the sweet science is the world’s new Middleweight king Kelly Pavlik, who dethroned Jermain Taylor by sixth round KO in one of the most exciting fights of 2007. It so happens to be that unbeaten Pavlik is also a big Anselmo and Pantera fan. So here is a unique interview the pair collaborated on recently: Phil Anselmo: First of all I would have to congratulate you on the destruction of the overrated but always dangerous Edison Miranda and then, coming off the deck in the second round and gathering yourself between rounds enough to come out and dominate the third round and systematically break apart the then champion Jermain Taylor - congratulations. Beautiful execution, etc. etc. So at 160 what else, what other opponents are there left for you to conquer? Kelly Pavlik: Thank you very much. Well, (IBF Middleweight champ) Arthur Abraham, (WBA champ) Felix Sturm’s out there. So hopefully see if it works out with them leaving their country. See if it might work out. (Note: Abraham and Sturm fight out of Germany.) Phil Anselmo: How do you think you would fare at 168 and would you be willing to travel to Europe? Kelly Pavlik: Yeah. If the HBO network is coming over. If HBO is coming over, people in the States can see exactly what’s happening. Phil Ansemo: How do you see yourself doing in a fight with Mikkel Kessler in Denmark? He’s still - I don’t care what people say - the second best super middleweight in the world (after losing the 2007 unification battle with Joe Calzaghe). Kelly Pavlik: Kessler’s a bad dude. He’s fast. He can fight. He can punch. He’s right down the middle every time. He fought a fight against Calzaghe who’s just awkward. You know, Calzaghe looks easy but he’s awkward. But I wouldn’t mind any. If I’m going to 168 I’m gonna fight the best up there. Kessler would be a great match-up to have at 168. So would Calzaghe - if he stays down at 168 instead of going up to light heavyweight (175). I’d like to fight Calzaghe too. Click HERE to check out the rest of Philip on boxinginsider.com!

Jamey Jasta interviews Kirk.

By Jon Wiederhorn, Revolver Mag Given that their bond developed over years of heavy drinking and goofing around backstage, it’s not too surprising that neither Hatebreed singer Jamey Jasta nor Down guitarist and Crowbar frontman Kirk Windstein take the idea of interviewing one another terribly seriously. In fact, they end up talking about pretty much everything—drunken misadventures, random acts of violence, celebrities they’d like to bang—except their side project Kingdom of Sorrow. Two minutes into the phone call it’s clear these guys are total bros, and they probably hooked up ahead of time to come up with good one-liners and discuss the non-music-related path their conversation would take. Fortunately, Revolver had the foresight to talk with both jesters in advance about the history of their friendship and the creation of Kingdom of Sorrow’s bruising self-titled debut. 12 years ago, Jasta and Windstein’s relationship was one of devoted fan and hard-working musician. At the time, Crowbar were touring for their third album, Time Heals Nothing, and Hatebreed had just released their first demo. Since his band’s meager T-shirt sales weren’t covering the rent, Jasta was earning extra bread booking hardcore and death-metal shows at clubs in Connecticut. When Crowbar and Napalm Death came through town, he paid out of pocket to book the gig just so he could open for Crowbar, one of his favorite bands. “We were unsigned, and I thought it would be good exposure for us, but I also wanted to hang out with Kirk,” Jasta explains. “When we played that show, I didn’t know who the fuck Hatebreed were,” admits Windstein. “But when I heard them, I went, Jesus, they’re badass. This fucker’s good.” Over the next few years, Jasta caught Crowbar every time they came through Connecticut and booked whatever shows he could for them, and the two musicians forged a genuine friendship—to the point where Jasta would often hop in the Crowbar van after shows and travel with them for a couple of debauched days. Read the complete article HERE...

Philip on boxinginsider.com

By Scoop Malinowski, BoxingInsider.com Hard, heavy rock music might play only a bantamweight’s role in the theater of boxing, but boxing definitely is a huge inspiration in Philip Anselmo’s life. The former vocalist and songwriter of mega band Pantera, and current leader of Down, absolutely, totally loves boxing, and that might even be an understatement. For over a decade, Phil has collected hundreds upon hundreds of fight DVDs of everybody from Herol Graham, Yuri Arbachakov, Junior Witter, Orzubek Nazarov, Shane Cameron, Audley Harrison, Matt Skelton, to all the obvious greats. He even used to bring his boxing trainer on tour with him. Last month, Phil participated in a two-hour film feature where he instructed a novice for a three round gym match at the famous Church Street Gym, all of which was filmed by MTV2’s Headbangers Ball. “I love the one on one sportsmanship of it,” he says. “Once the bell rings it’s your skill against his. That does something for me. Boxing is so glamorously real.” This is how Phil’s fistic passion began: “When I was a little kid I wanted to be a scrapper,” recalls the 39-year-old resident of New Orleans, Louisiana. “My old man taught me to lead with the left, keep the chin tucked, right hand cocked and elbows in. Not soon after I remember there were fights on TV. Larry Holmes was in the shadows of the legend of Ali. I’m a huge fan of Holmes now. He was a great champion for a long time. I remember feeling miserably sorry when Barry McGuigan got knocked out by Steve Cruz.” Read the complete article HERE...

Interview with Jimmy and Rex faceculture.nl.

Video interview with Down. FaceCulture spoke to Jimmy Bower and Rex Brown of the metalband Down. They spoke about the the influence of hurricane Katrina, personal problems, Dimebag Darrell, time it took to record the albums, touring, their previous albums, their latest album Over The Under, the importance of playing live and much more. Click here to see the videos on FaceCulture.nl

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