Down

Down are an American heavy metal supergroup from New Orleans, Louisiana, active since 1991. The band plays metal, sludge metal, southern metal, southern rock, stoner metal and stoner rock, and is built around members with links to other established bands, including Pantera, Eyehategod, Crowbar, Corrosion of Conformity, Goatwhore, Superjoint Ritual and Sun Don't Shine.

Formation and line-up

Down forms in New Orleans in 1991 with vocalist Phil Anselmo, drummer Jimmy Bower, guitarists Pepper Keenan and Kirk Windstein, and bassist Todd Strange. Over time, the bass position also includes Rex Brown and Pat Bruders. The group’s later line-up changes include Bobby Landgraf replacing Windstein in 2013, and Windstein later rejoining the band. Rade is also listed among the band’s members.

Early recordings and debut album

The band first records a three-track demo that circulates through underground tape-trading networks and leads to local shows and a deal with Elektra Records. Its debut album, NOLA, appears in 1995, reaches number 55 on the Billboard 200 and receives positive critical attention. The album supports a tour, after which the band enters a hiatus as members return to their other projects.

Second and third albums

In 1999, Todd Strange leaves and Rex Brown joins. Down reunites in late 2001 to record Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow at Anselmo’s barn studio, Nodferatu’s Lair. The album releases in 2002, reaches number 44 on the Billboard 200 and is met with a more mixed response than NOLA. The band supports it with appearances on the second stage of Ozzfest 2002. A recording of an acoustic version of “Stone the Crow” is made during this period but is not officially released.

Down reunites again in 2006 after signing with Warner Bros. Records. The following year it releases Down III: Over the Under, whose lyrics address the breakup of Pantera, the murder of Dimebag Darrell, the effects of Hurricane Katrina, and Anselmo’s recovery from back surgery and drug addiction. The album debuts at number 26 on the Billboard 200 and is generally well received. Before its release the band tours with Heaven & Hell and Megadeth, then headlines its own tour.

EPs, live album and later activity

In 2008, BBC Radio 1’s Rock Show broadcasts alternate versions of “N.O.D.”, “Beneath the Tides” and “Jail”, along with a cover of “When the Levee Breaks”. The band continues developing new material, and by 2009 members say substantial new music has been written and recorded. Brown misses part of the 2009 touring schedule because of acute pancreatitis, and Pat Bruders later serves as his replacement. After legal disputes with Warner Bros. over music rights, Down issues the live album Diary of a Mad Band: Europe in the Year of VI through Roadrunner Records in 2010; the title refers to Ozzy Osbourne’s Diary of a Madman.

Bruders becomes the bassist in 2011, and recording sessions for new material begin later that year. The first release from those sessions, Down IV - Part I, appears in 2012. Windstein leaves in 2013 and Bobby Landgraf replaces him. The second EP, Down IV - Part II, follows in 2014.

Recent years

In 2016, FortaRock Festival cancels the band’s appearance following controversy surrounding Anselmo’s conduct at the Dimebash event. In 2018, Anselmo says the members remain committed to recording another Down album, although schedules in their other bands slow progress. In 2019, the band announces plans to reunite for a series of performances in 2020, including Graspop Metal Meeting in Belgium. Around the 25th anniversary of NOLA, Windstein confirms that he has rejoined the band. Down later releases a cover of Dr. John’s “Right Place Wrong Time” during Mardi Gras celebrations.