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<\/p>\nAmerican heavy metal icons DOWN will unleash their long-awaited new studio album, Volume V, on November 20th via Nuclear Blast Records!<\/p>\n
Photo by Danin Drahos<\/p>\n
American heavy metal icons DOWN will unleash their long-awaited new studio album, Volume V, on November 20th via Nuclear Blast Records!<\/p>\n
DOWN was never just a band. It\u2019s a brotherhood rooted in childhood friendships that have endured for decades. It\u2019s an homage to the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. It\u2019s music meant for anybody who has ever headbanged, played air guitar, or worn a weathered tour t-shirt like armor. For over three decades, the quintet \u2013 Philip H. Anselmo, Pepper Keenan, Kirk Windstein, Jimmy Bower, and Pat Bruders \u2013 have quietly built a legacy like no other. When these individuals congregate, magic ensues, conjured by earthquaking grooves, bellowing straight from the soul, and riffing loud enough to awaken an ancient deity.<\/p>\n
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This Fall, DOWN begins another chapter with Volume V.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were all excited about this,\u201d smiles Anselmo. \u201cThere was a sense of lightness in the air. Everyone\u2019s attitude was positive. There was more focus than ever. It just felt fresh again. Each one of us was individually striving for something, and I believe we achieved what we wanted to achieve. The record is a journey. It\u2019s classic DOWN, but it\u2019s also unique.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody played their asses off, wrote great riffs, and Philip is singing amazing,\u201d adds Windstein. \u201cThere\u2019s so much electricity when we get together. To me, it\u2019s the same vibe as our debut NOLA, but we\u2019ve got another 35 years of experience as songwriters.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe five of us are from the same era, grew up together, and accomplished a lot on our own,\u201d Keenan observes. \u201cWe all sounded different, but we\u2019re still from the same 20-block radius. As far as what makes DOWN special, we knew one another before any of us had done anything. There\u2019s history.\u201d<\/p>\n
DOWN\u2019s bond runs deep. The guys initially crossed paths as teens in various local bands throughout New Orleans. Over the years, each musician went off and made a name for himself with Anselmo notably fronting Pantera, Keenan holding down guitar and vocals for Corrosion Of Conformity, Windstein leading Crowbar, and Bower slinging guitar in Eyehategod.<\/p>\n
Two writing sessions yielded the bulk of material on Volume V. Upholding a tradition dating back to Down II, the members retreated to Anselmo\u2019s home studio and their de facto clubhouse, Nodferatu\u2019s Lair. Songs originated on the spot as they jammed face-to-face. Throughout 2025, the music naturally took shape. Keenan and Windstein chose to simultaneously record guitar together, giving the album a timeless punch.<\/p>\n
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The album opens with a blistering barnburner \u201cThe Myth.\u201d It sets the tone with a powerhouse vocal, pummeling rhythms, and precise down-picking. Then, there\u2019s \u201cMerciful Fate\u201d featuring King Diamond. It reaches an apex with a vocal duel between Anselmo and King Diamond and fret-burning solos executed at a breakneck pace of 120bpm. King\u2019s wife Livia Zita even blesses the track with dark accents of her own. Closer \u201cTwice-Told Tales\u201d caps the trip off with a heavy and hypnotic denouement. \u201cIt\u2019s a conglomerate of tight riffs and blues rock mixed with the diligence of classic metal,\u201d Anselmo reveals. \u201cIt\u2019s an important song to us. I could feel Ozzy Osbourne\u2019s influence on me in the strangest way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lead single, \u201cBlood Oath,\u201d is anchored by an alternately hard-hitting and hummable riff, culminating on a clarion call chorus. With a sly tip of the hat to their stomping grounds, it practically bleeds old gold, black, and white. \u201cAnybody who\u2019s from New Orleans is going to get a kick out of the references to the city,\u201d grins Anselmo. \u201cMusically, it\u2019s got a big hook. It\u2019s a DOWN song, but it takes a turn.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ll know it\u2019s DOWN right off the fucking bat,\u201d adds Keenan. \u201cIt\u2019s heavy in its attack.\u201d <\/p>\n
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DOWN\u2019s Volume V was produced by Eddie Mapp and DOWN, mixed by Dave Fortman, and mastered by Maor Appelbaum at Maor Appelbaum Mastering in California.<\/p>\n
\n DOWN is amid their North American headlining tour with support provided by Helmet and Spirit In The Room. The Strap It Down tour commenced in Atlanta, Georgia on August 15th and will close in Shakopee, Minnesota on September 4th with a special performance as direct support to Slayer. The journey also includes slots on the 2026 installment of Zakk Wylde\u2019s Berzerkus Festival featuring Lamb Of God, Black Label Society, and others on August 28th in Scranton, Pennsylvania and August 29th in Wantagh, New York.Limited DOWN VIP ticketless packages are available now, featuring a soundcheck experience, meet & greet, photo opportunity, signed poster, and exclusive merch item.\n<\/p>\n