After overcoming some nearly impossible obstacles, the members of Down could have easily focused their creative energy on the surrounding negativity while writing and recording their third album “Down III: Over the Under.”

    Wrought with all of the trademark southern inspired riffs and a revitalized Phil Anselmo on vocals, the new record has easily lived up to its billing as one of the most anticipated album releases in 2007. Bassist Rex Brown spoke with The Culture Shock to talk about the new record and what it took to overcome some serious obstacles Thursday, September 6, 2007, while driving to LAX.

Hello?

Hey, can I speak to Rex?

This is him.

Hey Rex, how’s it going? This is Patrick.

Hey bud. How ya doing?

Doing great. Where are you at?

I’m in a car driving down the 405 in L.A. to get to the airport.

Where are you headed to?

I’m headed back to the ranch in Texas.

I’m up in Montana. Big Sky country.

Right on. We’ve got a little in common there, son. What’s happening?

I’m kind of surprised here. We’re talking just as the opening game of the NFL is getting underway. You’re a football fan, right?

Of course.

That’s what I figured.

Go Saints. I have to say that. I’m a Cowboys fan at heart, but the other four guys would probably whoop my ass if I didn’t say ‘go Saints.’

I was wondering if you’d converted.

They’ve got a pretty good team this year. They had a damn good team last year. I thought they were gonna go. They’re so young, they still have a chance. I hadn’t really seen the preseason stuff. We’ve been real busy. Just got back from Australia. Really didn’t have a chance to see any of the games.

It’d be really difficult for me to convert. I’m a Broncos fan and I’ve got three different logos tattooed on my body. I’m stuck with them.

You must love the fucking Broncos then.

I do.

Cool man.

So, how good does it feel to be back on this ride with Down? You’ve got the touring you’ve already done and the upcoming record release.

It’s really cool. It’s taken two years to get the thing back together and kind of moving and getting everybody in the same head space. Shit a lot of stuff’s happened in the last few years. You’ve got Katrina and we’ve lost a lot of loved ones. Trying to put all this together and keep it a really concise and very focused … what am I trying to say? You know when you listen to a record like ‘Back in Black’? It’s a fuckin’ record. You wanna hear the whole thing. You don’t wanna stop at just one song. We consciously tried to do that with this one. Have you heard it?

Oh yeah. I’ve been listening the shit out of it for the past two days.

And?

Absolutely love it. I’m a Down fan from back in the day and it’s different than the other ones in the sense that it seems more personal. It’s straight up southern metal though. It’s good shit man.

I ain’t taggin’ it. I ain’t taggin’ shit. I’ll just say that it’s a fuckin’ damn good rock and roll record.

Exactly.

You have to have southern pride that goes with it, but we pride ourselves from being from the south and the whole bit, but I wouldn’t call it a southern record because it really doesn’t sound like the Allman Brothers or Lynyrd Skynyrd. We’re trying to start our own little niche here.

You can listen to the new album and realize that there’s nothing out there that sounds like Down and there’ll be nothing like it after. Basically you know when you’re listening to it, that it’s Down.

Yeah. It’s kind of funny ‘cause people will ask me ‘who’s influencing you guys these days?’ First of all, pretty much us. That’s who’s influencing us. We just wanted to put a record together that’s real cohesive. A real positive message. Phil’s singing his ass off. It’s the best he’s sang in twenty fuckin’ years. I mean, the cat can sing and he can also bark like a dog. This record is what we’ve been striving for as a band for a long time and now it’s finally coming to complete fruition to what this band needs to be.

It’s cool that you mention that you don’t try and sound like anyone else because you can tell. The great bands feed off each other and don’t have to rely on another band’s sound.

Right. And it’s a process. I mean, the second record, we had some skeleton tracks that we had laid down and the whole bit. I’d gone down and jammed and we had some stuff. We kind of got in the mode of ‘let’s go down to the fuckin’ barn.’ For the second record. Just rent a shitload of fuckin’ gear from Nashville, bring it down and just make a fuckin’ record together. Well we did that in like twenty-eight fuckin’ days and it was a hell of a ride. But, this is more focused and we really wanted, like I said before, to be really cohesive and just killer.

Like I said, I’ve been listening to it nonstop since I first got it. It was cool because when I first put it in ‘3 Suns and 1 Star’ kicks in and just starts pummeling you and it just gave me goosebumps. How excited are you for Down fans to hear the new collection of tunes?

I think it’s a must have. I don’t think there’s anything out there that’s like it. It can transcend to people that like older rock and people that like younger stuff. Phil and I were in one of the most influential metal bands in the fuckin’ ‘90s, so you still have that metal influence, but this band can go anywhere. We can play anything from guitar ballads to southern rock to whatever the fuck we wanna do. This record is more focused on … this is where Down really needs to be. This is exactly where Down needs to be and there’s no misconception that it’s an awesome record.

This band has become one of those bands that people get really excited about when you have tour announcements or rumors of songwriting and ultimately the album releases. I’ve already heard people talking about it as being one of the most anticipated albums in metal this year in rock and roll. Do you guys feel like you’re sort of carrying a torch right now?

I’ve carried the torch before and it’s cool to carry the torch but at the same time, at the end of the day, it’s more about the songs and about going out and playing live and having the kids react to it. That’s really what it’s all about. As far as … Phil went through the ‘I’m the king of metal’ and all that kind of shit and that was cool, but that was then and this is now. We’ve all matured a whole lot and gone through a lot of shit and basically tried to make the band now compared to five years ago is completely different. Even though it’s the five of us, it’s just more. It’s hard to describe. It’s more cohesive and just where we wanna be right now and keep this thing going. This isn’t a side band anymore. This is the real deal and that’s what it’s gonna be.

It’s interesting that you mentioned that. I saw you guys live back in ’02 and it was on Ozzfest in Denver. It was one of those shows where there was a point where you guys stopped a tune about four times. As a Down fan, I loved the fact that you guys were calling out the crowd. I got it. But, Phil was really laying into the crowd.

Yeah, if he keeps coming back we’re gonna stop the show. He’s the one with the microphone. How are you gonna do it? If the crowd ain’t gettin’ into it, they better get their ass into it. They paid the money. That’s what needs to happen (laughs).

He definitely called ‘em out for just standing there.

Sometimes you gotta do it.

It was memorable.

Cool.

What kinds of pressures do you face when you enter the studio knowing that whatever you guys produce, it’s gonna be put on a microscope not only by die hard fans, but critics?

For me personally, as long as the song, personally me playing wise I don’t have a problem whatsoever. As long as the song is where it needs to be. Putting all that together, remember you’ve got five different guys from four other bands that are all pretty headstrong about the ways that we’ve put all of our different collective songs together in the past. It’s not a butting head so much as trying to get as collective as you can. Does that answer your question?

Definitely. I ready where you guys started writing this record when Katrina hit. What was it like for the five of you in the aftermath of that storm and the subsequent chaos?

Number one, you couldn’t get in touch with anybody. Cell phones didn’t work, land lines were down. Philip and I were talking nonstop before that and then I didn’t talk to him for three months. I tried. I didn’t know where he was. I heard that he was ok and I tried cell phones and the whole bit. I think we’d spoken briefly, he said he was ok, he said he was in Houston and everything was cool. But, going back to your house with fuckin’ food and no power, it was literally … it was like a fuckin’ war zone and it still is. There just now getting water pressure back to the fuckin’ city. It’s kind of disgusting. This is in America. Building growth is horrible. It’s completely sickening is what it is. We don’t like to jump on this political bandwagon. Oh, the Eddie Vedder crap. We don’t like to do stuff like that, but it’s gotta be said that a lot of friends were lost, died. People that those guys grew up with. Mothers trapped in the biggest disaster in U.S. history. Getting over that process and trying to write music and us being brothers and having each others backs and somebody’s having a bad day, get through it and let’s make this thing positive. That’s the only way you can get out of situations like that.

Ultimately, once the five of you got back in contact, how hard was it to pick that spirit back up and continue writing music?
Just our love of music and getting down there and taking maybe a little bit of that aggression out and putting it on tape and trying to piece it together and trying to figure out how we wanted it to fit. At a certain point, after you get so many songs, it becomes its own beast. That was basically how it came together. I would come down for like a week and then leave and then come back in a couple of weeks and Philip would be getting the vocal ideas and hell, I think he had the sequence of the record done like four months before we even got into the studio. It was one of those things that when you go through shit like that, music for us, that’s the thing that clears our heads and we just wanted to make this thing really positive instead of taking the negative crap out of it. Making it a positive, cohesive fuckin’ masterpiece.

The completed album becomes more of an accomplishment more than just a band writing a record. It seems like through all the hardships, it becomes a record of victory for all you guys. Describe for me the therapeutic nature in which these songs have been born.

I don’t know. When you read the lyrics, when they come out, you’ll understand a little better. The way that Phil phrases things. Instead of in the past where the ‘fucks’ and the barking and all that kind of stuff. We’ve all matured over the deal. It’s made for a more, I don’t know, I keep using this word cohesive, but it’s made us more of a band where we really trust each other and really have each others backs. Some of the lyrics are just about what everybody had to go through. Everybody having each others backs and getting through it. But, at the same time, it is also a rock and roll record. You have to go through some of these things that you go through in life and then you write songs about ‘em. It’s not all about dealing with Katrina and Dime and the whole fuckin’ bit. There’s still some good tracks on there that are up to your own interpretation. Whatever it means to you. If it helps you down the road, fuckin’ great. That’s what it’s all about.

I love how songs like ‘N.O.D.’ have these incredible tempo changes and transformations from sludgy and heavy to flat out metal. What is the most important aspect to songwriting, music wise, as far as this collective group is concerned?

People ask ‘where’d you get the influence for all this?’ We’re influencing ourselves. We’re grabbing what we’ve done for all these years in our different bands and trying to incorporate all that into one big fuckin’ giant monster. We’re more influenced by what we know in our hearts is what we want to put out. That’s what we’re doing. We’re not trying to sound like fuckin’ dark tone. We’re just being Down at this stage in the game. I couldn’t be more fuckin’ pickled about this record, you know.

A song like ‘Never Try,’ to me is very somber and bluesy but it also has a very inspirational message to it. Tell me about that song and the mood of the band when you recorded that particular tune.

We were sitting around and Pepper had this little riff that he was dicking around with in the studio and we were all trying to get in the room and he was like ‘ya’ll go away for a little bit’ and I came in there and sat down with him and we kind of put a structure to it and I think after I left, Philip put vocals on it and it turned into this little ditty that I think is really cool. In fact, it’s one of my favorite tracks on the record.

It’s one of my favorites too and like I said, it has that inspirational message to it. I don’t know if that’s what you guys were going for.

Dude, this whole thing is about positivity. It has nothing to do with negativity. It’s about getting through a lot of shit and making the best out of it instead of sitting and whining and being a pussy about it.

This is the second band that you’ve been a part of that is leaving a trail of historical music with every album release. What are your thoughts about the road that you’ve traveled thus far through rock and roll history?

I think it’s great. I’m overjoyed that I’m still decently at a young age … through all the (laughs) demons and addictions to be able to talk on the phone with ya. That’s very important to everyone in this band. We’ve got our shit together and when it comes to live, it’s gonna be brutal. You’ll see when we come through Boise, I believe. Where are we playing in Montana?

I don’t think you’re playing in Montana. If you’re thinking of it, you can get a good crowd and a good show at the Wilma in Missoula. You could fill a nice 2,000 seater for sure.

We’re into the 2,000-seat theaters. That’s kind of our deal. We like doing shit like that. I will pass that on.

I was down there in Missoula a couple of months ago and saw High On Fire ...

Awesome.

Great show. Great crowd. It was bad ass. We get looked over a lot ‘cause it’s Montana (laughs).

Well, you know what? There’s a lot of places that I haven’t ever played that I want to and I can’t remember if we’ve played … what’s the big town in Montana?

Billings is the biggest.

Right, Billings. I don’t know if I’ve ever played Billings before.

It’s still really not that big (laughs).

Right. Hopefully we’ll get there as soon as possible.

Going back to Pantera. That band has become as legendary a metal band as there’s ever been. How do you personally reflect on your experiences with Pantera?

I don’t know. In your 20’s, you fly by the seat of your pants. In your 30’s you figure out how to fly a little higher by the seat of your pants. The chemistry that we had between the four of us in that band was phenomenal. We were four completely different individuals. The brothers were completely different individuals (laughs). It all came together and it was a great ride, man.

Just a month ago, Drowning Pool played a show here in Great Falls and I checked it out and they busted out ‘Cowboys From Hell’ and it was weird because it was the most spastic the crowd had been all night. The place went nuts and everyone was singing along. It felt like the spirit of Pantera was in the room with everyone even though we all knew it wasn’t the real deal playing it.

That’s cool. A lot of bands are doing that and I think it’s great. I think it’s great homage and the whole bit. Shit, if they wanna do it, go for it. It won’t ever be like the four of us onstage doing it, but tear it up (laughs). Make the best of it. I think it’s cool. A lot of bands play ‘Walk’ and stuff and I’m like ‘good, ya’ll play that ‘cause we had to play that every night for fuckin’ years.’ (laughs). I’m like, god almighty.

Like I said, it was interesting because everyone in the room grew up on Pantera, so as soon as that opening riff kicked in, everybody goes crazy. It’s almost turning into a Zeppelin kind of thing as far as a lot of people were there and experienced it while it happened and now it’s gone away and you just have to remember it.

Yeah. Which, I don’t know if it’s remembered in a good way. We had a hell of a run. Dude, after twenty years, it’s like a fuckin’ marriage, man. It just gets sour and you gotta take different avenues and people grow apart and grow different and poor Dime. I don’t know what to say.

How hard has it been to recover from Dimebag’s passing? I know that’s a difficult question to respond to.

I miss the dude everyday. The world’s a far less beautiful place without him. I remember the good times. I remember all the good times that we had. At first, it was such a shock that I didn’t really wanna talk about it. And, I still really don’t wanna delve real deep into it because this interview is about the Down music …

Right.

But I miss that dude terribly. Just a terrible waste of fucking … just the idiot. Sometimes I get to the point where I get really, really hateful. Just pissed off because of some asshole. Just some fuckin’ lunatic that really changed … I really don’t think that the guy really … I don’t know. I really don’t want to get into it, but I don’t think he knew how many lives he fucking changed by doing that. I think it’s a terrible waste of life and talent and breath and I miss, we all, Philip and I, we talk about him all the time. That’s our way of getting through it. After he passed, we talked every day on the phone until Katrina. We’ve come to closure with that part of it. The mourning and stuff. There is a song called ‘Mourn’ on the record and you should listen to it. That is about Dime.

I do appreciate you talking about it Rex. I’m a huge fan of both Pantera and Down. Just in the last three years, I’ve spoken with Dime and Phil and Vinnie and now you and I’ve talked to all you guys in Down except Jimmy. I love being able to talk to you guys and I love when you have new music out and I appreciate you sharing your thoughts on all of it. You are sharing it with a fan of all the music.

Thanks for being a fan, man. That’s what it’s all about.

If you could share the stage as Down with any bands that have ever played, past or present, which ones would you choose?

Dude, we’ve played with all of our idols. The only band that we didn’t play with was Van Halen and I wouldn’t get on a fuckin’ stage with those fools now for anything. Dude, think about it, Kiss, Black Sabbath, fuckin’ if we shared a stage with anyone, if John Bonham was still alive, it’d be Led Zeppelin. There it is.

That’s all you gotta say.

There it is.

Rex, like I said, I’m a huge fan of the band and I absolutely love this album and I can’t wait for everyone to hear it. I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me.

Thanks a lot dude. I’ll see you later. Take care.