Text by Leonardo Orletti
Contrary to the general trend in the rock scene, the 90s were proving to be a glorious time for the young singer Philip Anselmo . At the end of the previous decade, he had already taken on the vocals for Pantera , a glam metal band that, even in the prosperous 80s, had released three albums.
Phil's arrival in the band, coupled with the drastic change in the band's sound, caused them to explode in 1990. For the next four years, they remained at the top with three hugely successful albums worldwide.
Just a few months after the release of Pantera's last smash hit album, and still during its promotional tour, Phil Anselmo adjusted his schedule with the Texans and brought together Pepper Keenan , vocalist and guitarist of Corrosion of Conformity , Kirk Windstein and Todd Strange , vocalist and guitarist and bassist of Crowbar , respectively, and Jimmy Bower , guitarist of Eyehategod Down 's debut album .
Jimmy Bower was originally a guitarist, but he played drums in the new band. He had also previously collaborated with COC (Corrosion Of Conformity) and Crowbar, always as the drummer.
All the members of Down were contemporaries, had started their careers around the same time, and most were from the same region. At least three of them were from New Orleans. I just couldn't find reliable information about Todd Strange's hometown. Pepper Keenan wasn't from there either, but even so, he had a strong connection to the city. The capital of Louisiana has always been famous for its musical identity. It's no coincidence that Down's debut album would be called NOLA (an abbreviation of New Orleans – Louisiana).
As one might expect, the album is influenced by all the musicians' original bands. Not to mention that basically, all the bands fit into the same niche. Anselmo even produced Crowbar's second album himself. That was his only work as a producer. In the case of Down's first record, the material was produced by the band itself and the not-so-well-known Matt Thomas.
To put it more directly, the album is a veritable series of bangers. The first of them is called “Temptation's Wings.” Right from the introduction of the opening track, Keenan and Windstein make sure to highlight the role of the guitars in the band's sound. Phil Anselmo's screaming is only interrupted by a calm and strange guitar solo. After the solo, the five return to doing what they do best. This is one of the high points of the band's live performances.
The second song is the one that was most successful in the band's career, even though it didn't leave the underground scene. "Lifer" begins with a powerful riff from Pepper Keenan and features a less intense performance from Anselmo, except when he repeats the verse "I'm a Lifer" with all the energy he could muster from his vocal cords. For your information, any minimal effort from Philip Anselmo would cause many of us mere mortals to lose our voices for a good few days.
In the first two tracks, there aren't any particularly outstanding moments from the rhythm section, but the overall work is devastating. Bass and drums are responsible for a significant heaviness. Both have complex lyrics and were written by Anselmo and Keenan, the two with the most involvement in the band's compositions. The other musicians contribute to one or two tracks. The next track is solely written by the vocalist.
“Pillars Of Eternity” is solely written by the vocalist. It's pure mayhem. Drummer Jimmy Bower is the first to enter the scene, followed by the rest of the instrumental section. Phillip Anselmo unleashes all his rage, and Windstein treats the listener to two beautiful solos in the final part of the song.
The fourth track is “Rehab.” It was composed by the vocalist and the two guitarists. The song is clearly more melodic, but it speaks enigmatically about rehabilitation, a theme very present in Anselmo's life at that time. That's why the atmosphere in Phil's first band wasn't the best. I believe that the creation of Down was an escape valve for the vocalist.
Rehab has a lot of groove and is reminiscent of COC's sound. Here, Anselmo uses his most natural and clean voice. It's worth remembering that his usual voice is already quite cavernous. He does reach the guttural register, but only in isolated moments. Since his voice is normally very deep, the transition from clean to guttural sounds quite natural.
“Hail The Leaf” is somber, mysterious, and full of distortions. It even has a slight connection to the previous track. Rehab deals with rehabilitation, while Hail is practically an acceptance of addiction in general. And as composer Phil Anselmo says, smoking makes you feel nothing more than sadness and pain, nothing more.
“Underneath Everything” is the sixth track. The intro riff immediately reminds me of “Walk,” Pantera’s biggest hit. Not only that, but this track strongly reminds me of the band, because of Phil’s vocals, of course, and the bass and drums. Furthermore, the vocalist’s layered vocals give the song a modern feel. There’s a fingerpicked guitar part at the end of the song. A basic and unnecessary detail. It’s just for decoration. The lyrics speak of a disbelief that leads to depression.
“Eyes Of The South” has an unusual introduction. After more than a minute and a half, the whirlwind Philip Anselmo ends the four instrumentalists' playful banter with a resounding “Goddamn!”. It's also among the most melodic tracks on the album, or rather, the least heavy. It features rhythmic breaks and clean vocals at times. In some of the band's live performances, this is the opening track. Phil usually uses the time of his introduction to talk to the audience. This track and the previous one were written by Anselmo and Keenan themselves.
“Jail” breaks the pandemonium imposed by all the other songs presented. It’s a true experiment composed by four members of the band. The only one who didn’t receive any credit for the composition is the drummer Jimmy Bower. The lyrics and the complete execution are dense and mysterious. It’s the only track that involved additional musicians in its recording (keyboards and percussion).
Phil's voice is cleaner than ever, and the whole thing is somewhat psychedelic. This shows that psychedelia and Down (the band) can fit into the same sentence. Interestingly, in some passages of other songs, and especially in Jail, the band approaches the sound of their upcoming second album, when the approach to the material from the Louisiana boys changed radically.
“Losing All” is one of the best! It's introduced by a heavy and fast double riff from Down's guitars, followed by another great performance from the vocalist. The riff alone captivated me. But the song is good as a whole. The band embraces grunge influences, and Anselmo saves his more aggressive vocals for the second half. Even the lyrics are quite reminiscent of the grunge movement, which exploded in the US around the same time as Pantera. In this case, the highlight is the guitars. Kirk Windstein and Pepper Keenan make a great partnership! Remember that in their original bands, they both play rhythm guitar. In Down, they alternate between rhythm and lead guitar.
Track ten is called “Stone The Crow.” From the start, it displays an unusual pop appeal for the band. Even in the first minute, Anselmo's vocals strongly resemble grunge icon Eddie Vedder. Another positive point is the guitar work in the final part of the song. In my opinion, this track and the previous one, “Losing All,” both composed by Anselmo and Keenan, are the best on the album.
“Pray For The Locust” is a simple and beautiful fingerpicked guitar piece of just over a minute, followed by “Swan Song.” Since talking about the guitars is redundant, I'll talk about the rhythm section. Drummer Jimmy Bower punishes his instrument mercilessly on every track. And Todd Strange's bass brought the raw energy and groove of Crowbar to Down. The energy of both is an important part of the band's heavy sound. The “swan song” is written by Phil Anselmo and even repeatedly mentions God without any explicit criticism or irony.
“Bury Me In Smoke” stylishly concludes NOLA. The song features raw vocals, a great instrumental with plenty of groove and heaviness, and beautiful solos in the final part. It's the album's fourth single. The other three are “Temptation's Wings”, “Lifer”, and “Stone The Crow”. Speaking of the album's best tracks, this one deserves a bronze medal. It's another song written by Anselmo and Keenan.
I highly recommend a show by the band performed at the House Of Blues in New Orleans (as far as I know, it's not official, but the audio and video are very good. I found it on YouTube). Small audience and the band on fire on stage. In this performance, the album is played almost in its entirety, and some songs even had new and interesting approaches. "Bury Me In Smoke" also closes the show with Phil Anselmo's vocals alternating between high notes and guttural growls. Clean vocals? Forget about it! Kudos to drummer Jimmy Bower, who, despite handling the six strings in Eyehategod, seems to have been born to command the drumsticks. The entire repertoire shines brighter with the band's energy, straying a bit from the dry production of the album recording.
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