Down Has Written Seven Songs for Their Upcoming Album
There’s been a lot of talk about Down’s plans to record and release another record. Putting aside that third EP we were supposed to get all those years ago… and the covers album… it’s sounding like the full-length effort being talked about as of late is most likely actually happening this time. For real, you guys!
During a recent appearance on The Jasta Show, Down guitarist and Crowbar frontman Kirk Windstein revealed that the band has nailed a buncha songs down for the apparent 2026 release via Nuclear Blast Records. Revealing that “all the drum tracks are done and basically the bass tracks as well,” he said he and his bandmates are aware that things have taken a ridiculous amount of time, noting that he and Down frontman Phil Anselmo laughed at how songwriting for the act has changed over the years.
“[Philip and I] talked about it kind of jokingly and stuff, but I’m, like, ‘Dude, at some point I think you were just overthinking,’ because it went from the simplicity of NOLA where there’s so many open areas of just big, simple riffs and shit to really being complex on a lot of songs on Down III: Over The Under, where he’s almost singing over every part of the song but the guitar solo or something.”
With this newfound clarity, it apparently means that Windstein, Anselmo, guitarist Pepper Keenan, drummer Jimmy Bower, and bassist Pat Bruders can sit down and get shit done. And for someone that’s been working on Down music periodically for decades now, Windstein said there’s a level of familiarity that just comes with all that time.
“We were out at the Nodferatu’s Lair and I’m, like, I said, ‘I haven’t been out here writing with you dudes since… It’s been, like, since for the first EP,’ so maybe 2011, early 2012… So it’s kind of like we haven’t written together in so long that it was so fresh. I mean, we got together on a Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and I think we had seven songs written.
“Because you’ve got five dudes that can write riffs. I mean, your drummer can write riffs too. And Pat writes great, and Phil writes great. And you’ve got me and Pepper on guitar. So when you’ve got five dudes that can write riffs, there’s some songs that we all kind of have a riff in it, even, or a part or half a riff or something.”
Whenever it finally comes out, the next Down album will be their official follow-up to 2007’s full-length album Down III: Over the Under and their first new drop since EPs Down IV Part I – The Purple EP (2012) and Down IV – Part Two (2014).
