UMUR "Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow..." is the 2nd full-length studio album by US metal act Down. The album was released through Elektra Records in March 2002. It´s the successor to "NOLA" from 1995 and features one lineup change since the predecessor as bassist Rex Brown has been added to the lineup (he also plays some organ and keyboards on the album). Guitarist Kirk Winstein had played the bass parts on "NOLA (1995)".

Although "NOLA (1995)" was a big success when it was released, the band members only played a 13-date tour, as they all had commitments they had to return to in their at the time main band´s Pantera, Corrosion of Conformity, Crowbar, and Eyehategod. In the autumn of 2001 they finally had time to gather again and to record the material for "Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow...".

7 years between album releases is a long time, and "NOLA (1995)" and "Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow..." are ultimately also very different sounding releases. "NOLA (1995)" was a very rough edged and immediate release, which at times sounded like just the next step from a demo recording, but "Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow..." is a completely different beast, as it is very well produced and the band also seem to have had more time to write and develop the material, which is generally stronger, more memorable, and more varied, than the material on "NOLA (1995)".

The listener is treated to heavy southern stoner riffs and grooves, but "Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow..." is a very dynamic release, and it also features several more mellow moments/tracks. Lead vocalist Phil Anselmo puts on a strong and varied performance. After increasingly more brutal and extreme vocal performances on the last couple of Pantera albums preceding the release of "Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow...", it´s nice to hear him sing a little more melodic again. He still has a raw and powerful voice, but he is also a great "clean" singer and some of the more mellow material on the album gains a lot from his personal and unique voice and vocal style.

Some tracks take a few listens to get into and remember, while others are infectiously catchy (once I heard the chorus to "Stained Glass Cross", it stuck for days), but all tracks on the 15 track, 66:04 minutes long album are high quality material. Many albums with playing times that long overstay their welcome by at least a few tracks and typically 10-20 minutes of playing time, but that´s not the case with "Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow...", which features a varied and well flowing tracklist. It´s interesting and entertaining from start to finish wether it hits you with crushingly heavy southern riffs and grooves or takes you on a psychadelic mellow journey. This is a high class album release through and through. A 4 - 4.5 star (85%) rating is deserved.

SilentScream213 Coming off of the cowboy trailblazers of Groove Metal, Phil forms a supergroup and establishes another new genre: Southern Metal. While not the first album in this style, NOLA definitely solidified the genre, which already took immense influence from Pantera’s Texan foundation.

This album has a much more traditional sound than what Pantera were doing at the time, with Stoner groove and Heavy Metal riffs, and a bit of Sludge in the tones and themes. All of these traits would become common in the genre.

The problem with this album for me (like with almost any Stoner album) is that it doesn’t really have any mood, it’s just riffs and grooves for the sake of it. The lyrical themes are quite dark, but the fun jamming sound of the album just take their power away. The music is proficient and a few of the riffs are catchy enough, and Phil sounds great, but the album doesn’t evoke anything more than that. The best riffs like those found at the beginning of tracks “Hail the Leaf” and “Losing All” are mitigated by chuggy, boring midsections that add nothing to the songs.

UMUR "NOLA" is the debut full-length studio album by US metal act Down. The album was released through Elektra Records in September 1995. Down were formed in 1991 by lead vocalist Phil Anselmo, guitarist Pepper Keenan, guitarist Kirk Windstein, bassist Todd Strange, and drummer Jimmy Bower. All seasoned veterans of the New Orleans scene (and old friends) and active in acts like Pantera, Corrosion of Conformity, Crowbar, and Eyehategod. The band recorded a three-song demo, which they handed out to fans at shows when playing with their daytime job bands, without telling the fans they themselves were playing on the demo. That way the demo and the Down name were spread in the metal underground. It wasn´t until an Elektra Records representative attended a one-of Down show in New Orleans that they band got signed. "NOLA" was a successful release and Down gathered for a 13-date tour, before returning to their main acts again.

The band members originally formed Down because of their mutual love for heavy doomy music like Black Sabbath and Trouble, but on "NOLA" they inject the heavy riffs and rhythms with a sourthern stoner groove and Anselmo´s distinct sounding aggressive vocals (although he also sings more clean and melodic here). It´s a massive heavy sound with a great organic groove. Ultra heavy blues based rock music featuring catchy heavy riffs, groove laden heavy rhythms, and recognisable vocal melodies. Although the heavy groove based riffs are quite dominant in the soundscape, the band successfully incorporate more mellow and laid back moments too. A dynamic songwriting approach which is great for the variation of the album. The stoned mellow moments also go well with the often drug themed lyrics and songtitles like "Hail the Leaf", "Rehab" and "Bury Me in Smoke".

The sound production is raw, organic, and heavy. Personally I´m not a huge fan of the guitar tone, but it´s a subjective observation, and "NOLA" is arguably a well produced release, and the sound production suits the material well. Upon conclusion "NOLA" is a quality stoner metal release by Down. It´s well performed, well produced, and well written, so a 3.5 star (70%) rating isn´t all wrong.

Kingcrimsonprog Down IV Part 2 is the American Metal super-group Down’s 2014 release. As its title suggests, it is the second in a series of EPs released under the Down IV title, following up 2012’s “Down IV Part I – The Purple EP.” It was produced by Michael Thompson along with the band themselves and released independently.

This was the band’s first official release without longtime member Kirk Weinstein of Crowbar fame, who is replaced here by Bobby Landgraf. Ironically, this EP is probably closer in sound to Crowbar than to Pantera, Eyehategod or Corrosion Of Conformity (the other groups besides Crowbar that the band are usually associated with).

First up, for an EP, this is actually pretty substantial, a total running time of almost 37 minutes leaves it longer than many albums anyway.

The focus of songwriting this time around seems to focus on the heavier, mid-paced side of the band’s repertoire. I don’t think the distinction between EPs 1 & 2 is all that strict, as in, its not a clear cut case of one has all the fast songs, one has all the slow songs, or one has all the basic songs and the other has all the progressive songs. This EP is essentially more of the Down mid-ground. Its not the most “instant” release in their catalogue, and may take a few spins to really get to grips with, but if you give it the time it asks for, you’ll get the rewards it promises.

Highlights include the brief “Hogshead/Dogshead,” and “Sufferer’s Years,” which is particularly catchy with its “I hate this time of year” sing-along, and the fat ‘60s/’70s sounding riffs in the pre-chorus. It is a nice mixture of the band’s Doom, Sludge & Stoner sides, approaching vintage Hard Rock in 2014 from multiple angles. This is perhaps the most definitively “Down” track on the album, and hopefully it will become a concert staple.

The record ends with the almost nine-minute long “Bacchanalia,” one of the looser and more jam-feeling songs on the record. You imagine it got its title from the drunken party in which it probably spawned (as opposed to a secret love of Batman No Man’s Land). This track in turn ends with a softer acoustic moment, likely foreshadowing Down IV Part 3 as the promised all-acoustic EP originally mentioned when the band come up with splitting the album into different EPs.

Overall; this is not necessarily bold new ground for the band, and the focus on mostly similar direction material may leave some fans feeling an acute lack of variety or excitement, but for what it is, to me personally, Down IV Part II is an entertaining collection of Down songs and a worthy addition to the catalogue. If you’re burned out by the formula, or want something fresh and new from these guys, maybe give it a miss, but if you can’t get enough Down, then by all means jump on board.

Warthur Straight down the line sludge metal with stoner flavouring. On NOLA, Down lack the distinctive personality of sludge bands like the Melvins, or the daring experimentalism associated with acts such as Neurosis. This is possibly down to the act's origins as a supergroup, of course: the point of the project might have been to kick back, relax, and jam away at some sludgy material without sweating too much about producing some sort of masterpiece. And, to be fair, as far as supergroup projects go it's better than many. All the participants get a fair amount of spotlight time, and crucially they all seem to be pulling together as far as the band's direction goes, so the end result is entertaining but not eye-opening.