Tracklist:
01. 3 Suns And 1 Star
02. The Path
03. N.O.D
04. I Scream
05. On March The Saints
06. Never Try
07. Mourn
08. Beneath The Tides
09. His Majesty The Desert
10. Pillamyd
11. In The Thrall Of It All
12. Nothing In Return (Walk Away)
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Down are: Phil Anselmo: Vocals (Also was/is in Pantera and Superjoint ritual)
Kirk Windstein: Guitars (Also was/is in Crowbar and Kingdom of sorrow)
Pepper Keenan: Guitars (Also was/is in Corrosion of conformity)
Rex brown: Bass (Also was/is in Pantera)
Jimmy Bower: Drums (Also was/is in Eyehategod and Crowbar)
Down was formed, with bassist Todd Strange instead of Rex, in 1991. The band members had been long term friends before. They released theire first album (NOLA) in 1995 which recieved great reviews but a lack of commercial success. There second album was releasead in 2002 after Down had finished their hiatus. This album didn't recieve good receive good reviews however got a higher place on the billboard at number 44 (Nola got to 55 on the billboard.)
Five years later (A now clean from dug and booze) Down released the legendary Over the Under.
Track by Track
1. Three suns and one star.
The start of this song is plain awesome. It starts with some noisy riffage and some waily(ish) singing under some deep talking. At around 0:40 it launches into some awesome headbang inducing groove metal riffing. Phil's voice really shines in this song. I love how he keeps the balanced between singing and shouting.
Highlight: 0:30 to 0:50 4.5/5
2.The Path
Start with some dual guitar heavy, downtuned riffs from Pepper and Kirk. At 2:53 a really nice bit kicks in where the guitar blends with the vocals beautifully. There is one my favourite solos off the album on this song before it goes into the epic last chorus.
Highlight: The final chorus 4/5
3. N.O.D.
A drug related song. This song features one of the best guitar intros on the album. The bridge features Phil yelling "you say you want a revolution," The ending to this song is also pretty effective.
Highlight 3:10 to the end. 4.5/5
4. I Scream.
The intro of this song is very effective.It starts with a nice hammer-on pull off riff. The second guitar joins in after a bit. Followed by the drums and bass. Last comes in Phil with some waily "ahhs." The end of the verse is really nice because one the guitarists places the same riffs but going down the notes in the octave. The chorus' feature some of Phils best singing on the album.
Highlight: The intro. 4/5
5. On March the saints.
Starts with an instantly recongnizable riffs. The most popular song on the album. Again Phil gets the perfect balance between screaming and singing. The breakdown/Bridge in this song is awesome. It starts at 2:24 after the chorus. The riff in it is one of my favourite riffs of all time. Tony Iommi would be proud. I went to see Down live a couple of weeks ago and this song totally ruled. 1000 stoner metal fans shouting March at the top of their voices.Classic.
Highlight: The bridge. 5/5
6.Never try.
My least favourite song the album. I don't like the intro guitar bit, however the drums shine in this song. The verse is very good in this song with some widdly guitar in the background. The chorus just annoys me though, for some reason i just hate the way he sings it. Something which always makes me laugh is at 1:46 you can hear his voice crack. Also i don't like the guitar in the chorus but other than that.
Highlight: The verse 3/5
7.Mourn.
Starts with the heaviest riff on the album. Accompanied by Jimmy pounding his cymbals (cue lots of "hilarious" pounding means sexing jokes.) Phils voice in the voice is awesome , he sings very deeply. Other than its a pretty standard Down song.
Highlight Phils's Voice in the verse. 3.5/5
8. The Tides.
Fades in with a odd sounding noise. Before going into a heavily wah influenced guitar part. The part with both guitars in the inro is legendary, and the guitars complement each-other beautifully. The tempo becomes much slower in the chorus. The bridge starts at 3:30 which consists os Phil singing over some background guitar which sounds very effective. It builds up into some more Wah Wah riffs.
Highlights the Wah guitar parts and Phil's voice in the Bridge. 4.5/5
9.His Majesty the desert.
A very nice interlude. The tone of the guitar parts are awesome. Phil sings very quietly over them. Although just an interlude it is very effective 3.5/5
10. Pillamyd
Here it is my favourite song on the album. Starts with some riffs and some cymbal crashes. A few screams of AW YEAH from phil before it launches into the verse the tempo change from moderate to fast. The drumming is very atmospheric in this song. But the best part of the verse is by far the vocals. Phil manages to do call and response...with himself. It slows down in the Chorus ( which is also great and featured widdly guitar. I am pretty sure this song is another drug related one. Can't keep myself from headbanging in this song.
Highlight: The tempo changes and Phils call and response vocals. 5/5
11. In the Thrall of it all.
Another kind of build in intro. And some more excellent wah riffs. The riff in the pre-chorus is another of my favourite Down riffs. The chorus is simple but effective and the only lyrics for it are In the thrall of it all and some more waily singing. This song features possible the best and longest down guitar solo ever. It starts at 2:31 and ends almost a minute later at 3:25. Theres a really cool bit at 4:13 where everyone goes silent but Phil and he sings "self destruction brings misfortune."
Highlight: The awesome Dual guitar solo. 4.5/5
12. Nothing in return
This is song is epic. Said to be about the legend that is Dimebag Darrell. Every instrument In this song is extremely atmospheric including the vocals. Jimmy mainly uses the Toms in this song which makes it sound slightly tribal. The cries of "you want nothing in return," are just beautiful. The last chorus is just epic, one of the best moments of Downs music.
Highlight: All of it 6/5
Pros:Great sludge metal riffs. Phils singing. Nothing in return
Cons: Bass isn't always very easy to hear.
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