Artist: DOWN
Album: VOLUME V (CD)

Release date: 20.11.2026
EAN/UPS: 4065629770402
Media type: CD

American heavy metal icons DOWN will unleash their long-awaited new studio album, Volume V, on November 20th via Nuclear Blast Records!

DOWN was never just a band. It’s a brotherhood rooted in childhood friendships that have endured for decades. It’s an homage to the city of New Orleans, Louisiana. It’s music meant for anybody who has ever headbanged, played air guitar, or worn a weathered tour t-shirt like armor. For over three decades, the quintet  – Philip H. Anselmo, Pepper Keenan, Kirk Windstein, Jimmy Bower, and Pat Bruders – have quietly built a legacy like no other. When these individuals congregate, magic ensues, conjured by earthquaking grooves, bellowing straight from the soul, and riffing loud enough to awaken an ancient deity.

This Fall, DOWN begins another chapter with Volume V.
“We were all excited about this,” smiles Anselmo. “There was a sense of lightness in the air. Everyone’s attitude was positive. There was more focus than ever. It just felt fresh again. Each one of us was individually striving for something, and I believe we achieved what we wanted to achieve. The record is a journey. It’s classic DOWN, but it’s also unique.”

DOWN’s bond runs deep. The guys initially crossed paths as teens in various local bands throughout New Orleans. Over the years, each musician went off and made a name for himself with Anselmo notably fronting Pantera, Keenan holding down guitar and vocals for Corrosion Of Conformity, Windstein leading Crowbar, and Bower slinging guitar in Eyehategod.

Two writing sessions yielded the bulk of material on Volume V. Upholding a tradition dating back to Down II, the members retreated to Anselmo’s home studio and their de facto clubhouse, Nodferatu’s Lair. Songs originated on the spot as they jammed face-to-face. Throughout 2025, the music naturally took shape. Keenan and Windstein chose to simultaneously record guitar together, giving the album a timeless punch.

The album opens with a blistering barnburner 'The Myth.' It sets the tone with a powerhouse vocal, pummeling rhythms, and precise down-picking. Then, there’s 'Merciful Fate' featuring King Diamond. It reaches an apex with a vocal duel between Anselmo and King Diamond and fret-burning solos executed at a breakneck pace of 120bpm. King’s wife Livia Zita even blesses the track with dark accents of her own. Closer 'Twice-Told Tales' caps the trip off with a heavy and hypnotic denouement. “It’s a conglomerate of tight riffs and blues rock mixed with the diligence of classic metal,” Anselmo reveals. “It’s an important song to us. I could feel Ozzy Osbourne’s influence on me in the strangest way.”

CD/ 2LP:

1 The Myth
2 Merciful Fate - Feat. KING DIAMOND
3 Turn Out the Light

4 The Message
5 Causeway Grief

6 Blood Oath
7 They Walk the Night

8 They Came from Dust
9 Ozz
10 Twice-Told Tales