KIRK WINDSTEIN Says New DOWN EP Will Contain Nothing But 'Hard-Hitting' Songs

RockAAA conducted an interview with guitarist Kirk Windstein of DOWN at this year's edition of the Download festival, which is being held June 10-12, 2011 at Donington Park in Leicestershire, United Kingdom. You can now watch the chat below.

When asked about when fans can expect to hear new music from DOWN, Windstein replied, "We finally [started] jamming [new material] at Phil's [Anselmo, vocals] and we're putting out four six-song EPs. We've got the first one written and it's all hard-hitting songs; we don't have any acoustic [stuff on it]. We don't know yet what we're gonna do, but we figure with the state of music today, as far as retail [goes] and people not really buying [music]; number one, the EP will be cheaper; number two, we can get it out quicker and then we can keep putting out the [product]. We literally can put out an EP the first of the year and then have another one come out the fall of next year and give [the fans] music a lot sooner than what we've given them in the past, 'cause it always takes fucking years. So we really think it's a good idea. Pepper [Keenan, guitar] usually does all our artwork and the four cover designs are all gonna work together in some kind of thing."

In a recent interview with The Delaware County Daily Times, Keenan stated about DOWN's next studio release, "We're kinda goin' backwards now. The first record came out a long time ago, so we're feeling that vibe and heading that way; real simple: stripped down and to the point."

He added, "I think we're going to try and do four EPs, and they're all going to be connected together with artwork. This will allow us to have a frontload, heavy as [expletive] EP, and maybe the second one could showcase some of the acoustic stuff we've been saving for awhile, and then continuing the four of them with a completely different style, and obviously the fourth one would be another doom-laden heavy one."

Bassist Rex Brown was unable to join DOWN for the band's recent shows and was temporarily replaced by CROWBAR bassist Patrick Bruders. Speaking to The Delaware County Daily Times, Pepper stated about Brown, "Rex is not gonna be with us [on the road for the upcoming shows]. He's got things he needs to deal with, and we gave him an ultimatum and he's trying to work things out. We've got Pat from CROWBAR playing bass, and he's ass-kickin' in the same way. He plays with his fingers which is really cool; he's got the whole Geezer Butler thing going on."

When asked if Rex was still considered a part of DOWN, Pepper replied, "I don't know what to really say on that; he's not out of the band, but he's not playing with us live."

During a recent interview with the "Focus In The Mix With Denise Ames" TV show, Brown was asked if he still speaks to his former PANTERA and current DOWN bandmate Philip Anselmo. "We're having a little marital spat, so I'll just leave it at that. I'm in the doghouse," he replied.