Thrashpit recently caught up with DOWN bassist Rex Brown to discuss the band's new album, III: Over The Under. The following is an excerpt from the interview:

Q: To me, III: Over the Under is about soldering on with life despite seemingly soul-crushing odds. What does it mean to be Over the Under to you personally?

Rex: "It's basically what you just said. It is about overcoming a whole lot of negative things that just engulf us all at once and dealing with personal tragedies. Sometimes with sh*t like that there isn't much you can do about it and it is beyond our control so you got to get over it, you know? The only way we can make a positive message or get through bad times is to make a positive album. This could have been an angry, angry record, but anger doesn't always get you somewhere."

Q: This is the first full-length release from Down since 2002's II: A Bustle in your Hedgerow. How do you think the world has changed since that album came out a whole five years ago?

Rex: "I'm not very political as far as that stuff goes, but I was reading the paper earlier today and it seems like all these kids are popping up out of the woodworks with f*cking firearms. I even saw something about how a guy shot up a school bus somewhere today! It's dumb and I don't get it man. A lot has changed, and the world gets crazier and crazier. I moved out to L.A. and the first year or so it was kinda cool. After two years or so I couldn't f*cking stand to even get in the car! This place is f*cking nuts, it's just a huge f*cking city with too many people! Again, I try not to get too political, so my whole life idea of what this Down band is just listening to the music and taking what you can out of it and trying to make the best music we can."

Q: Down often is credited with helping popularize a style of heavy metal that is distinctly "Southern." In my opinion, such a term stems from the fact that there is a large blues influence on Down's music. How do you think the traditional blues style has influenced heavy metal today?

Rex: "If you play the radio non-stop you'll hear the influence of rhythm and blues, jazz, all of it, everywhere. That's definitely the sound of the South. I would call our sound just taking elements of where we come from and making it something new. We're from the South and we play f*cking Down. There are a lot of bands who want to be in our little shoes, but pretty much we still tap into where we come from more than anything else. With this band I feel really comfortable in the style of music we play."

Go to this location for the complete interview.