Over the Under

III: Over the Under is the third studio album by heavy metal band Down, released five years after their previous album, II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow. It was released internationally on September 24, 2007, and in the United States on September 25, 2007.[1]

III: Over the Under
Studio album by
Down
ReleasedSeptember 25, 2007
RecordedDecember 2006 – February 2007
GenreSludge metal
Length59:54
LabelIndependent Label Group
Warner
Roadrunner Records
ProducerWarren Riker,
Down
Down chronology
II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow
(2002)		 III: Over the Under
(2007)		 Diary of a Mad Band
(2010)
Singles from Over the Under
  1. "Mourn"
    Released: September 25, 2007
  2. "I Scream"
    Released: October 22, 2007
  3. "On March the Saints"
    Released: 2008

Themes

Lyrical themes of Over the Under include the band's anger about Hurricane Katrina, Phil Anselmo's frustration over the murder of Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell, and the bad blood between the two up until the guitarist's death.

"Phil's really good at [lyrics], Several songs address Katrina's aftermath and how life changes on you, man. We've got a lot of ammunition for this one, I'll put it that way — a lot of things have not necessarily gone right for everybody these last couple of years. Everybody's just trying to stay positive. We're not writing Christian songs. These are still angry, frustrated songs." – Pepper Keenan[2]

"We've progressed a lot, but we didn't forget those first Down demos. ...We still get off on those big, giant, heavy riffs. But at the same time, we're not afraid to play acoustic guitars in a circle. It's not a one-direction evolution for us." – Pepper Keenan[2]

Release and reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Metal Hammer10/10
Rolling Stone 10/4/07

The album was leaked in full on or around August 29, 2007. The album was also released on LP, and in a special edition digipak featuring a bonus track and an extended booklet. The album debuted at number 42 in the Irish Singles Chart on September 27, 2007.[4] The album debuted at number 26 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling about 29,000 copies in its first week.[5] On the UK Album Charts, the album debuted at number 46 on September 30, 2007.

Over the Under was #4 in Revolver's list of the 20 best albums of 2007 and #2 in Metal Hammer's year-end list. It was ranked #37 on Rolling Stone's list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007.[6]

Reviews for the album were mixed. Matthew Cooper at Last Rites praised the production, musicianship, and backing vocals. He commended "Nothing in Return (Walk Away)" to be a "slow, massive nine-minute closer is a supremely commanding emotional climax built on a dominant back-and-forth drum pattern, astral noodling, and impassioned vocals, in an undeniable display of the band members’ combined talents."[7] Don Kaye at Blabbermouth rated it 6.5/10 stars, and opined "the group is just not playing or writing at the top of its game here, " as well as "many of the songs on "III" are drawn-out and unmemorable, consisting mainly of one or two riffs repeated over and over while Anselmo's vocals cascade and echo on top. He heaped additional criticism on Anselmo's vocals as well, noticing a weakness he did not see while Anselmo was in his prime. However, he noted there were flashes of the "old Down", referencing guitar work on "In the Thrall of It All", while saving his biggest praise for "Nothing in Return" as "the mournful, massive feel of some of the band's best early numbers and ends the album on a majestic note."[8] Vince Neilstein of MetalSucks rated it 3.5 out of 5 horns, echoing the mixed opinion, writing it "...isn’t a spectacular album that is going to change the face of metal and save the day. But what it is is an awesome album to groove and smoke a bowl to while being reminded that metal doesn’t always have to be all about tough guy posturing..."[9]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Three Suns and One Star"Phil Anselmo, Kirk Windstein5:41
2."The Path"Anselmo, Rex Brown4:09
3."N.O.D."Anselmo, Pepper Keenan, Windstein4:00
4."I Scream"Anselmo, Keenan3:48
5."On March the Saints"Anselmo, Keenan, Windstein4:10
6."Never Try"Anselmo, Brown, Keenan4:55
7."Mourn"Anselmo, Keenan4:44
8."Beneath the Tides"Anselmo, Keenan5:32
9."His Majesty the Desert"Anselmo, Keenan2:25
10."Pillamyd"Anselmo, Keenan5:15
11."In the Thrall of It All"Anselmo6:20
12."Nothing in Return (Walk Away)"Anselmo, Keenan8:55
Total length:59:54
Bonus track on 2007 European (RR 7956-5) and Japanese (RRCY-21299) releases
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Invest in Fear"Down5:20

Notes
  • On October 14, 2008, Down re-released Over the Under in a deluxe edition, containing 30 extra minutes of bonus footage and live performances on a DVD, as an exclusive item for Best Buy stores throughout the United States.

Personnel
Down
Additional musicians
  • Ross Karpelman – keyboards
Technical personnel
  • Warren Riker – producer, recording engineer, mixer
  • David "The Puma" Troia – additional engineering, Pro Tools
  • Jonas Grabarnick – Pro Tools
  • Rouble Kapoor – assistant engineer
  • Bo Jo – assistant engineer
  • Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – mastering
  • Vance Kelly – art direction and design
  • Pepper Keenan – art direction and design
  • Dove Shore – photography

Charts

Album – Billboard (North America)

Year Chart Position
2007 The Billboard 200 26
Top Independent Albums 3

Tour dates
Over the Under Tour
Promotional tour by Down,
LocationEurope, North America, Australasia
Associated albumOver the Under
Start date27 September 2007
End date14 October 2008
Date[10] City Country Venue
North America I
September 27, 2007 Reno United States Stoney's
September 28, 2007 San Francisco Senator
September 29, 2007 Chico Senator
October 1, 2007 Portland Roseland Theater
October 2, 2007 Spokane Big Easy
October 4, 2007 Vancouver Canada Commodore Ballroom
October 5, 2007 Seattle United States Showbox SoDo
October 6, 2007 Boise Big Easy
October 8, 2007 Denver Ogden Theatre
October 10, 2007 Chicago House of Blues
October 11, 2007 Milwaukee The Rave
October 13, 2007 St. Louis Pop's
October 14, 2007 Tulsa Cain's Ballroom
October 16, 2007 Kansas City Beaumont Club
October 17, 2007 Minneapolis 1st Ave
October 19, 2007 Detroit Harpos
October 20, 2007 Cincinnati Bogart's
October 22, 2007 Toronto Canada Phoenix
October 23, 2007 Cleveland United States House of Blues
October 25, 2007 New York City Roseland Ballroom
October 26, 2007 Atlantic City House of Blues
October 27, 2007 Worcester Palladium
October 28, 2007 Montreal Canada Metropolis
October 30, 2007 Albany United States Northern Lights
October 31, 2007 Baltimore Sonar
November 7, 2007 Atlanta Roxy Theatre
November 9, 2007 Tampa Jannus Landing
November 10, 2007 Fort Lauderdale Revolution
November 11, 2007 Orlando Hard Rock Live
November 13, 2007 Houston Meridian
November 14, 2007 San Antonio Sunset Station
November 15, 2007 Corpus Christi Concrete St
November 17, 2007 Lubbock Pavilion
November 18, 2007 Albuquerque Sunshine
November 19, 2007 Tempe Marquee Theatre
November 20, 2007 San Diego House of Blues
November 23, 2007 Los Angeles The Music Box @ Fonda
November 24, 2007 Las Vegas House of Blues
North America II
January 18, 2008 Mobile United States Soul Kitchen
January 19, 2008 Birmingham Workplay Theatre
January 20, 2008 Lafayette Grant St. Dance Hall
January 22, 2008 Little Rock The Village
January 23, 2008 Oklahoma City Diamond Ballroom
January 25, 2008 Springfield Reminton's
January 26, 2008 Urbana Canopy Club
January 27, 2008 Grand Rapids The Orbit Room
January 29, 2008 Flint Machine Shop
January 30, 2008 Pittsburgh Rex Theater
February 2, 2008 Indianapolis Egyptian Room
February 4, 2008 Buffalo Town Ballroom
February 5, 2008 Allentown Crocodile Rock
February 7, 2008 Long Island Mulcahy's
February 8, 2008 Providence Lupo's
February 9, 2008 Sayreville Starland Ballroom
February 11, 2008 Poughkeepsie The Chance
February 12, 2008 New Haven Toad's Place
February 13, 2008 Richmond Toad's Place
February 14, 2008 Norfolk Norva Theatre
February 16, 2008 Knoxville Valarium
February 18, 2008 Ashville Orange Peel
February 19, 2008 Nashville The Cannery
February 21, 2008 New Orleans Southport Music Hall
Europe I
March 18, 2008 Moscow Russia B1
March 19, 2008 St. Petersburg Port Club
March 21, 2008 Tampere Finland Pakkhuone
March 22, 2008 Helsinki Kulttuuritalo
March 24, 2008 Stockholm Sweden Debaser
March 25, 2008 Oslo Norway Rockefeller
March 26, 2008 Copenhagen Denmark Pumpehusset
March 28, 2008 Prague Czech Republic Rock Café
March 29, 2008 Warsaw Poland Stodola
March 30, 2008 Berlin Germany Huxley's
April 1, 2008 Munich Elserhalle
April 2, 2008 Stuttgart Longhorn
April 3, 2008 Brussels Belgium AB
April 5, 2008 Amsterdam Netherlands Melkweg
April 6, 2008 Paris France Bataclan
April 8, 2008 Glasgow Scotland Academy
April 9, 2008 Birmingham England Academy
April 10, 2008 Norwich University of East Anglia
April 12, 2008 Manchester Academy
April 13, 2008 London Brixton Academy
April 15, 2008 Dublin Ireland Ambassador
April 17, 2008 Tilburg Netherlands Roadburn Festival's "Pre-Heat"
April 18, 2008 Wiesbaden Germany Schlachtof
April 19, 2008 Caluire et Cuire France Le Radiant
April 21, 2008 Zürich Switzerland Rohstofflager
April 22, 2008 Milan Italy Alcatrazz
April 24, 2008 Barcelona Spain Alcatrazz
April 25, 2008 Madrid Joy Eslava
April 27, 2008 Lisbon Portugal Coliseu dos Recreios
Europe II
July 10, 2008 Hamburg Germany Markthalle
July 12, 2008 Köln Live Music Hall
July 13, 2008 Malmö Sweden Kulturbolaget
July 14, 2008 Gothenburg Trädgårn
Supporting Metallica with The Sword
July 16, 2008 Bergen Norway Bergenhus Castle
July 18, 2008 St. Petersburg Russia SKK Hall
July 20, 2008 Riga Latvia Skonto Stadium
July 22, 2008 Bologna Italy Parco Nord
July 25, 2008 Sofia Bulgaria Levski Stadium
July 27, 2008 Istanbul Turkey Ali Sami Yen Stadium
Oceania
October 10, 2008 Brisbane Australia The Arena
October 11, 2008 Sydney UNSW Roundhouse
October 12, 2008 Melbourne Palace Theatre
October 14, 2008 Perth Metro Fremantle
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gollark: Whaaaa?
gollark: Can you prove the existence of multiverses?
gollark: Instead of creating the universes, maybe just simulate some with intelligent life?
gollark: Presumably (',') but with some way to feed in a different value for '?

References
  1. "DOWN: New Album Tentative Release Date Revealed" Archived 1 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Blabbermouth.net, July 26, 2007.
  2. Chris Harris, "New Down LP To Include 'Angry' Songs About Katrina, Dimebag Darrell", MTV News, January 30, 2007.
  3. "Over the Under – Down". AllMusic.
  4. ">> IRMA << Irish Charts – Singles, Albums & Compilations >>". Irma.ie. 9 February 2012. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 2012-02-14.
  5. Katie Hasty, "Rascal Flatts Races To No. 1 In Debut-Heavy Week", Billboard.com, October 3, 2007.
  6. ROBERT CHRISTGAU, DAVID FRICKE, CHRISTIAN HOARD, ROB SHEFFIELD (December 17, 2007). "The Top 50 Albums of 2007" Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-12-20
  7. Matthew Cooper (2007-09-25) "Down – III: Over the Under Review" Last Rites. Retrieved 2019-06-22
  8. Don Kaye "CD Reviews: III - Over The Under" Blabbermouth. Retrieved 2019-06-22
  9. Vince Neilstein (2007-10-23) "Down III: Over The Under is an Honest Snapshot of Battle-worn Band at Their Best" MetalSucks. Retrieved 2019-06-22
  10. "Official Down Board • View topic – Down Tour Archive". Downboard.com. Retrieved February 14, 2012.
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