FormerPantera bassistRex Brownhas signed a worldwide deal withEntertainment One(eOne), with plans to release a debut solo LP later this year. The yet-to-be-titled full length will be the first time inBrown's career in which he will serve as both lead vocalist and guitarist in a band. "I've been working on these songs for a long time," saysRex.
"I am thrilled to have such an influential artist likeRexjoin the growingEntertainment Onerock family," saysScott Givens, SVPEntertainment One. "He's influenced not just our other artists, but myself as well. It's an honor for all of us to work with him."
Brownwields a six-string guitar as confidently as he wore the bass inPanteraandDown. His engaging voice crackles with easygoing spirit and truth-telling power. It's a crunchy drawl that's down-to-earth, grippingly relatable, charmingly welcoming, and gritty, somewhere between the achingly resonant spiritual shamanism ofTom Waitsand the instantly recognizable everyman AM radio vibes ofTom PettyandThe Heartbreakers.
After a season away to gather his wits about him, rediscover his own roots, and assemble a group of players ready to help him execute his vision for the days ahead,Rex Brownre-emerges with a semi truck's worth of rock n' roll tunes as honest and sincere as they come. The new album is the sound of the man's own truth, forthright and ego-free. As he likes to say, "You're only as good as your word and your word better be good."
Rex's solo album is full of mojo and the force of character, determination, and nerve. He tracked lead vocals, rhythm guitars, and bass, working with his primary collaborator and old friendLance Harvill, a Nashville-based guitarist and songwriter, on the album's songs. "Lancewas and is my main man on this. Everything we did was finely tuned, both musically and brotherly."
Drums were tracked byChristopher Williams, himself no stranger to diverse tastes, from funk music to punk. His talent has been utilized by country music star Lee Greenwood, the reconstitutedBlackfootand most recently, power metal legendsAccept. The album was produced by New Yorker-turned-Nashville-transplantCaleb Sherman, a multi-instrumentalist with work on records byLittle Big TownandPorter Block, among others. "Calebproduced the project from a musician's standpoint," addsBrown. "Not just a typical producer's standpoint, which was something I definitely needed.
BetweenCalebandLance, we were a force to be reckoned with. They really pulled out the best in me."Peter Keyes, known for his work withLynyrd Skynyrd, can also be heard on a few tracks. All bass tracking came fromRexhimself as well.
"My motto these days is 'Shake some shit up,'"Browndeclares. "I've had my ups and downs, like anybody in this business. I wanted to feel like a true artist again, where I can write and record songs without worrying about any of the bullshit. This is just something else I'm doing for fun, man. And musical freedom. Fun has to come into it or I'm not going to do it. I've had a tremendous career and now I feel like I'm twenty-five years old again. This has given me that freedom I needed."
"I've got so much more in me," he enthuses. "I'm just getting my feet wet."
Brownpreviously described his solo album as "a rock and roll record. It's not your standard fare or typical metal thing," he toldMetal Hammermagazine. "I was always a big [Led] Zeppelinfan and even though it has its little fringes of it... It's a new journey that sounds like anywhere fromFoghatto oldTom Waits. I'm a child of the '70s and I love those kind of songs."
After leavingDownin 2011,Rexwent on play withKill Devil Hill, which has released two albums so far:"Kill Devil Hill"(2012) and"Revolution Rise"(2013).
