Down Announces First Full-Length Album in Nearly 20 Years, Featuring Ozzy Osbourne Tribute and King Diamond Collaboration

Down are preparing to end a nearly two-decade wait for a new full-length studio album, and the record will include both a tribute inspired by Ozzy Osbourne and a collaboration with King Diamond.

The New Orleans supergroup will release Volume V on November 20. It will be the band’s first full-length album since 2007’s Down III: Over the Under and their first release of any kind since the Down IV – Part II EP arrived in 2014.

The band’s current lineup brings together musicians from several major names in heavy music: Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo, Corrosion of Conformity guitarist Pepper Keenan, drummer Jimmy Bower, Crowbar guitarist Kirk Windstein and bassist Pat Bruders.

Phil Anselmo says Down felt “fresh again”

For Anselmo, making Volume V appears to have brought a renewed energy to the band after such a lengthy gap between records.

“We were all excited about this,” Anselmo said in a press release announcing the album.

The singer described an unusually positive atmosphere surrounding the sessions, saying everyone was more focused and individually determined to accomplish something with the record.

“There was a sense of lightness in the air,” he explained. “Everyone’s attitude was positive. There was more focus than ever. It just felt fresh again.”

Anselmo believes the finished album captures the identity longtime listeners associate with Down while also taking the band somewhere different.

“The record is a journey,” he said. “It’s classic DOWN, but it’s also unique.”

Ozzy Osbourne’s influence emerges on the album

One track carrying particular significance for Anselmo is album closer “Twice-Told Tales.”

He described the song as combining tightly constructed riffs and blues rock with elements rooted in classic metal.

“It’s an important song to us,” Anselmo said, adding that Ozzy Osbourne’s influence unexpectedly became part of his experience while creating it.

“I could feel Ozzy Osbourne’s influence on me in the strangest way.”

The connection is also reflected elsewhere on Volume V. Immediately preceding “Twice-Told Tales” on the track list is a song simply titled “Ozz.”

King Diamond joins Down for “Merciful Fate”

Another notable moment on the upcoming record arrives through a collaboration with King Diamond.

Diamond joins Anselmo for a duet on a track titled “Merciful Fate,” an unmistakable reference to the legendary band he fronts.

The recording also features Diamond’s wife, Livia Zita.

Down have already offered listeners their first preview of the new material with “Blood Oath,” which serves as the album’s first single and has been accompanied by a music video.

A busy 2026 for Down’s members

The arrival of Volume V comes as several members continue working on other major projects.

Anselmo has spent recent years touring with the reconfigured Pantera lineup, while Keenan has had an especially active 2026 with Corrosion of Conformity.

In April, Corrosion of Conformity released the double album Good God / Baad Man.

Down, meanwhile, are currently on tour as anticipation builds for Volume V. When the album arrives on November 20, it will mark the band’s first full-length studio statement in almost 20 years.