While he’s been largely silent over the years, it’s hard to argue with the either quality or the diversity of Rex Brown‘s output. From Pantera’s transition from glam to thrash to pure groove, to the swampy sludge of Down and Crowbar, to borderline country music with Rebel Meets Rebel, the bassist has done it all.

Personally, however, he has always been something of a unknown. In fact, for years the only concrete fact most people could tell you about the former Pantera and Down bassist was that he smoked a lot on stage. Seemingly happy to let the likes of Phil Anselmo or the Brothers Abbott be focus of attention for more than two decades, it’s only in the last few years Brown has really started stepping into the limelight.

So Brown’s first solo outing, Smoke On This… (eOne) makes for an interesting insight into the man himself. There’s no sign of Pantera’s early Glam or later Thrash, or any of Down’s Black Sabbath worship. Instead it’s a combo of the Southern Rock of Rebel Meets Rebel combined and straight up Stadium Rock and Country.

Opening track ‘Lone Rider’ perfectly encapsulates Smoke On This…: a solid Southern Hard Rock number, well-constructed but nothing you’ve not heard before, perfectly competent but pretty lifeless. The whole album is a mid-paced trawl through latter day Lynyrd Skynyrd and Black Stone Cherry with all the same levels of energy. And the results are equally uninspiring.

The first contains the meatier Southern Rock moments, while the second half is more of a slow country croon. Brown’s vocals have a suitably husky tone to them. ‘Buried Alive’ has a perfectly acceptable groove. Lead single ‘Train Song’ has a nice and heavy lead riff. ‘Fault Line’ is a just-about-palatable power ballad that is closer to The Beatles than any of Down’s acoustic moments. Album closer ‘One Of These Days’ is an arms-waving-in-the-air number you could imagine latter-day Bon Jovi pushing out.

There’s nothing terrible. But nothing ever gets the excitement levels going. It’s all acceptably ‘meh’. Maybe my expectation levels are too high; half a dozen near-perfect albums made with some of the best songwriters in the business are hard to follow.

I have nothing but respect for Brown the man and quality of his back catalogue. And it must take guts to finally step out and go solo under your own name after so many years of playing in such big bands.

6.0/10

DAN SWINHOE