REX BROWN Looks Back On PANTERA: 'I Think We Came In At The Perfect Time'

Former PANTERA bassist Rex Brown was interviewed on the June 2-4 edition of Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio show. You can now listen to the chat using the Podbean widget below. A couple of excerpts follow.

Full Metal Jackie: PANTERA was one of the most important bands in metal history. What can you see now about PANTERA that maybe you never realized back then in the midst of it?

Rex: "That's a good question. That's a really good question. I don't know how to answer that properly other than we were such a tight-knit unit and it was such a wild roller coaster that went around it that, in hindsight, I think of where we could have gone if not for… You know, you always think of the whys, or what could have, should have, and we all know why. But, in hindsight, I think we came in at the perfect time. We had the songs, we had what it took, and number one, it was up to the fans. We were a fans' band, and that was it — that was the biggest thing to me. All the accolades and everything else, when it comes down to it, it's about that song and that connection with the audience, and I think that that's something that we had and the chemistry between all of us that translated really good. I think that's why it was a very important band at the time, and it still is. I really don't look at it — the bigger picture of it. I really don't, because it's just part of my history. I'm damn blessed and grateful for everything, but it was also a lot of hard work that was put into it. We all just pulled each other up by the boots and got after it."

Full Metal Jackie: Did you think, while you guys were in it and while it was all happening, that it would be as important as it is to the genre?

Rex: "Well, of course, everybody wants to be successful. Who wants to fall on their face? We just continued to strive to better ourselves as musicians and playing as much as we did, it was just one of those things that was instilled in us. It was just… It became almost like an addiction to where, [it was like] 'Okay, guys, we're gonna have to stop and take a break because…' And that's what we did. We needed to take a break, away from the game and not be pressured into, 'Oh, we have to deliver this next record.' And that was the point of Phil [Anselmo, former PANTERA singer] and I doing that DOWN thing. We just thought we'd put the record out and get it out of our systems and then move on down the road. But we all needed a break away to capture… You have to do that in life — you just have to. For a musician, you have to take those little breaks for your own sanity."

Brown's debut solo album, " Smoke On This", will be released on July 28 via Entertainment One (eOne). The disc will be the first time in Brown's career in which he will serve as both lead vocalist and guitarist in a band.

To see a full list of stations carrying Full Metal Jackie's program and when it airs, go to FullMetalJackieRadio.com.

Full Metal Jackie also hosts "Whiplash", which airs every Sunday night from 9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. on the Los Angeles radio station 95.5 KLOS. The show can be heard on the KLOS web site at 955klos.com or you can listen in on the KLOS channel on iHeartRadio.