Legacy, many aspire to leave one, but few actually deliver. When the Abbott brothers started building Pantera in 1982 one has to wonder if they initially intended on building an unstoppable force in music, one that doesn’t only look to stick to the bar set, but one who looks to redefine it all together.
Vincent Paul Abbott and Darrell Lance Abbott, or as the rest of the world came to know them as Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell, respectively, were born into music being that their father, Jerry Abbott, a Country music producer and songwriter was a huge influence in their musical education. With foundations laid the brothers began building to build up and shape a band that truly became the embodiment of their own legacy. In the ’80s Glam was king and was the main focus of the industry. Spandex, big hair, eye liner, and high pitch screams professing tales of debauchery and inebriation were the staples that held it all together.
While it is true that initially Pantera emulated that type of image/approach, even post switching out singers and bassists (Terry Glaze on vocals was replaced by New Orleans native Phil Anselmo and Bassist Tommy Bradford was replaced by Rex Brown), and they released their fourth album in 1988 entitled Power Metal – which sounded like it was made by someone other than the guys who wrote one of the hardest empowerment anthems in the ’90s “Walk” – there is so much more to the story. Their talent was completely undeniable, in fact, shortly after Dave Mustaine (Megadeth) took notice of Dimebag Darrell and asked him to join his band! As the story goes, it almost happened, but the only detail that derailed the idea was Darrell’s request to include his brother Vinnie as the drummer; which did not happen since the band already had Nick Menza. Anyway, the road led the brothers to push forward with Pantera, and forward they went, as it saw the release of the album that found the band start venturing from the sound of the ’80s and start injecting their own stylings.
Of course, this is referencing 1990’s Cowboys from Hell. A defining record, Vinnie Paul began redefining what it meant to be a Metal drummer, while Darrell gave us the greatest and heaviest breakdown known to Metal in the song “Domination” and constructed a guitar sound that till this day no one can recreate. Phil Anselmo showcased his vocal diversity from the high pitch screams of “Shattered,” to the melodic styling of “Cemetery Gates,” to his more aggressive stylings on “Primal Concrete Sledge,” proving there was no style he could not conquer. All tied together with Rex Brown’s sonic bass licks, were anything but the simplistic beat addition so many others did, rather they intricately interacted with the drums and guitars adding a whole different layer.
However, the real surprise came in 1992 with groundbreaking Vulgar Display of Power; armed with tracks such as “Mouth for War,” “Walk,” and the crushing “Fucking Hostile.” It marked the end of anything that could be mistaken for ’80s trends and brought out a brutality that to this day many have tried to recreate and few even come close. Their subsequent releases – 1994’s Far Beyond Driven, 1996’s The Great Southern Trendkill, and 2000’s Reinventing the Steel only got progressively heavier all while influencing so many in the process.
Sadly, after band infighting and a break up, while Darrell and Vinnie Paul were performing in Ohio with their newly established band Damageplan in 2004, Darrell was killed by a crazed man barely a minute into the band’s set. The music industry was devastated, plus bands and fans alike from all over the world grieved the loss of Darrell. Vinnie Paul eventually formed another crushing band in HELLYEAH, before passing away in 2018 from heart problems. With the passing of both the Abbott brothers a Pantera reunion was of course most likely never going to happen, but in 2022 Anselmo and Rex Brown announced they were reuniting for a legacy tour to honor the brothers with ‘fill-ins’ Zakk Wylde (Black Label Society) and Charlie Benante (Anthrax).
As one would imagine the reactions were mixed from fans. Hard to blame skeptics, as other bands have proven to either deliver poor product in such cases or show that their intentions were not above board. So, when they announced a tour with Lamb of God and fellow Housecore Records band Spirit in the Room, many decided to leave the assumptions behind and see the show itself in Denver, Colorado at Ball Arena on August 23, 2023.
Kicking off the night was Spirit in the Room, and they wasted no time in laying their sound on the crowd of ten thousand plus fans in the massive arena. Elements of Experimental Rock, Industrial, interwoven with haunting melody flowed through the building riling up the audience. Singer Dennis Sanders’ vocals were menacing and varied on a level that makes one realize exactly what Anselmo loved about this band and made him bring them onto his label, let alone this tour.
While the band itself was formed in 2010 from Oakland, CA as a studio band, it has since morphed into so much more. The band’s energy and sound were the perfect marriage of the experimental approaches from the likes of bands like Swans or even Throbbing Gristle, to the heavy melodic sounds of bands like Black Sabbath and Joy Division. In an age of predictability and ‘music by numbers,’ this is a band that will grab your attention and challenge your understanding and should not be missed.
As crowds streamed into the arena and got settled in, Lamb of God was ready to put them through the Metal ringer. Originally formed as Burn the Priest in 1994 hailing from Richmond, VA, the band has established themselves on a level almost unheard of for Extreme Metal bands since…well.. Pantera. They kicked off their set with their single from their 2020 self-titled album “Memento Mori” bringing the audience into an absolute frenzy. One staple of any good Pantera concert is a damn good mosh pit, after all what is the point of great crushing riffs and brutal vocals if you cannot go all out in a circle pit to it? Lamb of God has become the torch bearers of this tradition having inspired thousands of pits to just go insane. How could they not? Between albums like 2000’s bludgeoning New American Gospel and one of fans’ favorites 2006’s Sacrament there is no big mystery why fans are hooked and hail LOG as one of the top metal bands today.
Frontman Randy Blythe wasted no time keeping Metal insanity going with “Walk With Me in Hell,” on top of the surgical guitars of Willie Adler and Mark Morton, thunderous drums of Art Cruz, and sonic bass lairs of John Campbell. The pit kept coursing through the night, even by the time the band got to their unforgiving track from their 2003 album As the Palaces Burn, “Ruin,” the circle pit seemed to have grown in size and intensity. The band closed out with one of their favorite singles from Sacrament, “Redneck” leaving the audience bloody, bruised, and ready for Pantera.
As the lights dimmed a video began playing on the screens, featuring behind the scene clips that so many have come to love of the classic line up from their iconic home videos to the soundtrack of Pantera’s “Regular People (Conceit).” Reminding fans of a group of guys who not only created the Metal music they have come to love, but another side of them, the humor and love for partying and living.
As the video ended the song “In Heaven” by Peter Ivers and David Lynch from the 1977 cult classic Eraserhead began playing, a split second of silence rapidly brought the sound of the track “A New Level” from behind the curtain, and it came crashing down. Zakk Wylde’s guitar riffing cut through and kicked in the adrenaline for the whole arena. Charlie Benante’s drum work was absolutely on point, obliterating the senses and giving the track its trademark punch. Anselmo’s voice was as perfect as ever, working the crowd over like the master frontman always did. Taking the time to welcome the generations of fans in the building, younger audiences who never got to experience the band live and to the die-hard loyal fans who have the battle scars from countless insane Pantera pits. Even though fans had just survived some intense sets from Spirit in the Room and Lamb of God, they had clearly found their second wind intensifying the circle pit to “Mouth for War” and “Strength Beyond Strength.”
In retrospect, one of the staples of Pantera concerts was how in sync the band was with each other. Given that they developed this tightness over the years, it was refreshing to see that even with far less time together, this line up stayed true to this and didn’t miss a note. Not like they made it easy on themselves with songs like “Becoming” and “Suicide Note Part II” on the bill. One of the highlights for the night was the band playing the cover of Black Sabbath’s “Planet Caravan,” one of the band’s greatest covers from their 1994 album Far Beyond Driven. The mesmerizing melody played as another video played on the screens with images of the fallen Abbott Brothers together watching all of us as they “Travel through universe.” For many it brought a moment of reflection, as they sang along to every word. The band closed out with a track that helped catapult their careers and gave them and their fans a nickname, Cowboys from Hell.
Overall, this was a night truly to pay homage to the fallen founding members of Pantera, and a chance for fans of all generations to not only say goodbye, but to say thank you for a legacy that not only influenced a legion of bands and genres, but one that added a whole human side to metal. If you are a Pantera fan, no matter what era you come from this is the concert to be at. A must see, attend it to scream the songs, get pummeled in the pit, witness one hell of a light and pyro music, and celebrate the Abbott Brothers along with everyone else Pantera meant so much to.
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