After confirming their first reunion shows of 2022, Pantera have posted a video trailer in celebration of their return and the words that flash across the screen read, “For the brothers, for the fans, for legacy.”
In mid-July, Billboard reported that the band had indeed reunited with plans to tour in 2023. One day after this announcement came (nothing was communicated through Pantera’s official channel), the outlet also shared that Zakk Wylde (Ozzy Osbourne, Black Label Society) and Charlie Benante (Anthrax) will respectively occupy the guitar and drum slots formerly held down by the late Abbott brothers, Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul.
It was quite the surprise when yesterday (Aug. 26), it was revealed that Pantera will perform at three Knotfest festivals in South America as well as the Hell & Heaven Metal Fest in Mexico City, all later this year.
Following these announcements, Pantera shared a video trailer that ends with some of the same visuals seen in a teaser the group had posted on Aug. 19, one day before what would have been Dimebag’s 56th birthday.
Seen below, the video opens with fans chanting, “Pan-te-ra! Pan-ter-a!” while, in separate instances, the messages “for the brothers,” “for the fans” and “for legacy” appear on-screen. The second half of the clip is the same as the brief snippet from the aforementioned teaser.
Watch the video below.
Speaking with Sirius XM’s Eddie Trunk in late July, Wylde said of the reunion, “It’s gonna be awesome … When Vinnie was still with us, it was always rolling around that, ‘Zakk, would you honor Dime and all of us get together and do this thing?’ And I said, ‘Fellows, whenever you wanna do this thing, I’ll be over here waiting in the dugout and in the bullpen. And just call me when you need me and I’ll learn everything and we’ll go do this.'”
Benante, another musician who was close friends with the Abbott brothers, said in that same interview with Trunk, “I can’t go do this as the drummer from Anthrax because it would be a different sound completely. So the way I’m gonna do that is if you close your eyes, it’s gonna sound like it’s Vinnie, basically. And that’s how it’s gonna be… The sound is gonna sound exactly like him.”
“My friendship with Darrell goes a long way, and I love both of those guys so much,” Benante added, “So, for me, it was a very emotional thing to do this. That’s what it’s all about — it’s all about those two guys and doing it… I don’t wanna see anybody else doing it but me, ’cause I’m gonna do it right.”
Rock + Metal Bands That Have Played Over 2,000 Shows
How many of these bands have you seen? How many more than once?
