Some junkies have emailed us abouta story that popped up on the website The Metal Den a few days ago. The writers of the site, which I never heard of, claim to have heard from a source close to former Pantera drummer and current HELLYHEAH skinsman, Vinnie Paul that he was offered a large sum of money to reunite with surviving Pantera members, vocalist Phil Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown for a one-off show that would feature a slew of all-star guest guitarists filling in for the late "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott. Vinnie Paul allegedly laughed the idea off the table.
If this story is indeed true, and we have no way of confirming it, I have to give a big pat on the back to Paul for doing what's right and preserving the legacy of Dimebag, and the legacy of Pantera. Look, not every band needs to reunite, and cash in and do something to tarnish old memories. Paul, I'm sure, still has some unsettled beef with Anselmo, who he's blamed in the past as being responsible for the tragic shooting of his brother, Dimebag. It's something he is not ready to get past, nor should he be forced too.
The idea of doing a Pantera tribute show is just not appealing at all to me. Let the legend live in the past. I'm fine with members of the band jamming out once in a while, like Vinnie Paul did with Avenged Sevenfold at the Golden Gods last year, or Anselmo did at a NYC jam at Anthrax's record release show, but to do something this official seems unneccessary. Keep it fun, keep it simple, but please, do not resurrect Pantera.
That's my opinion anyway, would you guys be interested in an all-star guitarist tribute to Pantera with the remaining members onboard?
