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DRUMMER Charlie Benante says he would like the current lineup of Pantera to release a live album, addressing pushback against the revival by saying: “I wish people nowadays would be more caring and loving towards us all.”
Benante joins original Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown alongside Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde in a version of the band that has been touring since July, 2022.
Asked by Hot Metal about the possibility of new material for the lineup, Benante says: “I mean there was some talk – but nothing really. I would love to release a live album of this lineup so we can document what we did and just have it. I think that would be a great thing.”
Because original guitarist Darrell ‘Dimebag’ Abbott was murdered in 2004 and his brother Vinnie Paul died of heart disease in 2018, some fans have been skeptical of the current iteration of the band, or of it being called Pantera.
Wylde refers to the project as “Pantera Celebration” in interviews.
Benante said: “I feel I was put in this Pantera situation for a reason and that’s why I embraced it so much and that’s why I love it so much because it’s something bigger than the band and I wish people nowadays would be more caring and loving towards us all, you know? Not just musicians but to each other. Stop being so rotten about things because I’ll tell you this much, 10 years time, a lot of this stuff is gone. So if you don’t enjoy it now, that’s it: it’s done.
“I think in the beginning of the whole thing there were naysayers and all I would say is ‘just come’. If you like it, great. If you don’t like it, OK. You never have to come again. But the thing is, the people who were coming were bringing their kids who never saw Pantera before. This isn’t the same. Dime and Vinnie are not there but we are just playing these songs that need to be played again and it’s giving people smiles on their faces again and it’s a great thing.”
Asked about Pantera’s plans, the 63-year-old drummer said: “I don’t really know. I know we have a few shows this summer and then maybe some shows next year but that’s as far as it goes.”
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