Charlie Benante

LIVE SHOW REVIEW: PANTERA AT THE FORUM

The last time I saw Pantera take the stage was 2001. That alone is a crazy thought. Obviously we all know what happened after that. What came about in the past couple years is an absolute tribute to what the band created and tore through the 90’s with. People will find any reason to complain and be negative about it but, the bottom line is, Pantera lives on and we can all get to enjoy the songs again and be amongst those that love the band and what they bring. This evening at The Forum in Los Angeles was nothing short of a fantastic show and performance.

It’s funny, when it was first announced that Pantera was back in sorts, I had this crazy yet awesome idea in my mind and it actually came true. As the clock hit 9:00pm and the lights went down, a playback began and it happened to be “Suicide Note Part I” against a montage video of Dime and Vinnie moments. Then as that ended and the kabuki curtain dropped, BANG, “Suicide Note Part II” erupts to start everything off. I’ve thought about this for the past couple years and to see it happen was pretty badass. From there it was a barrage of classics, deep cuts and fan favorites like “Strength Beyond Strength,” 5 Minutes Alone,” “Hellbound,” “This Love,” “I’m Broken,” “Mouth For War,” one of my all time favorites “10’s,” and so many more bangers. For over an hour and 40 minutes, Phil, Rex, Zakk and Charlie ripped Los Angeles a new one! I’ve got to say it was great to hear and see Phil and Rex on stage together again and both sounded great. Zakk definitely does Dime justice on these songs. And he does it without stepping on what Dime did. He’s brought a little bit of a dirtier tone to the songs giving them a bit of new life and actually darker in vibes. Charlie if you don’t already know is a beast on the drums but, gee golly, was he murdering these drums. He’s another that does Vinnie justice as well as adding an extra pep to his step on the songs. You really couldn’t ask for two better guys to step into those roles.

Direct support for the evening were the Vikings, Amon Amarth. It’s been a while since I’ve seen these gents and they still put on a show. It’s definitely a fun time and musically it’s very metal. Those Norwegians and Swedes really know how to write metal riffs. They definitely had a great energy on stage and kept the crowd entertained and engaged. Amon are one of those bands though that once you’ve seen them, you’ve pretty much seen “their show.” And opening the show was King Parrot from Australia. I saw these guys years ago open for Down. They have a ton of energy and they mix punk, grind core and death metal into one hell of a buzz saw of noise. While only 25 minutes on stage they made the most out of it.

What a great night all together. Pantera sounded great and really delivered a great set and show. If they do continue on, and why wouldn’t they, I truly hope that they explore more of the catalog and play songs never played live, haven’t been played in years, and some more deep cuts. My favorite Pantera album is The Great Southern Trendkill and that album definitely needs more love live! If you get the chance to see this incarnation of Pantera, you should. It’s not only a blast, it really just feels good!

Overall Rating: A

Review and Photos By: Brian Lacy

Pantera Setlist:

Intro- Suicide Note Part I (tape)

01) Suicide Note Part II

02) Hellbound

03) 5 Minutes Alone

04) Strength Beyond Strength

05) Mouth For War

06) Goddamn Electric (w/ Phil Guitar Solo)

07) Becoming

08) I’m Broken

09) 10’s

10) I’ll Cast A Shadow

11) This Love

12) Cowboys From Hell

ENCORE

13) A New Level

14) Walk

15) Domination/Hollow

16) Fucking Hostile

Alternate Versions: Anthrax- The Greater Of Two Evils
ANTHRAX - Greater Of Two Evils - Amazon.com Music

I’ve always found it interesting when bands get a new singer and they try to do the older material with the previous singer. Sometimes it turns out great and others well, let’s just say not so good. Anthrax though is a band that has been able to capture almost the same energy on their re-records of old songs that was there when they first recorded the songs. I will gladly admit that my favorite singer in Anthrax was John Bush. He brought so much more to the table and was such a great piece to the band. Even when John would sing the old Belladonna/Turbin era songs, he did it with such a genuine and ferocious approach, it’s like these song became a part of him. Back in 2004, Anthrax did something interesting and went into the studio with John and re-recorded 14 songs from the band’s early era that were first released between 1983 and 1990. The final track listing was decided by a vote on the band’s website. The track list was then recorded by the band “live” in the studio over two days. The album was originally going to be named “Metallum Maximum Aeturnum”, with possible plans to change it to “Old School, New School, Our School: Metallum Maximum Aeturnum” or “Metal Thrashing Mad: Metallum Maximum Aeturnum”. John was such a dynamic frontman for Anthrax. His voice and writing ability led to so many great songs for the band. Even though John has said many times that Joey is the right voice for the band, I still think John was the perfect person for the job and he made those songs his own.

Anthrax- The Greater Of Two Evils:

Secret Songs: Anthrax- Pieces
Anthrax – Pieces Lyrics | Genius Lyrics

2021 marks 40 years since Anthrax formed. Over the past month or so, they have been putting up mini docs about each period of their career. Its quite fascinating to hear these stories and how everything came together. On a more recent episode which focused on the underrated album, Volume 8: The Threat Is Real, there was a part where Frank Bello was talking about the song he wrote “Pieces” for his brother Anthony, who was murdered. This song is so damn heartfelt and good. It’s a wonderful tribute and also shows how good Frank is at singing and writing.

Anthrax- Pieces:

Musicians In TV/Film: Anthrax on Married With Children
Video: Charlie Benante Reminisces About Anthrax's Appearance on Married... with Children | MetalSucks

Back in 1992, Anthrax appeared on an episode of Married… With Children. Their part on the show was pretty damn funny. This was during season 6 episode 18 on an episode called ” My Dinner with Anthrax.” The premise of the episode is: Bud and Kelly trick Al and Peg into going on vacation in Florida for their 20th anniversary, because the kids have won the chance to have thrash metal band Anthrax over at their house. The vacation turns out to be a timeshare scam with Edd Byrnes as one of the tenants (who lives there only because it was offered to him for free). Things get interesting back home when the band members scavenge in the refrigerator and sample Peg’s “mystery package” (that no one ever wants to try) and begin to hallucinate. Interestingly, supposedly the episode was inspired by an MTV sponsored a contest in which the winner had her home trashed by the Anthrax. Fred Willard even guest stars on the episode too!

Anthrax on Married With Children:

https://dai.ly/x69q9i9

Anthrax chatting about the episode: