Finland’s biggest rock fest takes place June 2023
Pantera is set to headline opening night of Finland’s three day Rockfest in 2023 in Hyvinkää. The reformed group will perform on June 8th at Hyvinkää Airport along with Rancid, Testament VV, Sick of it All and Monster Magnet.
Main performers on Friday, June 9th include Def Leppard and Motley Crue with a Saturday headliner to be announced later.
Yesterday (Tues, Nov 22nd), Pantera, featuring original members Philip Anselmo and Rex Brown with Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante, announced the addition of nine European dates for 2023. The group will perform festivals throughout the region in May and June.
So far, 22 shows have been announced as the four piece pays homage to the late Abbott Brothers who founded the classic metal band in the 1980s.
The group’s first set of shows in 20 years begin December 2nd as co-headliners on opening night of Mexico’s Hell & Heaven Metal Fest. They’ll also headline the Monterrey Metal Festival on December 6th before heading to South America for a slew of dates.
South American stops include three dates on Slipknot’s Knotfest Tour in Botota, Colombia on December 9th, Santiago, Chile on December 11th and São Paulo, Brazil on 18th. Their itinerary also includes a co-headlining show with Judas Priest in São Paulo on December 15th.
The group’s first European shows in 22 years take place June 2-4 at Rock Am Ring in Nürburgring and Rock Im Park in Nürnberg. The two simultaneous rock festivals will also see Machine Gun Kelly, Tenacious D, Evanescence, Yungblud, Papa Roach, NOFX and more perform. They’ve also announced a headlining performance at the Norwegian rock and metal festival Tons of Rock 2023, taking place June 22-24 in Oslo, Norway. Ghost, Gojira, Behemoth, Clutch, Mayhem, and others will also perform throughout the three day event. They will also headline the final night of the 2023 Sweden Rock Festival on June 10th.
Earlier this summer, Billboard broke the news of the reunion, stating the group is planning to headline US festivals in 2023, although US dates have been announced as of press time.
“You’re celebrating the guys and you’re celebrating all of their achievements and their greatness and that’s what it is,” Wylde tells SiriusXM’s Eddie Trunk. “Somebody was just like, ‘How can they call it a Pantera reunion?’ I go, ‘Well, it’s Phil and Rex getting back together because they haven’t played together in a while, but it’s a Pantera celebration. I mean, that’s what it is. It’s just like no different than Mitch [Mitchell] and Noel [Redding] from Experience Hendrix asking Eric Clapton to sing and play Jimi [Hendrix]’s stuff to honor him, and they’re going to go out and honor Jimi Hendrix. To me, it’s the same thing. With Ozzy, we honor St. [former guitarist Randy] Rhoads every night. To me, it’s an extension of that. You’re honoring Dime. You’re honoring Vinnie and you’re honoring Phil and Rex — all the guys, their achievements and what they achieved as Pantera and all the mountains they conquered. That’s the way I look at it. That’s the way I always looked at it.”
Pantera 2022/2023 Tour Dates:
Dec 2 – Texicoco, Mexico @ Hell & Heaven Metal Fest
Dec 6 – Monterrey, Mexico @ Monterrey Metal Fest
Dec 9 – Bogotá, Colombia @ Knotfest Colombia
Dec 11 – Santiago, Chile @ Knotfest Chile
Dec 12 – Santiago, Chile @ Movistar Arena
Dec 15 – São Paulo, Brazil @ Vibra São Paulo (with JUDAS PRIEST)
Dec 18 – São Paulo, Brazil @ Knotfest Brazil
May 26 – Sofia, Bulgaria @ Armeets Arena
May 27 – Bucharest, Romania @ Metalhead Meeting Open Air Festival
May 30 – Budapest, Hungary @ Barba Negra
May 31 – Vienna, Austria @ Gasometer
June 2-4 – Nürburgring, Germany @ Rock Am Ring
June 2-4 – Nürnberg, Germany @ Rock Im Park
June 5 – Lodz, Poland @ Atlas Arena
June 8 – Hyvinkää, Finland @ Hyvinkää Airport
June 10 – Sölvesborg, Sweden @ Sweden Rock Festival
June 12 – Prague, Czech Republic @ O2 Arena
June 13 – Berlin, Germany @ Verti Music Hall
June 15 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ Copenhell
June 21 – Hamburg, Germany @ Edel Optics
June 22-24 – Oslo, Norway @ Tons Of Rock
