Group set to headline summer festivals in 2023
The long awaited Pantera reunion is set to see guitarist Zakk Wylde and Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante join singer Phil Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown next summer. Billboard reports the group will headline a number of major festivals across North America and Europe as well as their own concerts.
The estates of brothers Vinnie Paul Abbott and “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott, who formed the band in 1981, have signed off on the deal. Dimebag Darrell was murdered while performing with his band Damageplan on stage in Ohio in 2004. Vinnie Paul died from natural causes from an enlarged heart and heart disease in 2018.
Last year Brown said Wylde wouldn’t be apart of any potential reunion, but it’s unclear why he changed his mind. Wylde was close friends with the Abbott brothers and is best known as the lead guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne and founder of Black Label Society. Wylde also played several shows with Dimebag’s former band, Damageplan and performed the second guitar solo on the group’s song “Reborn.”
Benante’s relationship with Pantera dates back to the mid-1980s, prior to Anselmo joining the group. Benante has been Anthrax’s drummer since 1983 and is a member of the thrash band Stormtroopers of Death.
Artist Group International will book the North American dates.
