Ethan Miller / George De Sota, Getty Images Zakk Wylde ‘s name has come up more than a few times this year as a fill-in for a potential Pantera reunion, but before that could ever happen, the remaining members would have to determine if a reunion without the full original lineup is in their best interest. Wylde tells Brave Words that Pantera getting back together after the death of Dimebag Darrell is similar to what Led Zeppelin had to consider when offers continued to flood in after the loss of John Bonham. Wylde explains, “The guys … they’d have to talk about it. THEY’RE Pantera (laughs). I mean, they’re the boys. You get em’ in a room, and I mean it should be like Led Zeppelin gettin’ back together. You know, the guys gotta work it out.” The guitarist, who also fronts Black Label Society , says that it’s been nice to hear both Vinnie Paul and Philip Anselmo even suggest that he might be the guy if they were to reunite, but there’s still a long way to go before that could happen. Wylde says, “Put it this way. I’d be beyond flattered if the guys wanted me to do it and were like, ‘Zakk, we really want to do it and we want you to honor Dime’ and everything. I would say, ‘Yeah, of course I would honor Dime.’ But it’d be like the Jimi Hendrix Experience; you know Mitch and Noel, they wanted to get together to celebrate Jimi’s life and they asked Eric Clapton to fill in and play the guitar and sing the songs. I mean, of course Eric would do it, cause he was buddies with him. It would be that type of thing. But that’ll be a bridge we cross, if the guys ever get to that point and they wanted to do it. But I’m friends with all the guys. I always wish the guys the best with whatever they’re doing. I just had Vinnie on my radio show and everything like that, so it’s all cool. Like I said, I’m good with all the guys. So it would just be up to them and like I said, it’d be a bridge we cross when we get there.” While the Wylde rumor has been a hot one for some time, Anselmo stated earlier this week that even though he had met with Wylde recently, talk of the guitarist being part of a potential Pantera reunion had been blown way out of context . [button href=”http://loudwire.com/best-pantera-songs/” title=”Next: 10 Best Pantera Songs” align=”center”]
Photos: Razor & Tie / Eleven Seven Music P.O.D. continue on the path to victory with their new single ‘Higher,’ as they beat out Kid Rock in the last Cage Match. Hellyeah enter the matchup with their latest single ‘Drink Drank Drunk’ of their recent disc ‘Band of Brothers’ The group is made up of vocalist Chad Gray (Mudvayne), drummer Vinnie Paul (Pantera), guitarists Tom Maxwell (Nothingface) and Greg Tribbett (Mudvayne), and bassist Bob Zilla (DamagePlan). They are set to play Rocktoberfest and they will also be joining Lamb of God and In Flames on tour starting at the end of November. For a full list of dates and cities, go here . So will Hellyeah knock back an easy win with ‘Drink Drank Drunk’ or will P.O.D. be one step closer to the Cage Match Hall of Fame with ‘Higher’? Get in on the action and vote for your favorite track below. (This Cage Match will run until Friday, Oct. 19, at 8AM ET. Fans can vote once per hour! So come back and vote often to make sure your favorite song wins!) Listen to P.O.D., ‘Higher’ Listen to Hellyeah, ‘Drink Drank Drunk ? Sorry, you need to have javascript running to see this poll. ? Email Me When Cage Match Winners Are Announced Enter your email address below to receive the Loudwire newsletter, which will include notification of the daily winner of the Cage Match, as well as our top stories of the day. Email Rules of Cage Match: Fans can vote once per hour for their favorite song. If a song remains the reigning champ for five straight cage matches, it is retired to the Loudwire Cage Match Hall of Fame. With so many great songs out there, we have to give other bands a chance!
Liz Ramanand, Loudwire / Ethan Miller, Getty Images Throughout the past year, the surviving members of Pantera have commented on the possibility of Zakk Wylde filling in for the late Dimebag Darrell if the band were ever to reunite. While it’s all been speculation thus far, singer Phil Anselmo now reveals that he recently discussed the topic with Wylde himself. Anselmo says that both he and Wylde would be open to it, but that his strained relationship with Dimebag’s brother and Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, is a major obstacle to overcome first. “I talked to Zakk about two weeks ago, and he’s very open for it,” Anselmo tells the Village Voice . “He’s got an open mind about it. But, truth be told, Vince has got a grudge against me that is really unfounded. And, honestly, I’ve always had a wide-open door when it comes to Vince.” The singer adds, “If it takes me standin’ there and lettin’ that little guy punch me in the f—in’ face repeatedly, over and over and over, til his hands were tired of hittin’ my rock-hard f—in’ head, as long as we could sit down and talk afterwards, I’m all for it, man.” Earlier this year, Wylde said he would be honored to fill in for Dime if he got the call. “I love all those guys,” Wylde told the radio station Banana 101.5 . ”If they were ever to actually do that and they asked me — of course I would do that in honor of Dimebag. Why wouldn’t I? It would just be an amazingly beautiful thing to celebrate Dime’s greatness and what the band achieved.” Vinnie Paul, meanwhile, may have started the whole conversation when he said , “If [a Pantera reunion] ever were to happen, [Zakk] would be the guy [to step in for Dimebag]. But I honestly think, out of respect for my brother, we should just leave the 14 amazing years Pantera had be.” Whether fans are in favor of this potential reunion or not, Anselmo warns that the idea is still far-fetched at this point. ”I didn’t say that the Pantera thing is a realistic thing,” he explains in the Village Voice interview. “I don’t think that’s the important thing. I think what the important thing is, what Zakk and I discussed, is just Vince actually dropping his guard and realizing there is no treachery afoot.” Dimebag Darrell was tragically gunned down onstage by a deranged concertgoer while performing with Damageplan on Dec. 8, 2004, in Columbus, Ohio. Anselmo is currently out on tour with his band Down , who just released a new EP titled ‘Down IV Part I: The Purple EP.’ Vinnie Paul’s current group, Hellyeah , released their latest album, ‘Band of Brothers,’ earlier this year. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/phil-anselmo-talks-upcoming-down-ep-solo-album-more/” title=”Next: Phil Anselmo Discusses Down EP, Solo Album + Tour” align=”center”]
On July 17, Hellyeah released their third studio album, ‘Band of Brothers.’ In its first week of release, the album landed at No. 19 on the Billboard 200 album chart. To help them celebrate the release of their heaviest record to date — and because we’ll make any excuse to chat with them — we recently caught up with vocalist Chad Gray and drummer Vinnie Paul to talk all things
In an exclusive interview with Loudwire, Hellyeah drummer Vinnie Paul talked about the legal situation Lamb of God frontman Randy Blythe is currently in overseas in the Czech Republic. The legendary Pantera stickman knows all-too-well the dangers of fans jumping on-stage at live shows. Nearly eight years ago, his brother Dimebag Darrell was tragically shot and killed right in front of him during a Damageplan set in Columbus, Ohio. “After seeing