The group will perform at Knotfest dates in South America
Pantera are confirmed to perform at Knotfest Colombia, Knotfest Chile, and Knotfest Brazil in December. Surviving members Phil Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass) will team up with Black Label Society guitarist Zakk Wylde and Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante to perform under the Pantera moniker. All ticket information can be found HERE.
The group will headline a number of major festivals across North American and Europe in addition to their own tour dates, sources told Billboard.
Pantera’s last live show was at the Beast Feast in Yokohama, Japan on August 26, 2001.
The lineup has received the go-ahead to perform as Pantera by the estates of the band’s deceased founders, Vincent “Vinnie Paul” Abbott and “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott. Dimebag was murdered on stage by a deranged fan in 2004 while performing with his band Damageplan in Columbus, Ohio. Vinnie, who went on to play drums for the group HELLYEAH, died in 2018 from natural causes including heart disease. Now, Wylde and Benante will attempt to fill perhaps the biggest shoes in heavy music.
The band has signed with Artist Group International to book the dates. Dennis Arfa and Peter Pappalardo will be the booking agents responsible for the tour. Rod MacSween of ITB is responsible for the band’s international bookings.
“We are thrilled to be working with such an iconic band and bringing their music back to the fans,” Pappalardo said.
Pantera is managed by Scott McGhee of 1 Degree Music Entertainment.
The band’s legal representative is Nick Ferrara and Associates.
Last year, Anselmo told podcaster Paolo Baron that he and bassist Rex Brown had been discussing the possibility of reuniting under the Pantera moniker for a few months. It had long been rumored that Black Label Society guitarist Zakk Wylde would play guitar, but Anselmo said that Brown was adamant that it was definitely not happening. Now, it’s clear that Brown was just trying to keep everything under wraps.
Since Dimebag’s death, fans have speculated who the band could possibly recruit to handle Pantera’s monumental riffs. Always floating around the top of the list were Slayer’s Kerry King, who recorded the solo for Pantera’s “Goddamn Electric” backstage at Ozzfest in Dallas, and, of course, Zakk Wylde. Prior to Dimebag’s murder, Wylde joined Damageplan for several shows on MTV’s Headbanger’s Ball Tour and performed the second solo on the band’s track “Reborn.”
Pantera’s last studio effort was their 2000 watershed album Reinventing The Steel. The album landed at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. Many fans and critics maintain that the album is the band’s best overall piece of work. In October 2020, the album was re-mixed by producer Terry Date and re-released on CD, vinyl, and digital download to celebrate its 20th anniversary.
In 2001, Pantera went on an indefinite hiatus and never reunited.
