PacManY2J's Full Review: Reinventing the Steel [PA] by Pantera
The interesting thing about the title of Pantera's final album Reinventing The Steel is that it didn't reinvent anything. While most of the metal world was following the trend by infusing rap into their sound, Pantera once again played the part of the trendkill by doing what they'd been doing for the past decade. Making a fantastic metal record without bending toward was what popular at the moment proved that, at least in Pantera's case, the steel didn't need reinventing, just revisiting.
While their previous effort, 1996's The Great Southern Trendkill, was the band's most experimental, Reinventing the Steel took things back to basics, giving us ten tracks of pure groove metal. This album contains no slow songs as found on Trendkill, and Philip Anselmo's hardcore leanings of the past two albums are reduced greatly, as his vocals focus more on a deeper growling sound. This works perfectly on tracks like "Hellbound," "Uplift," and "It Makes Them Disappear," three of the many on which Anselmo's insane vocals mix with Vinnie Paul and Rex Brown's bludgeoning drums and bass and Dimebag Darrell's guitar work, which screeches without sounding needlessly noisy. Overall, these are ten songs that no heavy metal lover can argue with.
Reinventing the Steel is packed with anthems, most notably "Goddamn Electric," which tells metal fans to embrace their passion for the lifestyle and put their trust in "whiskey and weed and Black Sabbath." Not only does the song namedrop Slayer as well, but it also features Slayer axeman Kerry King. The band dishes out advice about looking forward rather than dwelling on the past in the bluntly titled "Yesterday Don't Mean Shit." Two of the album's coolest tracks fall smack dab in the middle. Reinventing the Steel's most well-known tune "Revolution Is My Name" is about as catchy as a Pantera song can get, and "Death Rattle" is a perfect combination of heavy and creepy, complete with rattlesnake sound effects.
Almost as if they knew this would be their final album, Pantera reflect on their career on several tracks. "We'll Grind That Axe For a Long Time," expresses their pride in being able to say they never changed their style to make money or gain more fame while "You've Got to Belong to It" pays tribute to their fans. The triumphant "I'll Cast a Shadow" closes out the album alluding to Pantera's own legacy, which they surely knew would endure.
Sadly, this would be Pantera's last album. Anselmo got wrapped up in side projects like Down and Superjoint Ritual. Tired of waiting for their singer, the Abbott brothers (Dimebag and Vinnie Paul) formed their own side project Damageplan. In late 2004, one of rock's greatest tragedies occurred when a deranged fan jumped onstage during a Damageplan show and opened fire, killing Dimebag Darrell, along with all hope of a Pantera reunion.
We'll never know for sure if that reunion would have ever happened, but one thing is for sure. From Cowboys From Hell all the way to Reinventing the Steel, Pantera spent a decade going against the trends and outlasting them all, making classic heavy metal in the process. They stayed true to themselves, making only the kind of music they wanted to make, and they did it better than just about anyone. I doubt Pantera ever set out to be heavy metal legends, but they did just that thanks to their talent, their attitude, and their commitment to staying "goddamn electric."
Ounce for ounce, decibel for decibel, few bands can even approach the fury that is Pantera. For years they have been unleashing their anger in front o...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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