Zakk Wylde says ‘Of course it’s not Pantera’

Zakk Wylde has said that the upcoming shows under the Pantera name will be more of a celebration than a reunion.

The Black Label Society frontman and longtime guitarist with Ozzy Osbourne is part of the ensemble featuring Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown.

Wylde and Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante are taking the places of Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul, who died in 2004 and 2018 respectively.

In a new interview with Ultimate Guitar, Wylde said: “It was so funny, because somebody was like, 'It's not Pantera!' Of course it's not Pantera. (Laughs)

“It's Phil, Rex and two of their buddies getting together to honor Dime, Vinnie and all their achievements."

He added: "It's a celebration of Pantera and all the mountains they conquered is the way I look at it."

Watch: Pantera - 'Walk'

Reflecting on his recruitment into the project, the guitarist continued: "It's like, 'Zack, would you ever do it?' It's like, 'Well, of course I'm going to do it. Why would I not?' I'm going to do best job I can, obviously, but that's not my decision, that's the guys.

“Back in the day with Vinnie, there were discussions, and then, after Vinnie passed away, I didn't think anything would ever happen. I remember Phil called me one night, and was like, 'Zakk, me and Rex would really love it if you would honor Dime.'”

Watch: Zakk Wylde backstage at Download 2022

The guitarist was also asked whether he’d been practicing ahead of the Pantera dates and what challenges he faced playing Dimebag’s parts.

He responded: “It's just sitting down and working on it. When we do these Zakk Sabbath songs, I have to sit and learn all of Lord Iommi's parts. Learning all Dime's parts, even just the writing alone, the chord choices he chose — I would have never done that."

Gallery: Download 2022 featuring Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society

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• Pantera
• Ozzy Osbourne