Editing Pantera (section)

{{short description|American heavy metal band}}
{{About|the band}}
{{Distinguish|Panthera}}
{{Use American English|date=December 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name              = Pantera
| image             = Pantera 1987-2003 lineup.jpg
| caption           = The band's best-known lineup.<br />
Top: [[Dimebag Darrell]] (left), [[Phil Anselmo]] (right) <br />Bottom: [[Vinnie Paul]] (left), [[Rex Brown]] (right)
| background        = group_or_band
| origin            = [[Arlington, Texas]], U.S.
| genre             = {{flatlist|
<!-- Sourced in the section #Musical style and influences -->
* [[Groove metal]]
* [[thrash metal]]
* {{nowrap|[[glam metal]] (early)}}
}}
| discography       = [[Pantera discography]]
| spinoffs          = {{flatlist|
* [[Down (band)|Down]]
* [[Damageplan]]
* [[Hellyeah]]
* [[Superjoint]]
* [[Rebel Meets Rebel]]
}}
| years_active      = {{flatlist|
* 1981–2003
<!--DO NOT change the date of disbanding to before or after 2003; that was the year Pantera officially broke up, even before Dimebag died.-->
* 2022–present
}}
| label             = {{flatlist|
* Metal Magic
* [[Atco Records|Atco]]
* [[Rhino Entertainment|Rhino]]
* [[East West Records|East West]]
* [[Elektra Records|Elektra]]
}}
| current_members   = * [[Rex Brown]]
* [[Phil Anselmo]]
<!--DO NOT add Zakk and Charlie, as they are only touring musicians.-->
| past_members      = * [[Vinnie Paul]]
* [[Dimebag Darrell]]
* [[Terry Glaze]]
* (see [[#Former members|Band members section]] for others)
| website           = {{URL|pantera.com}}
}}
'''Pantera''' ({{IPAc-en|p|æ|n|ˈ|t|ɛr|ə}}) is an American [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] band formed in [[Arlington, Texas]] in 1981 by the Abbott brothers (guitarist [[Dimebag Darrell]] and drummer [[Vinnie Paul]]), and currently composed of vocalist [[Phil Anselmo]], bassist [[Rex Brown]], and touring musicians [[Zakk Wylde]] and [[Charlie Benante]]. The group's best-known lineup consisted of the Abbott brothers along with Brown and Anselmo, who joined in 1982 and 1986, respectively. The band is credited for developing and popularizing the subgenre of [[groove metal]] in the 1990s.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-27 |title=Pantera Share Teaser For Upcoming Reunion Tour, Rex Brown Says "This Is Gonna Be One Hell Of A Ride" |url=https://www.theprp.com/2022/11/26/news/pantera-share-teaser-for-upcoming-reunion-tour-rex-brown-says-this-is-gonna-be-one-hell-of-a-ride/ |access-date=2024-03-10 |website=Theprp.com}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=Cowboys from Hell - Pantera {{!}} Album {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/cowboys-from-hell-mw0000308550 |access-date=2024-03-10 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=March 24, 2020 |title=7 Times Pantera Proved They Were the Kings of Groove Metal |url=https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/7_times_pantera_proved_they_were_the_kings_of_groove_metal-104431 |access-date=2024-03-10 |website=[[Ultimate Guitar]]}}</ref> Regarded as one of the most successful and influential bands in heavy metal history, Pantera has sold around 20 million records worldwide<ref name="tshaonline.org">{{cite web|title= Abbott, Vincent Paul [Vinnie Paul] (1964–2018) |url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/abbott-vincent-paul-vinnie-paul |date=November 7, 2019|access-date=August 19, 2021}}</ref> and has received four [[Grammy Awards|Grammy]] nominations.<ref>{{Cite web|date=November 19, 2019|title=Pantera|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/pantera/7936|access-date=October 17, 2020|website=GRAMMY.com}}</ref>

Having started as a [[glam metal]] band, Pantera released three albums in the mid-1980s with lead vocalist [[Terry Glaze]] (''[[Metal Magic]]'', ''[[Projects in the Jungle]]'', and ''[[I Am the Night (album)|I Am the Night]]''), with little success. Looking for a new and heavier sound, Pantera recruited Anselmo in 1986 and released ''[[Power Metal (album)|Power Metal]]'' in 1988. They secured a record deal with major label [[Atco Records|Atco]] the following year. Their fifth album (which the band has since declared to be their official debut album),<ref name="bio">{{cite web | url = {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p5099|pure_url=yes}} | title = A short biography on Pantera | work = [[AllMusic]] | access-date = January 3, 2008}}</ref> ''[[Cowboys from Hell]]'' (1990), popularized the [[groove metal]] genre, while its follow-up ''[[Vulgar Display of Power]]'' (1992) achieved an even heavier sound and increased their popularity. The subsequent seventh studio album ''[[Far Beyond Driven]]'' (1994) debuted at number one on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]].<ref name="200chart">{{cite web|url=https://allmusic.com/artist/pantera-p5099/charts-awards?table=SEARCH | title = Pantera Chart Positions – Albums| website = [[AllMusic]]|access-date = December 23, 2011}}</ref>

Tensions began to surface among the band members when Anselmo, reeling from severe back problems brought on by years of intense on-stage performances, began growing distant from his bandmates in 1995, eventually becoming addicted to [[heroin]] as a result of his pain issues (he almost died from an [[overdose]] in July 1996). These tensions resulted in the recording sessions for ''[[The Great Southern Trendkill]]'' (1996) being held separately. The ongoing tension lasted for another seven years, during which one more studio album, ''[[Reinventing the Steel]]'' (2000), was recorded. Pantera went on hiatus in 2001, but lingering disputes led to the band breaking up in 2003. The Abbott brothers went on to form [[Damageplan]] while Anselmo continued to work on several side projects, including [[Down (band)|Down]], which Brown joined as well.

On December 8, 2004, Dimebag Darrell was [[Columbus nightclub shooting|shot and killed]] on stage by a mentally unstable fan during a Damageplan concert in [[Columbus, Ohio]]. Vinnie Paul went on to form [[Hellyeah]] after his brother's death and died of heart failure in 2018,<ref name="vinnie paul death">{{cite magazine|title=Vinnie Paul, Legendary Drummer for Pantera & Damageplan, Dead at 54|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/obituary/8462386/vinnie-paul-dead-pantera-damageplan-hellyeah|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard.com]]|date=June 22, 2018|access-date=June 22, 2018}}</ref> leaving Brown and Anselmo as the only surviving members of the band's best-known lineup. In July 2022, it was announced that Brown and Anselmo were reuniting in 2023 for Pantera's first tour in 22 years,<ref name="pantera reunion tour">{{cite magazine|title=Pantera To Tour in 2023, North America Shows To Be Booked by AG|url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/pantera-reunion-tour-2023/|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard.com]]|date=July 13, 2022|access-date=July 13, 2022}}</ref> with [[Zakk Wylde]] and [[Charlie Benante]] filling in for the Abbott brothers on guitar and drums, respectively.<ref name="pantera reunion lineup">{{cite web|title=It's Official: ZAKK WYLDE And CHARLIE BENANTE To Tour With PANTERA's Surviving Members|url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/its-official-zakk-wylde-and-charlie-benante-to-tour-with-panteras-surviving-members|website=[[Blabbermouth.net]]|date=July 14, 2022|access-date=July 14, 2022}}</ref> The new lineup played its first show in 21 years at the Hell and Heaven festival in Mexico on December 2, 2022,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Blabbermouth |date=2022-12-02 |title=Watch PANTERA Play First Concert In Over 20 Years At Mexico HELL & HEAVEN METAL FEST |url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/watch-pantera-play-first-concert-in-over-20-years-at-mexico-hell-heaven-metal-fest |access-date=2022-12-04 |website=BLABBERMOUTH.NET |language=en}}</ref> and the tour will continue into 2026.<ref name="2026 dates">{{cite web|title=METALLICA Announces 2026 European Leg Of 'M72' Tour|url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/metallica-announces-2026-european-leg-of-m72-tour|website=[[Blabbermouth.net]]|date=May 22, 2025|access-date=May 22, 2025}}</ref>