Pantera had had an interesting start to their career, with their early albums very much containing 1980’s material influenced by hard rock or glam metal bands like Van Halen and Kiss, but without the impact that those bands had created. In fact, if you were to go back and listen to those albums, you would have been very hard pressed to believe that it was the same band that eventually was to come out and release their 1990 major label debut, Cowboys from Hell. It was a quite massive recalibration, with the sound now being attuned to such thrash metal bands like Slayer and Metallica. The addition of vocalist Phil Anselmo on the previous album had been a savvy move, and the change in the way he used his vocals for “Cowboys from Hell” proved a revelation. To this point in time guitarist Darrell Abbott had gone by the moniker of “Diamond Darrell”, and bass guitarist Rex Brown had been credited as “Rexx Rocker”, by the time it came to writing and recording “Vulgar Display of Power” Rex had gone back to his actual name, and Abbott became the much more recognisable name of “Dimebag.”
By the time it came for this album to come together, the grunge scene was taking off and proving to be the most popular music genre being pushed. Along with this, Metallica had released their black album, one where they had made significant changes to their artform, and one that was not universally loved.
In fact, in quoting Brown in the book “Survival of the Fittest: Heavy Metal in the 1990s”, he said “Where Metallica had dropped off in the late ‘80s, we saw it was a period of time where it might be our time. And timing had everything to do with it. The timing, the songs, the way the label marketed the band – everything that’s involved. It doesn’t just take four individuals and boom, you’re there.”
I guess I consider “Vulgar Display of Power” to be an album of two halves. It opens with the terrific ‘Mouth for War’ where the clean lines of drums and guitar are firmly established while Anselmo growls over the top in sinister style. ‘A New Level’ stays in the groove that ‘Mouth for War’ established, but does it in a more aggressive way. While some suggest that it is not as catchy as some of the other songs, it’s still a great example of what Pantera is all about. ‘Walk’ is the easiest to recognize in the entire Pantera catalog, probably from being the most overplayed on video programs around the world. The riff while simple and repeating is infectious, with a constant in and out effect created by both Rex and “Dimebag”. ‘Fucking Hostile’ is a 90’s thrash song, or as close as you are going to get to it, and played at a lightning fast speed, Phil spits the words without taking a breath while the others hit each mark dead-on. And check out the absolute Kirk Hammet solo from Dimebag. It almost sounds like Kirk is playing it. ‘This Love’ is the first song on the album that delves into a slower groove. It’s one of those songs that seems kind of annoying and out of place given what has come before it, and it is the dividing point between the better half and the inconsistent half of the album in my opinion.
After all of the high level goodness that came to this point, there is a mixed bag once we cross the divide into the second half of the album. “Rise” kicks it off in good style, but the constant changing of tempo to me tends to get in the way of what had the potential to be a terrific song. “No Good (Attack the Radical)” slips into a similar style to be honest, not utilising the possibility of a great fast running riff and Anselmo delivering over the top, instead sticking by the hard core stop and start method. This tends to drop even further with “Live in a Hole”, which despite some great riffs for Dimebag just doesn’t bring anything majorly enjoyable to the table. “Regular People (Conceit)” is a patented Pantera track, almost like a join the dots Pantera song. It’s not terrible, but like “Walk” is has its deficiencies. As a result, the album has usually lost my interest by the time ‘By Demons Be Driven’ arrives, and while many fans of the band praise ‘Hollow’ as one of the best slow songs ever created by Pantera, as an album closer let alone as a song, it does very little for me.
Pantera the band is a polarising figure. There are very few people in the world who sit in the middle ground and say “oh yeah, Pantera... they’re ok. I can listen to them”. In general, and not ALL the time, you either love Pantera or freaking hate them. And this album is a case in point. Ask a random selection of metalheads what they think of “Vulgar Display of Power” and I’m pretty sure you will get opinions that range from “Man! What an album! Balltearer!” to “Fuck, what a bunch of candy ass overblown bullshit!” In many ways it is like their music. Those first few albums were very air metal, but once you get here it is suitably in what is best categorised as groove metal. Chalk and cheese, if you will.
So what do I think of it, I guess is the question you've come this far to hear. Well, despite what I have just said... I sit in the middle ground. I didn’t discover Pantera until this album, and those that introduced me to it were very much in the “balltearer!” category of fans. So it was forced on me often whenever we had get togethers, and there was plenty of jumping around and screaming while it was on. And I can’t deny that factor is good for me. I still love “Mouth of War” and “Fucking Hostile” and “A New Level”. I enjoy the riffing and Anselmo’s vocals and just the general vibe of the tracks. The rest? Well, it’s okay. I don’t think it’s outstanding. And from the point of view of whether I’m a huge fan of the band... well, I’m definitely not that. But I have always found them to be an interesting band, especially for the 1990’s, and given they had musicians capable of producing good music. My music tastes were drifting elsewhere at this time, towards the joy of European power metal, so the hard core American metal scene was on the outskirts of my listening priorities. Some have said you could just grab any pissed off 15 year old and they could write lyrics like these. There are those out there who find Dimebag boring rather than a guitar genius. Like I said, most opinions on the band and this album are at one extreme or the other. For me, the fence is where I’m holding fort. I’ve listened to this album again a number of times leading up to this episode, and my interest for the most part held all the way through to the end. When I go to the collection to pull out an album to listen to, is it one I’m likely to immediately go to? No. And, 30 years on, perhaps the kids of this generation would not find the same spark and life that those of 30 years ago did. Nonetheless, this four piece put enough aggression and style into this album to make it a worthwhile experience, even if these days it is just a one-off for a particular reason rather than to impress anyone.
By the time it came for this album to come together, the grunge scene was taking off and proving to be the most popular music genre being pushed. Along with this, Metallica had released their black album, one where they had made significant changes to their artform, and one that was not universally loved.
In fact, in quoting Brown in the book “Survival of the Fittest: Heavy Metal in the 1990s”, he said “Where Metallica had dropped off in the late ‘80s, we saw it was a period of time where it might be our time. And timing had everything to do with it. The timing, the songs, the way the label marketed the band – everything that’s involved. It doesn’t just take four individuals and boom, you’re there.”
I guess I consider “Vulgar Display of Power” to be an album of two halves. It opens with the terrific ‘Mouth for War’ where the clean lines of drums and guitar are firmly established while Anselmo growls over the top in sinister style. ‘A New Level’ stays in the groove that ‘Mouth for War’ established, but does it in a more aggressive way. While some suggest that it is not as catchy as some of the other songs, it’s still a great example of what Pantera is all about. ‘Walk’ is the easiest to recognize in the entire Pantera catalog, probably from being the most overplayed on video programs around the world. The riff while simple and repeating is infectious, with a constant in and out effect created by both Rex and “Dimebag”. ‘Fucking Hostile’ is a 90’s thrash song, or as close as you are going to get to it, and played at a lightning fast speed, Phil spits the words without taking a breath while the others hit each mark dead-on. And check out the absolute Kirk Hammet solo from Dimebag. It almost sounds like Kirk is playing it. ‘This Love’ is the first song on the album that delves into a slower groove. It’s one of those songs that seems kind of annoying and out of place given what has come before it, and it is the dividing point between the better half and the inconsistent half of the album in my opinion.
After all of the high level goodness that came to this point, there is a mixed bag once we cross the divide into the second half of the album. “Rise” kicks it off in good style, but the constant changing of tempo to me tends to get in the way of what had the potential to be a terrific song. “No Good (Attack the Radical)” slips into a similar style to be honest, not utilising the possibility of a great fast running riff and Anselmo delivering over the top, instead sticking by the hard core stop and start method. This tends to drop even further with “Live in a Hole”, which despite some great riffs for Dimebag just doesn’t bring anything majorly enjoyable to the table. “Regular People (Conceit)” is a patented Pantera track, almost like a join the dots Pantera song. It’s not terrible, but like “Walk” is has its deficiencies. As a result, the album has usually lost my interest by the time ‘By Demons Be Driven’ arrives, and while many fans of the band praise ‘Hollow’ as one of the best slow songs ever created by Pantera, as an album closer let alone as a song, it does very little for me.
Pantera the band is a polarising figure. There are very few people in the world who sit in the middle ground and say “oh yeah, Pantera... they’re ok. I can listen to them”. In general, and not ALL the time, you either love Pantera or freaking hate them. And this album is a case in point. Ask a random selection of metalheads what they think of “Vulgar Display of Power” and I’m pretty sure you will get opinions that range from “Man! What an album! Balltearer!” to “Fuck, what a bunch of candy ass overblown bullshit!” In many ways it is like their music. Those first few albums were very air metal, but once you get here it is suitably in what is best categorised as groove metal. Chalk and cheese, if you will.
So what do I think of it, I guess is the question you've come this far to hear. Well, despite what I have just said... I sit in the middle ground. I didn’t discover Pantera until this album, and those that introduced me to it were very much in the “balltearer!” category of fans. So it was forced on me often whenever we had get togethers, and there was plenty of jumping around and screaming while it was on. And I can’t deny that factor is good for me. I still love “Mouth of War” and “Fucking Hostile” and “A New Level”. I enjoy the riffing and Anselmo’s vocals and just the general vibe of the tracks. The rest? Well, it’s okay. I don’t think it’s outstanding. And from the point of view of whether I’m a huge fan of the band... well, I’m definitely not that. But I have always found them to be an interesting band, especially for the 1990’s, and given they had musicians capable of producing good music. My music tastes were drifting elsewhere at this time, towards the joy of European power metal, so the hard core American metal scene was on the outskirts of my listening priorities. Some have said you could just grab any pissed off 15 year old and they could write lyrics like these. There are those out there who find Dimebag boring rather than a guitar genius. Like I said, most opinions on the band and this album are at one extreme or the other. For me, the fence is where I’m holding fort. I’ve listened to this album again a number of times leading up to this episode, and my interest for the most part held all the way through to the end. When I go to the collection to pull out an album to listen to, is it one I’m likely to immediately go to? No. And, 30 years on, perhaps the kids of this generation would not find the same spark and life that those of 30 years ago did. Nonetheless, this four piece put enough aggression and style into this album to make it a worthwhile experience, even if these days it is just a one-off for a particular reason rather than to impress anyone.
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