PANTERA — Cowboys From Hell (review)

Album · 1990 · Groove Metal

5/5 · 2015-08-17
siLLy puPPy

A gateway drug to groove metal with this one since it was really not only the first but is perhaps the best the sub has to offer as well. As with many a metal lover out there, i too took this to be the debut album by PANTERA but OMG!!!! NO! It was the fifth album to be exact. I cannot think of a more dramatic change in all of music history and style shift that PANTERA exhibited on COWBOYS FROM HELL from their excruciatingly LAAAAAAME albums that came before and i even like glam metal. After becoming quite the PANTERA fan in the 90s i was absolutely flabbergasted by the fact that they put out albums before this one although the real reason (of my not knowing) is that they themselves disowned their very existence. So in short they evolved from mindless teenage dumbery with songs like “Ride My Rocket” and “Hot And Heavy” to full-on groovilicious thrash romping cuts like “Primal Concrete Sledge,” “Psycho Holiday” and “Message In Blood.”

Right from the beginning of this groove thrash classic we hear a totally original sounding intro that leads to some of the most addictive whiskey-fueled guitar riffin’ laid down to tape. Dimebag Darrell shows no mercy with down-tuned chuggin’ on his guitar while conjuring up the tastiest solos that metal has to offer along with a doomier sound that really allows Rex Brown’s bass to break through the treble wars and in cahoots with Vinnie Paul’s drums and Phil Anselmo’s power meets thrash vocal acrobatics is enough to blow the lid off the Houston Astrodome! I would cite PANTERA as the band that invented groove metal and at this stage on COWBOYS FROM HELL we encounter a perfect amalgamation and intermediary step of their career from the traditional glam metal that got a little too happy in mom’s make up cabinet to the harder edged seriously nihilistic heavier metal of the late 80s and early 90s. The result of which is one of my absolute favorite metal albums of all times for the magic that is unleashed on this album is nothing less than a lightning bolt that strikes a virgin under a rainbow and gives birth to dolphins with endorphin guns that make me feel oooooh sooooo goooood :-P

One other mistaken concept for me was that this was the debut of Phil Anselmo but lo and behold he was on the previous album, which sucks! Anywayz, it doesn’t get better for a serious headbangin’ fool such as myself with a whole menu of diverse tracks that all kick ass but in seriously different ways. The title track sets the stage but the second track “Primal Concrete Sludge” introduces a hypnotic single chord riff that alternates with excellently timed chorus riffs and even an unlikely solo. Acoustic guitar intros are no mystery to metal but how PANTERA handles these on “Cemetery Gates” and “The Sleep” is nothing less than phenomenal as they set up the song ratcheting emotional response that PANTERA excelled at and what about that doom thrash outro on “Domination” with the lightning fast solo adding a layer of tension to it? Damn, this is one of those desert isle picks for me. Never get tired of hearing it and one of the most influential metal albums ever that gave the cheesier side of the genre a serious kick in the arse exactly when it needed it and allowed countless others to join the party.

more than 2 years ago
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UMUR wrote:

more than 2 years ago

The guitar solo on "The Sleep" is phenomenal. As is the Whole album.

Unitron wrote:

more than 2 years ago

Great review for a killer album. This is easily one of my favorite albums of all time along with 'Vulgar Display'. Anselmo's vocals are also probably at their best on this album, I can never get enough of 'Medicine Man' and 'The Sleep' especially. :)