PANTERA — Cowboys From Hell (review)

PANTERA — Cowboys From Hell album cover Album · 1990 · Groove Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
Warthur
I don't think by the end of the 1980s anyone would have seriously expected Pantera to spearhead a whole new metal subgenre, but that's exactly what they did with Cowboys From Hell - take a thrash base, add a snaky kind of groove to the riffs thanks to the capabilities of Dimebag Darrell (RIP), and have Phil Anselmo showcase his knack for balancing shouty aggression with more colourful vocal gymnastics.

In retrospect, of course, the signs that Pantera were evolving into a new form were already there; their preceding album, Power Metal, had seen them veering away from the glam metal they'd previously dealt in and dealing in a more traditional heavy metal sound, but who could have guessed this major change? I actually kind of think that Pantera's apprenticeship in glam metal prepared them better for pioneering this new style than is often acknowledged; there's a certain catchiness to a lot of the stuff on here which suggests that even though Pantera had found a new edge derived from their thrash metal influences, they still had enough pop sensibilities to keep things accessible, which may well be the secret of the album's massive mainstream success.

The tragedy of Dimebag's murder does not take away anything from the excellent lead guitar masterclass he offers up here. The embarrassment of Phil Anselmo's troubling and repugnant white power posturing (spilling over into a Dimebag tribute show, for crying out loud!) may exonerate Dimebag and Vinnie's decision to part ways with Phil when they did, but it doesn't make Phil's vocals any less perfect for the material here. I don't think this will ever be a favourite album of mine - but then again, groove metal isn't a genre I usually enjoy, and I can still appreciate this as a groundbreaking historical landmark of the style even if I've gone off Pantera a bit personally.
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