While Phil Anselmo currently doing his damn best to create the most evil album of all time titled ’’Innocence from hell’’ his last successful venture under Pantera label can easily be awarded the hardest Metal album in this damned business.
Highly creative and fiercely independent, Pantera has come of age with series of Multi platinum releases and filling the void for the need of redefining how?s a good a$$ metal music is suppose to be played. For a band assembled in mid 80’s with induction of Philip Anselmo in late 80?s, its members have remained natural leaders who believe in blunt hardcore integrity & savage heaviness. Phil brings to the band his love for punk and hardcore music and integrating it to some hard rhythms and ferocious vocal assaults. Dimebag Darrell’s psychotic guitar works as an relentless assault on your ears making you hear those undiscovered guitar noises.
His contribution to the band has been imperative in composing some bone chilling songs.Vinne Paul their drummer is know Ned for his stamina in some a$$ kicking thumping, make him go insane on drums for hours and he hardly makes a sweat. Bassist Rex Brown arguably is one of the best around if not the best. The band has always kept the rock critics dream to bitch on decline of heavy metal penetration in mainstream in check. For Pantera pioneered the revolution of stuffing heavy metal back in throats of mainstream pretentious Sobs. And that’s what add on to their appeal.
It took Pantera 4 years to come up with perhaps their heaviest album in making. After the massive success of Great Southern Trend kill in 1996 which affirmed the band survival in the heavy metal slump of the 90’s, come 2000 with the release of Reinventing the steel Pantera broke new grounds in reaching it’s goals of being the heaviest band in the world.
This album was my personal gateway into Heavy metal world, barring the Metallica post 90 releases which I do not consider heavy in any retrospect this was my ticket for real fast paced nihilistic ranting giving me that malevolent feeling I could never derive from of like Led Zeps, Pink Floyd Jim Morrison etc...
The album comprises of 10 tracks if given a listening would reinforces the faith in pantera’s defiance in not let go in their intensity. On the contrary they have gone harder but this time they have gotten rid of any kind of emotional overload and pessimism. All tracks are equally fast paced and heavy, no reminiscence of previous albums songs like ’’walk’’ or ’’cemetery gates’’ can be found. To the point it seems they have killed their trend of doing one song solo. There is no respite from the torment as from track one Hell bound, Phil?s falsetto vocal bombardment begins with Dimebag chaotic guitars transforming into a war zone atmosphere.
Track 2 Goddamn Electric reflects bands trust and respect for Black Sabbath and Slayer.Track 3 Yesterdays don?t mean a shi# is a pretentious song justifying Pantera’s pre Cowboys from Helldays fiascos when Pantera was considered as a Glam rock band mostly doing cover songs. Track 4 You’ve Got to Belong to It is an average boner. Track 5 Revolution Is My Name is an awesome song with great justice done to it’s lyrics by Phil. Track 8 We’ll Grind That Axe for a Long Time and track 9 Uplift are my favorite tracks from the album with senseless lyrical disposition but well covered up with heavy guitars and bass and affluences of heavy metal blues. Final track I’ll cast a Shadow gives the album the final polish it requires to finish it off.
To sum up R.T.S is one album real LOUD LOUD LOUD, although I wont rate it better than Vulgar display of power or Far beyond driven but still is worth playing on especially if you want to piss your neighbors off.