This article will be interesting to fans of rock music, because we will talk about the famous group "Panther". What was her career? We’ll talk about this.
The beginning of the way
Panther is a band that was born in Arlington in 1981. Her brothers founded: Winnie Paul, who was a drummer, and Dimbag Darrell is a guitarist. Initially, the style of the group developed in the direction of glam rock under the influence of such well-known bands at that time as Kiss and Van Hallen. But over time, the style of music changed dramatically, the musicians were fond of the groups "Metallica", "Slayer", "Megadez", "Black Sabbath" and now played in the style of thrash metal. However, they managed to improve their game and become the founders of the groove metal genre. In addition, at that time, the soloist of the Panther group, Phil Anselmo, came to the collective. It is believed that it was thanks to him that the group so quickly gained popularity.
The beginning of popularity
In the late eighties, they recorded an album that was transitional from glam rock to groove metal. Commercial success came nine years after the formation of the group. The musicians became famous after the release of the album "Cowboys from Hell", which received good marks from music critics. Subsequently, the group was named the best band of the nineties, performing metal. In the list, which consisted of one hundred of the most successful and popular groups that performed hard rock, the musicians took first forty-fifth and then fifth among the ten best heavy rock performers of all time.
Arrival in Russia and recognition
In 1991, a concert "Rock Monsters" was held in Moscow. It was attended by such groups as “Metallica” and “Aacy-Disi”. Members of the Panther band also spoke at the same time. This event took place during the collapse of the Soviet Union, and Russian fans first heard the game of foreign musicians in this genre.
In the winter of 1992, the album "Rough Demonstration of Power" was released. He was distinguished by a heavier sound, now the vocalist of the Panther group seemed more brutal, his voice sounded rude, in hardcore style. Guitar reefs were more powerful. During this period, the general enthusiasm for thrash metal began to fade away, and grunge metal became fashionable. The group’s new album was the best fit for the new musical trend, and many critics admitted that this is the best album of the music team of all time.
In the same year, the Panther rock group went on tour, went to Japan, then to Italy at the Monsters of Rock festival, where it performed with Iron Maiden and Black Sabbat.
End of career
2000 was the last fruitful year in the work of the group. In the autumn of the same year, the musicians canceled their performances due to an injury to the vocalist who fell off the stage and broke his rib.
Next was a long tour, in which the group was to visit many countries, but it had to be reduced to a minimum, because just at that time tragic events happened in the USA. The band played their last concert. It was planned to record a new album in 2001, but it did not come true.
The band officially ended in 2003, when the vocalist left the band. It was a deliberate step, and he was not going to return. This was the result of constant disagreements between the vocalist and the founder of the group. With the departure of the vocalist, the tense situation in the team only worsened, and constant conflicts led to the fact that the team broke up. The vocalist founded his own Down band, where bassist Rex Brown subsequently began to play, and the Panther founders, the brothers Deimbeg and Winnie, created the Damage Plan group.
Death of Daymbeg Darrell
December 2004 was marked by a terrible tragedy. When a new group of brothers performed at a concert, Daymbeg was mortally wounded by one of the fans. A few years later, his brother released a tribute in honor of the deceased, which also included an album with photographs. In 2007, a bronze bust of the musician was installed in Hollywood on the Rock of Rock.
After the legendary group broke up, the press was very interested in whether it was possible to reunite the team, to which the participants responded negatively. One of the founders of the group, Vinnie Paul, claims that although the group was unique, now each of the musicians is engaged in his own project, so there is simply no need for reunion.
Biography of the soloist of the group
Phil Anselmo, the legendary lead singer of Panther, was born in New Orleans on June 30, 1968. Even as a teenager, the boy began to get involved in music and made good progress. He had many hobbies, including seafaring. But over the years, he realized that the love of music simply overshadows everything else. From the age of fourteen, he has already performed as part of local successful groups. In 1988, he began working with the Panther group, which gained popularity precisely after Phil joined it. After two years of collaboration, he created his solo project, Down, but still performed with the group.
After the collapse of the collective, he returns to New Orleans, where he is engaged in his project and simultaneously produces the Crowbar group. Here he opens his own recording studio. Phil is engaged in creativity, then is fond of occultism, organizes the British occult society, and then begins to use drugs, which is why he goes to prison in 1996. He meets his future wife Stephanie in 2001, and together they create a team - Southen Isolation. The group lasted only three years, after which it broke up, like their marriage.
Panther group: albums, best songs
The debut of the legendary group was the album "The Magic of Metal." It was recorded with the help of the father of the brothers who founded the group, and he produced this album. It was he who led the group to the genre of glam rock, which was then very popular. The best songs of the album are “Rocket Flight”, “Metal Magic”, “Nothing”.
In 1984, the album "Projects in the Jungle." This album was recorded under much better conditions than the previous one, and was very well received by listeners who had already managed to recognize a talented group. The industriousness of the musicians bore fruit, the technique of the game improved markedly. In this disc, you can distinguish such hits: "Everywhere Today," "Heavy Metal Rules."
The next album of 1985 was called "I am the Night." This album differs from the previous two in the first place in that the sound of the keys, which is so characteristic of glam rock, has disappeared, and secondly, the sound of guitar riffs has become heavier. Here you can distinguish such hits: "Hot and heavy", "Down", "Return to the eyes", "Valhalla".
The band released their first album "Power of Metal" in 1988, and frontman Phil Anselmo has already performed in the group. The second album was released two years later, it was called "Cowboys from Hell." To this day, he is considered the best album of the group that made a splash in the world of heavy metal. It was this album that glorified the group and made it so popular. Now the music sounded in a new way, and the vocalist’s voice was simply unsurpassed and became the hallmark of the group. The hits of the album were the songs “The concrete foundation of the sleigh”, “The gate of the cemetery”, “Destroyed”, “Doctor”, “Cowboys from hell”.
In 1992, the band recorded a very powerful album, "A Brute Demonstration of Strength." Music recorded in the genre of real hardcore sounds more powerful than previous works of the group. The hits here are songs such as: “Mouth of War”, “Walk”, “To hell with hostility”, “Exaltation”, “Empty”. The team is becoming more and more popular, and its fame is gaining momentum.
The next album, “Far Beyond Conditional,” comes out in 1994. He is as strong as the previous one, but less melodic. The best songs are "The Strength of the Unbearable", "Five Minutes Alone", "Good Friends and a Pack of Pills", "Bloodshed" and "Skin Cover."
In 1996, the album Great South Trendkill was released. Fans consider it the best of all collections. It really differs in power, energy, melody and unusual sound of hardcore. Each song from it is a real hit and a masterpiece. Now, both music critics and fans will consider this to be the best and most successful album of the group in the history of its existence.
In 1997, a live album was released, its recording was made directly at the concert. It is called "Official - 101 proof." It includes hits from previous albums, as well as two new songs - "Where did you come from" and "I can not hide."
The last album of the group
After a long break in creativity, the team released the last album of 2000, called "Updated Steel". It is executed in the usual "Panther" style. The hits of this disc can be called "Revolution in my name", "Fling", "I will cast a shadow." This album is less energetic and melodic than the previous one, but this is not surprising, because it became clear that the collective was on the verge of collapse, and they simply could not surpass themselves in their musical style and performance.
Panther Group: ballads
The music of this group is very diverse, although the performers played in a very narrow style. And yet, their work changed, moving from one genre to another and improving. Panther sang songs not only in the style of rock or metal. If we talk about the lyrical ballads of this collective, then these are truly amazing compositions. There are a lot of them, but one can especially distinguish such songs: “Cemetery Gates”, “This Life”, “A Death Note, Part I”, “Above My Head”, “Only a Distant Heartbeat”, “Accepting My Life”.