Charlie Benante, the new drummer for the Pantera celebration and a longtime Anthrax member, won't rule out the possibility of recording new material with the current Pantera lineup.
After all, he's sitting in for the late Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott at the reformed Pantera's celebratory shows that start this week (Dec. 2). Perhaps new songs from Pantera will follow. Pantera's last studio album was 2000's Reinventing the Steel. Vinnie Paul, who later played with Damageplan and Hellyeah, died in 2018.
"Oh man, who knows?" Benante replied when BraveWords proposed new Pantera on Tuesday (Nov. 29).
He continued, "Creatively, if we are just flowing and getting going, and things are starting to be really good, musically speaking, you never know what could happen. I've got tons of riffs."
Benante added, however, "We're putting the cart before the horse. I like the positivity there, but I don't know how people would react to that either at this point. I think first, let's get out there and establish that we can play. I'm always open to the future."
In the same interview, the drummer detailed the phone call he received when he was asked to join Pantera. In September, he shared a teaser clip of new Pantera riffs.
When word first emerged in July that Pantera would tour again, rock and metal fans responded. The following month, the news arrived that the shows would start this year. Pantera then released a teaser video honoring the Abbott brothers. Another teaser came out on Nov. 26. See Pantera's upcoming tour dates below.
Pantera Tour Dates
Dec. 2, 2022 – Texcoco, Mexico @ Heaven & Hell
Dec. 6, 2022 – Monterrey, Mexico @ Metal Fest
Dec. 9, 2022 – Bogota, Colombia @ Knotfest
Dec. 11, 2022 – Santiago, Chile @ Knotfest
Dec. 12, 2022 – Santiago, Chile @ Theater Coliseo
Dec. 15, 2022 – Sao Paulo, Brazil @ Vibra *
Dec. 18, 2022 – Sao Paulo, Brazil @ Knotfest
May 26, 2023 – Sofia, Bulgaria @ Armeets Arena
May 27, 2023 – Bucharest, Romania @ Metalhead Mtg
May 30, 2023 – Budapest, Hungary @ Barba Negra
May 31, 2023 – Vienna, Austria @ Gasometer
June 2-4, 2023 – Nurburg, Germany @ Rock Am Ring
June 2-4, 2023 – Nuremberg, Germany @ Rock Im Park
June 5, 2023 – Lodz, Poland @ Atlas Arena
June 8-10, 2023 – Hyvinkaa, Finland @ RockFest
June 10, 2023 – Solvsborg, Sweden @ SwedenRock
June 12, 2023 – Prague, Czech Republic @ O2 Arena
June 13, 2023 – Berlin, Germany @ Verti Music Hall
June 15, 2023 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ Copenhell
June 21, 2023 – Hamburg, Germany @ Edel Optics
June 22-24, 2023 – Oslo, Norway @ Tons of Rock
Aug. 4, 2023 – New York, N.Y. @ MetLife Stadium ^
Aug. 11, 2023 – Montreal, Canada @ Olympique ^
Aug. 18, 2023 – Arlington, Texas @ AT&T Stadium ^
Aug. 25, 2023 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ SoFi Stadium ^
Sept. 1, 2023 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ State Farm Stadium ^
Nov. 3, 2023 – St. Louis, Mo. @ The Dome ^
Nov. 10, 2023 – Detroit, Mich. @ Ford Field ^
Aug. 2, 2024 – Foxborough, Mass. @ Gillette Stadium ^
Aug. 9, 2024 – Chicago, Ill. @ Soldier Field ^
Aug. 16, 2024 – Minneapolis, Minn. @ U.S. Bank Sta. ^
Aug. 23, 2024 – Edmonton, Canada @ Cmnwlth Sta. ^
Aug. 30, 2024 – Seattle, Wash. @ Lumen Field ^
* With Judas Priest
^ With Metallica
