Brian May’s opinion on Pantera

Brian May is a unique musician who built his own guitar with his father when he was young, naming it the Red Special, and went on to build an extraordinary career alongside Roger Taylor, John Deacon and Freddie Mercury in Queen, recording some of the most successful and influential albums in Rock history.

Although the band is best remembered for its Rock sound that also appealed to a Pop audience, Queen recorded many heavy songs, such as “Stone Cold Crazy”, and Brian has long been a fan of Heavy Metal. Over the decades, he gave his opinion on many groups of the genre, including Pantera.

What is Brian May’s opinion on Pantera

Brian May is a big fan of Pantera and it was the first band he and his son Jimmy got both equally excited about. He used to take him to the shows and had the chance to meet the band. When Dimebag Darrell tragically died in 2004, he shared a tribute, praising him and the band.

“We are all gutted to hear of the senseless and tragic death of Dimbag Darrell, who was shot by a ‘fan’ who climbed on the stage at a show of his new band, Damageplan. He was of course better known for his great playing in Pantera. Pantera were, I think, the first band that I and my son Jimmy both got equally excited about. It was Jimmy who first got me to see them. They were a great band, and Dimebag was an innovative and passionate player. Great musician. Terrible loss. My respects to him, to his family and friends. Also to those who were killed trying to save him and apprehend the gunman. RIP,” he said.

That wasn’t the only time Brian praised the Texan guitarist. Over the years, he continued to mention Dimebag Darrell while accepting awards as a guitarist. When he was the winner of the UG Showdown Tournament for the Greatest Guitarist, he mentioned many guitar players he liked and believed were better than him and dedicated the award to Dimebag.

He said:

“I have one request. If there is a trophy being awarded for this, I’d like to share it with Dimebag Darrell, who isn’t around to enjoy the fact that so many folks are still devoted to him and his great playing. It was a special honour being paired with Dimebag in the final,” he said in 2015.  He also mentioned Darrell when he was voted the world’s greatest guitarist by the readers of Guitar World. In his opinion, the late Pantera guitarist deserved to be on the podium alongside the greatest Heavy Metal guitar players.

“I was gonna mention Ritchie Blackmore next. Another great hero of mine. He’s crazy. I mean, yeah, it was extraordinary watching him. I think he’s one of the most dangerous guitar players ever. And I mean that is in the best possible way. Beautiful! He was there way ahead of any of us. Where’s Dimebag Darrell in the heavy metal poll? He must be up there!” he said in 2002.

Vinnie Paul recalled how proud he and Dime were when May came to see them play

As Brian May has recalled, he had the chance to see Pantera perform live a couple of times with his son. The late drummer Vinnie Paul once said that he and his brother were incredibly proud whenever musicians they admired came to see them perform, including the Queen guitarist.

“I always thought he (Dime) was super-special and I was so proud of every time we ever played anywhere. Brian May would bring his son to see us play live. There were just too many great players who admired what he did. It was really special to play with him and it’s something that I’ll never feel again. But it was the most beautiful thing in the world. He really was special and one of a kind. And he was all about metal – he loved everything about it and he was wild too,” he told Metal Hammer.

Brian has always been a big fan of Heavy Metal, and his best friend for decades has been Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi, one of the pioneers of the genre. As a result, he has always paid close attention to the Heavy Rock and Metal scene. In 2001, he mentioned them as one of the most talented bands of that new generation of heavier music.

He said:

“When I was these guys’ age I was doing things that influenced what was going on and I can still be a part of it for a while, but I’m not going to be the centre of things any more. Those important steps were made by Run DMC, Rage Against The Machine, Pantera and bands like that. When I walked into that room at the Kerrang! awards I thought I was entering this minority world. But I wasn’t, I was walking into a glitzy place and I realized this is not minority stuff. Groups like Muse, Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit are selling a million records. I think it’s incredible Rock music might sweep back into the public consciousness and become the language of kids again.”

“Sadly, I also hear warning bells. Why? Because it could easily become commercial again – there’s money to be made and it could get sabotaged and the values changed.” In the same interview, Brian May said he wished he could scream while singing, but felt it would damage his voice. As examples of singers who could do it, he mentioned Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott and the “guys from Pantera.”

Brian May continued:

“I couldn’t avoid putting passion into it and my voice was screwed from that point on. I just don’t have the capacity to do that, like Joe Elliot or these guys from Pantera onwards. And Dave Grohl. God, I wish I could do that. The acoustic sound of Dave’s voice is an arena – hard, but very toneful and totally in tune. Full of everything you want a voice to have. Some people have just got it,” he said in an interview with Guitarist magazine.

When Pantera was formed in 1981, Queen was still active and releasing successful albums. By the time the Texan band achieved worldwide recognition in 1990 with Cowboys from Hell, Queen was working on Innuendo, the final album Freddie Mercury recorded with the band before his death. Although Pantera had already released three albums, it was with the groundbreaking Cowboys from Hell, followed by “Vulgar Display of Power” (1992) and “Far Beyond Driven” (1994), that they became one of the leading bands of a new wave of Heavy Metal, helping pave the way for the genre’s evolution.

Formed by the Abbott brothers in 1981 in Arlington, Texas, Pantera’s classic line-up also featured bassist Rex Brown and vocalist Phil Anselmo. Brown and Anselmo have been touring under the Pantera name since the band’s 2022 reunion, joined by drummer Charlie Benante and guitarist Zakk Wylde, with the permission of the Abbott family. It is a similar situation to Queen, which has remained active over the past few decades with only two members from its classic line-up: Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor.