Pantera – Interview

Getting behind the mayhem of Pantera with drummer Vinnie Paul!

I caught Panteras drummer, Vinnie Paul, chilling out between OzzFest, international gigs, and their American headlining tour. So what does a world renowned rock group do on their time off?

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Weve been doing some haunted houses. (laughs) Its a big thing down here in the south.

Actually, up in Buffalo its a big thing too. Between Buffalo and your hometown, Dallas, there are a lot of rivalries.

Yeah.

Especially with the Stanley Cup a few years ago. I heard you had a good time with the cup.

Yeah. It got dented at my house. We had a huge party at my house after the Stars won the Stanley Cup. Yeah, it was a big win. (rubbing it in) We wrote the song that helped to propel them to the cup and they are all good friends. They are super guys, and when they decided to throw a cup party, it was decided that it should be at my house, so we had it over here and decided to invite the cup to several dances and several swimming pool occurrences. But Guy Carbonneau decided he was going to throw it from the balcony, but it didnt quite make it into the pool. It bounced off the ground and then it went in. A lot of people up north thought we were being a bit rude with it, but it wasnt that big of a deal. We were just having fun.

Did the NHL freak out?

The cup guy who was here watching it wigged out pretty hard. The good thing about it was that it got us a lot of exposure on ESPN, USA Today, CNN, and all over the country. They made a bigger deal out of it than it was.

Well, like they say, there is no such thing as bad publicity.

Thats right. (laughs)

Speaking of publicity, youll be doing a lot for Kittie and Morbid Angel. How did you guys decide on them to open for you on the upcoming tour?

It was pretty simple actually. The Morbid Angel guys have been friends with Phil for years, and we make sure that we have an underground band, so to speak, on tour with us every time we go out. Seeing Kittie on OzzFest and the reaction of the fans was pretty impressive to us, and we enjoyed being around them and thought it would make a great package.

Will the show offer any surprises or will you concentrate on killing us with rock N roll?

Anyone that is a Pantera fan knows we are pretty straightforward. We arent about laser light shows, flame breathing dragons, or some Hollywood production. Its always been about the band, music, and the fans. Well have a few surprises for the fans and break out with some older stuff to mix with the new stuff, but Pantera fans will love it. And if someone has never saw Pantera live, then they should know its a slamming good time.

Being that it was ten years ago when the first record came out, a lot of your fans have really grown up with you guys. Is it weird to have fans from teens to, you know, like forty or fifty years old?

Nah. Its always been a mixture. Weve always had a really broad range of fans. It is really a trip to see, like at OzzFest, fifty-year-old guys headbanging with fifteen-year-olds. It just proves that music has no age limit.

Does it suck that you cant interact with the fans like you could ten or more years ago?

Well, it doesnt suck because playing live is the greatest thing in the world. But I will say that I do miss how it was when we first came out in 90, how we could get the slam dancing and stage diving and have the band interact with the fans. But really, due to the lawsuits being more and more prevalent, its thrown a monkey wrench into the scene.

What do you think of metal today compared to when you first came out?

When we first came out, it needed a kick in the ass and we were that kick. Now its kind of soft. What people call metal today is really hip-hop mixed with heavy guitar and I think its due for some kick again. We felt that Reinventing The Steel might do that, but I think we need another band to come along and do that. Something needs to come and get metal off its ass again, because there are just so many bands out there that are rap and hip-hop combination. I get a cd every day from some major label and each band sounds just like Limp Bizkit or Korn. They are the originators and it just gets boring hearing all these same sounding bands. When Pantera came out, there were all these bands that tried to sound like us, so it happens with lots of bands who do something different first.

Was it flattering though when bands wanted to sound like you?

It still is. When we were at OzzFest there were a lot of bands telling us they grew up listening to us and they had all our videos. You can hear it in their music.

Do you feel some satisfaction because when you first came out everyone said metal was dead and uncool, and even today they say it, yet you are still able to kick ass?

I think that comes from building our fans one hundred percent on our live show. We never depended on radio or Mtv to bring us our people. That is what I credit our longevity to.

Well, they always say music comes in cycles. Do you think metal is due for a comeback?

Well, it never goes away. Its not like disco and died a brutal death. Sometimes it disappears a little and goes back to its underground form like it did in 96 and 97. It has become more visible in the last few years, in particular the rap metal thing. Its not bad. At least rock is back on Mtv. Its great that it isnt being completely shunned.

Do think the thing that has been lost is that whole sex, drugs, and rock n roll vibe they had in the 70s?

Its different. I think the youth is more depression, whereas in the 80s, 70s, and earlier, it was about having a good time and, like you said, sex, drugs, and rock n roll. They are about being dark and the world sucks. With Pantera, weve tried to be positive. I mean, the songs may have negative connotations, but we are about pumping people up and being positive. We want people to feel good when fans leave our shows.

Do you think another problem with some bands today is they dont want to be stars? I mean, Zepplin didnt necessarily want to be stars, but they excepted it and embraced it.

I think there is a way of being successful without turning yourself into some type of icon, but there are so many bands that downplay it and that is why there are no big rock tours like KISS. Who wants to see a show with a bunch of guys who just stand there and dont move you? There is a lot of boring music out there because of it. If you go and see a Pantera or Marilyn Manson concert, there is something there to move you.

Do you still get to enjoy yourselves on tour?

Yeah. That is a part of touring. We wait twenty-two hours a day, waiting to go onstage, so who wants to sit on the bus or in the hotel room being bored? Not me. We like to drink and blow it up. We like to go out to the rock bars, tit bars, go play golf, or whatever it might be. We just like to enjoy life, period.

When I was a kid, that is part of the reason I wanted to be in a band.

You know, and that is what is so weird about some bands on Ozzfest is that theyd finish their show, grab their girlfriends, sit on the bus, and play Sega all day. What the fuck?

You are right. I have noticed that from just being backstage myself.

That is what is wrong with music today. These bands are too afraid to really step up there and go for it. I always advise groups to have as much fun as they can because it isnt going to last long so they better enjoy it.

Speaking of the music, was it fun producing the album?

Definitely. I sort of knew the drill from co-producing the previous albums. I knew the difference between being the drummer and producer. It was fun from the minute we started until we finished it. We think its the best record weve ever made.

How did producing this album and having input on the last albums really differ?

There just wasnt any outside pressures this time. Previously weve had deadlines from the record label and we really had to rush this or that. We would have to plow through stuff and write stuff spontaneously in the studio, whereas with this record we didnt let the label give us a deadline or have someone telling us they had be somewhere causing us to rush. This time we had a pleasure writing and taking our time to work on the songs.

As a producer, did you have to step out of the drummer role for a different perspective?

As a drummer you want to perfect everything you do, and as a producer you look for those dangerous curves, like when something sounds really cool as it goes by but maybe isnt perfect. You have to have the knack for picking that up. You have to just figure out if the song works and not get caught up in all the little intricacies.

Have you always wanted to produce?

Right from the beginning, Ive always wanted to be more than a drummer. Ive always wanted to be a studio engineer, producer, and just love being around studios. I love to run sound live. I ran sound for Pat Travers one night and that was just the biggest thrill of my life.

I read that you guys wanted to get back to the songs and make them better. What was the difference? Was it the fact you could go back over them?

Yeah. We could look and see if they were strong and so on. Far Beyond Driven and Great Southern Trainkill were built on raw emotion and rage and that was the concept behind the albums. We wanted to make the anti-industry records. With Reinventing The Steel, we wanted to make a record that was reminiscient of Vulgar Display Of Power and Cowboys From Hell in the aspect that they are brutal, but have the songwriting element where you remember them when they are over.

Is it still easy to get motivated ten years later?

Oh yeah. We love writing music. Its always a challenge and we always push each other and its a lot of fun when we do it.

Have you been working on anything new?

We just finished a song for the Dracula 2000 soundtrack, which is Bram Stokers new movie. Its called “Avoid The Light”, which is obviously about vampires and shit. We just finished it. We just went in one day and just pieced it together. They loved it.

A bit off the topic, I was wondering, being that you are from Texas, if youve been following the presidential race?

All I can say is that as long as Ive been on this earth, any change in presidency has never change my life. I dont expect either of these two clowns to change it either. To me, politics is horse shit. (we both laugh)

What do you see yourself doing in ten years?

Its completely possible that Ill be doing this, but I dont really picture us being the Rolling Stones of heavy metal. I dont want to be playing “Fucking Hostile” when fifty, but as long as people keep buying our records and coming to our shows and its still fun, Ill keep doing it. I really foresee myself owning my own record label in the future.

The best thing about an artist owning a label is the experience you bring to new bands you sign.

I know. And for doing this for ten years, I know how green you are when you start and how red you are when you finish.

+ charlie craine