Metal Luminaries Reflect on the Impact of Pantera’s ‘Vulgar Display of Power’
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Pantera’s Vulgar Display of Power, we launched a three-part Loudwire Legacy documentary on the iconic album. There was absolutely nothing like Vulgar when it hit shelves in February 1992, but don’t take our word for it. We interviewed some of metal’s greatest musicians to speak about the IMPACT of Vulgar Display of Power.
Vulgar Display of Power is arguably the album that saved metal in the ‘90s. As heavy metal and glam were taking a nosedive thanks to the innovative alt rock and grunge sound of the early ‘90s, metal was on track to becoming obsolete in the mainstream. “Pantera was the band that carried metal through the rest of the ‘90s into the new millennium,” says legendary drummer Mike Portnoy.
Pantera’s sound was a giant influence on bands like Korn, who would also go on to carry the metal torch throughout the decade. “It really inspired us to keep that heavy growl,” says Korn guitarist Brian ‘Head’ Welch. “Dime’s legacy as a guitarist, it’s pretty much right there with Tony Iommi in regards of he’s the king of that genre, of extreme metal and the power groove stuff,” adds Zakk Wylde.
“They had shred, they had Phil [Anselmo] as the angry singer and then they had this groove swagger,” Megadeth bassist David Ellefson told us. “They had three key components that kind of changed the course of where heavy metal went.”
Watch a collection of metal’s finest musicians rave about the impact of Vulgar Display of Power above! Check out the other pieces of our Loudwire Legacy series on Pantera’s most important album below!
The Making Of Pantera's 'Vulgar Display of Power' - Loudwire Legacy (Pt 1)
The Secret Story of Pantera's 'Vulgar Display of Power' - Loudwire Legacy (Pt 3)