Honesty, I was excepting much more from this so called supergroup. But, really, what makes a band be characterized as a “supergroup” by the press? Taking the members’ background as granted we’ve got… Vinnie Paul (Pantera, Damageplan) on drums, Chad Gray (Mudvayne) on vocals, Greg Tribbett (Mudvayne) on guitars, Tom Maxwell (Nothingface, Knives Out!) on guitars & Bob Zilla (damageplan) on bass. So far, so good okay? And then what…? Except for Paul who had been in Pantera… who can say that any other member has been in a significant band actually? Stay away from personal likings and take what the bands have offered to music generally as a fact and whether they have left their trademark… forever let’s say. Huh which band did you say…? Well none… assuredly.
Leaving aside the marketing supergroup shit… let’s focus on the music. The debut had some nice tunes here and there… but nothing to drive you crazy… the second one was next to disaster… and this one… may have tried to re-discover its metal roots… but in the end, it just doesn’t do you anything. It’s well produced (although kinda too modern for my liking) as it was produced by Jeremy Parker (Godsmack, Evanescence, etc.), and was recorded in the home of drummer Vinnie Paul’s studio in Dallas, Texas. They endeavor really hard to sound like Pantera every now and then … but all we’ve got is a band that’s overloaded with Pantera’s testosterone with no personality/originality at all. Needless to say that both Greg and Tom are nowhere near Dimebag (R.I.P.) and they do not (can they?) deliver a single fine riff… Dim would have swallowed guitarists like ‘em in a heartbeat. And what can you say about Chad’s vocals? They are OK… but any further comparisons to Dim, Phil or Pantera are only taking Hellyeah down on the gutter.
Sorry guys but I only see some angry middle-aged guys trying to sound more aggressive and pissed-off than the twenty-year-olds… without succeeding it in the end… and a desperate attempt to sound somewhere near Pantera… but they can’t even touch a hair of Pantera’s balls. I forgot to say that once again the cover artwork is bland and cheap… so they have 3 on 3 so far! Meaningless aggression, heavy uninspired tunes, unoriginal, forgettable & overdone music for teenagers who feel like making a revolution when they smoke some cigarettes or drink a couple of beers… In good conscience, how long can they go in such a way…?
Leaving aside the marketing supergroup shit… let’s focus on the music. The debut had some nice tunes here and there… but nothing to drive you crazy… the second one was next to disaster… and this one… may have tried to re-discover its metal roots… but in the end, it just doesn’t do you anything. It’s well produced (although kinda too modern for my liking) as it was produced by Jeremy Parker (Godsmack, Evanescence, etc.), and was recorded in the home of drummer Vinnie Paul’s studio in Dallas, Texas. They endeavor really hard to sound like Pantera every now and then … but all we’ve got is a band that’s overloaded with Pantera’s testosterone with no personality/originality at all. Needless to say that both Greg and Tom are nowhere near Dimebag (R.I.P.) and they do not (can they?) deliver a single fine riff… Dim would have swallowed guitarists like ‘em in a heartbeat. And what can you say about Chad’s vocals? They are OK… but any further comparisons to Dim, Phil or Pantera are only taking Hellyeah down on the gutter.
Sorry guys but I only see some angry middle-aged guys trying to sound more aggressive and pissed-off than the twenty-year-olds… without succeeding it in the end… and a desperate attempt to sound somewhere near Pantera… but they can’t even touch a hair of Pantera’s balls. I forgot to say that once again the cover artwork is bland and cheap… so they have 3 on 3 so far! Meaningless aggression, heavy uninspired tunes, unoriginal, forgettable & overdone music for teenagers who feel like making a revolution when they smoke some cigarettes or drink a couple of beers… In good conscience, how long can they go in such a way…?
