Pantera Axeman is Cut Down....

[peachik]

"Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, guitarist of Damage Plan and formerly Pantera was shot dead on stage at a show in Columbus, OH last night. I was never a huge Pantera fan (because of the vocals) but I've been a huge fan of Dime and his playing for a while now. His riffs had a machine-like brutality and precision while his solos were very organic: moving effortlessly from gritty to graceful and back again. For examples of an onslaught of massive riffage check out Pantera's "Revolution is My Name". His tasty soloing on "This Love" still gives me chills. And Cemetary Gates is a dynamic tour de force that I still find inspiring.

Whether you liked Damage Plan/Pantera or not, the fact remains that Dimebag kicked ass. I'll miss that red-goateed, baggy shorts and Converse wearing guitar hero.

Darrell Abbott 1966 - 2004