In a new episode of Gibson TV’s “Icons”, PANTERA bassist Rex Brown, discusses the enduring legacy of the iconic band and more
Discussing the breakup of PANTERA and the bad blood that existed between singer Phil Anselmo and the Abbott brothers — PANTERA guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott and drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott — Rex said: “The Phil thing… Yeah, it just got gnarly [between them]… We don’t talk about that shit in the fucking press, fellows.”
“[Vinnie] would not have anything to do with Phil — period,” Rex said. “He thought that that was the reason his brother was dead. I disagree with that. I think this was a nut that had already been out there planning and premeditating whatever move he was gonna make.”
Dimebag was shot and killed in December 2004 while performing onstage in Columbus, Ohio with his band DAMAGEPLAN, by a severely mentally ill fan of the band who believed PANTERA were attempting to control, and even steal, his thoughts.
Rex also touched on his relationship with Vinnie Paul prior to his passing.
“Vinnie and I, we would exchange pleasantries over… Let me just put it this way. I know he loved me, and I loved him,” Brown said. “That’s all I need to know.”
Phil discussed his issues with Vinnie Paul in a 2011 interview with High Times, saying: “[Vinnie] has pinned the guilt [for Dimebag’s murder] on the wrong guy. He has pinned the fucking guilt on the wrong guy. And I’ll tell you what: I resent it. And I’ll say this I spoke with the police officer [Columbus, Ohio cop James D. Niggemeyer] that blew this motherfucker who killed Dimebag — blew him away, the guy who killed him. And I asked him the hard question. I said, ‘Tell me: Did he purposely shoot just Dimebag?’ And he said ‘Yes.’ And I kind of choked up. And I thought for sure I knew what was gonna come out of his mouth when I said, ‘Why? Why did he shoot Dimebag?’ He said, they went back to his apartment, this murdering motherfucker, and he had notebook after notebook — stacked notebooks — with all about writing how he was gonna kill PANTERA for ripping off his songs. Kill PANTERA, PANTERA. Not once did any of [his writings] name any of us specifically, and if it did, it was all four of us, but it was rare. And so I said to this cop, I said, ‘So, then, what you mean is had it been me playing with SUPERJOINT [RITUAL] or DOWN that night, this motherfucker would have come after me?’ And he just said ‘Absolutely.’ As a matter of fact, he was crying and all he could do was nod his head ‘yes.’ Absolutely.”
Vinnie Paul passed away on June 22, 2018 at his home in Las Vegas at the age of 54 due to a dilated cardiomyopathy, an enlarged heart, as well as severe coronary artery disease.
