During a conversation with Horns Up Rocks, Phil Anselmo looked back on the night he met Pantera.
When asked: “Did you know who the band was already? Were you, like, ‘Let’s go try out and maybe I’ll get the gig?’,
Phil said:
“There was nobody better than me around, and I knew that, and I knew what they needed. First and foremost, I was very aware of who they were because of the circuit that we played.
“We played a similar circuit of clubs, and they had this incredible reputation – they were always touted as ‘the band that was going to make it big from the South,’ for a metal band.
“Playing heavy metal, [my hometown] New Orleans wasn’t on the map at all. Texas had its brief moments, but never really something tremendous that you could say, ‘This is pure heavy metal.’
“So I flew down and I listened to the new Pantera. I could tell that they were very intrigued and interested in getting more aggressive with their music, more up-tempo, and that’s when the work began.
“And I remember that night very well, I remember the whole thing. It was great chemistry, and to be that young and to be in a room with those fellows playing as excellently as they did was… it was massive, it was a privilege, it was incredible.”