I remember Vinnie Paul saying he had a whole slew of unreleased Pantera tracks along with another Damageplan album he compared to Vulgar Display of Power (but Vinnie is in the mediocre Hell Yeah nowadays, so don't know whether we can trust his musical opinion...). So it was inevitable these tracks would eventually be released.
Which brings us to today, when the group debuted "The Will to Survive," (a Cowboys From Hell era demo) on its official Facebook page (you do have to become a fan / hit the "I like" button to access the song).
"The Will to Survive" gives fans a look into the transition from 1988's Power Metal to the breakthrough 1990 album, Cowboys From Hell. It definitely feels more like Power Metal vocalwise, but musically, the group sounds like it is developing a sound of its own (although there is still plenty of Judas Priest and 80s metal influence).
Especially note the groovin' bass intro courtesy of Rex Brown and the familiar guitar riff that can also be found on "This Love".
My only complaint about issuing this song by itself, is that it means Vinnie will likely be staggering the release of any additional tracks as the Pantera albums are reissued (which I assume they all eventually will be).
I understand Vinnie wants to keep the legacy of Dimebagg alive, but I would be more willing to buy a box set with the final Damageplan album and a CD of all the unreleased demos, in addition to the unreleased Dimebagg DVD Vinnie still has lying around, rather than a reissue of an album all us loyal fans already own.
Putting all this aside though, it does feel good to hear Dimebagg shred once more.
UPDATE: Well I figured the label would take down that clip of "The Will to Survive", so I guess you will all just have to go the Facebook route to check it out. Old school Power Metal track is now below.
