Zakk Wylde recently joined an interview for ‘On The Record.’ He spoke ahead of Pantera’s new tour about receiving signs from Dimebag Darrell to reunite the band. The guitarist mentioned the tributes he paid to Dime and explained:
“Even when we were getting ready to do the thing, rehearsals, and they were just figuring out how we were gonna do this. There’d be signs all over the place, whether on a license plate that would be like 333 or I’d run into a Dimebag license plate in the middle of nowhere.”
He added:
“You know what I mean. It would just [be] like him pushing this thing along, willing it to happen. So, he’s just always around.”
The Late Musician’s Signs
Pantera returned from a nearly two-decade hiatus in 2022. Rex Brown and Phil Anselmo got back on stage with Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante taking over guitars and drums after Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul.
Wylde kept recalling some of the signs from Dime by saying:
“When we were in New York just like signs. When we just did the Garden, my wife Barbaranne was like, ‘Check this out,’ and it was just like – something came up and it just reminded us of Dime, and I was like, ‘Wow, that’s crazy.’ And you would look on our phone and it would be 333.”
Darrell passed away in 2004 after being shot on stage by a 25-year-old man named Nathan Gale. The Pantera guitarist joked:
“You know, like, wow! It was just these signs everywhere. [Laughs] I can see Dime just doing it and going, ‘I hope these idiots realize it’s me sending these signs.’”
The Band’s Last Tribute And Future
Pantera celebrated what would be Dimebag Darrell’s 57th birthday last year. The tribute took place in the late guitarist’s hometown Austin, Texas. Dime’s longtime girlfriend, Rita Haney, joined the band on stage during the night.
Now, Pantera is getting ready for a new tour in 2024. They will hit the road at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, on May 18.