Reinventing The Steel
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''Reinventing the Steel'' is the ninth and final studio album by American heavy metal band
Pantera Pantera () is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Arlington, Texas in 1981 by the Abbott brothers (guitarist Dimebag Darrell and drummer Vinnie Paul), and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, an ...
, released on March 21, 2000, March 27 in the UK and April 5 in Japan, through
Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...
and
East West Records East West Records (stylized as east''west'') is a record label formed in 1955, distributed and owned by Warner Music Group, headquartered in New York City. History After its creation in 1955 by Atlantic Records, the label had its first hit wit ...
.


Background

''Reinventing the Steel'' was produced by the Abbott brothers in addition to Sterling Winfield, making it Pantera's first studio album since 1988's ''
Power Metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within a symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in co ...
'' not to be produced by Terry Date. In Australia, a two-disc "Tour Edition" of the album was released. The first disc consists of the album proper while the second is an unofficial hits compilation. The album was reissued in October 20, 2020 with extra discs including a new mix by Date and unreleased tracks to honor the album's 20th anniversary. Unlike other Pantera releases, two
B-sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
were recorded during the ''Reinventing the Steel'' sessions, those being "Avoid the Light" and "Immortally Insane", found on the '' Dracula 2000'' and '' Heavy Metal 2000'', and the '' Texas Chainsaw Massacre'' soundtracks, respectively. Singer
Phil Anselmo Philip Hansen Anselmo (born June 30, 1968) is an American musician best known as the lead singer for groove metal band Pantera, southern metal supergroup Down (band), Down, and Hardcore punk, hardcore band Superjoint, amongst other musical proj ...
named ''Reinventing the Steel'' as his favorite Pantera album.


Lyrics and style

''Reinventing the Steel'' contains lyrics mostly about the band itself, as on "We'll Grind that Axe for a Long Time" (where the band members tell about how they have kept it "true" throughout the years, while many of their peers "sucked up for the fame") and " I'll Cast a Shadow" (about Pantera's influence on the genre). There are also songs about their fans, like "Goddamn Electric" and "You've Got to Belong to It". "Goddamn Electric" mentions
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...
and
Slayer Slayer is an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style made them ...
, two of Pantera's main influences. The solo for "Goddamn Electric" was recorded by
Kerry King Kerry Ray King (born June 3, 1964) is an American musician, best known for being the co-lead guitarist and songwriter of thrash metal band Slayer. He co-founded the band with Jeff Hanneman in 1981 and is one of two members to stay with the band ...
in a bathroom after
Slayer Slayer is an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style made them ...
performed at
Ozzfest Ozzfest was an annual music festival tour of the United States and sometimes Europe and later Japan, featuring performances by many heavy metal music, heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Sharon Osbourne and her husband O ...
in Dallas on July 13, 1999. The band members dedicated ''Reinventing the Steel'' to their fans who they viewed as their "brothers and sisters".


Artwork

The cover art is by Scott Caliva (1967–2003), a friend of Pantera lead singer
Phil Anselmo Philip Hansen Anselmo (born June 30, 1968) is an American musician best known as the lead singer for groove metal band Pantera, southern metal supergroup Down (band), Down, and Hardcore punk, hardcore band Superjoint, amongst other musical proj ...
. Caliva took the photo of a partygoer at Anselmo's house jumping through a bonfire clutching a bottle of Wild Turkey bourbon whiskey. The bottle is
pixelated Pixelization (in British English pixelisation) or mosaic processing is any technique used in editing images or video, whereby an image is blurred by displaying part or all of it at a markedly lower resolution. It is primarily used for censorshi ...
on the cover so the label would not be visible, to avoid trademark infringement. The 20th Anniversary Edition cover art was only made with the steel marking background, along with the logo and the album name similar to their 1990 album, ''
Cowboys from Hell ''Cowboys from Hell'' is the fifth studio album and major label debut by American heavy metal band Pantera, released on July 24, 1990, by Atco Records. It marked the first of many collaborations with producer Terry Date. This was also the alb ...
''.


Release


Commercial performance

''Reinventing the Steel'' debuted at number four on the ''Billboard'' 200 and number five on the Top Internet Albums, selling 161,105 copies in its first week of release according to
Nielsen Soundscan Luminate Data, LLC (formerly MRC Data and P-MRC Data) is a provider of music and entertainment data. Established as a joint-venture in 2020, it brought together Nielsen Music, Alpha Data (formerly BuzzAngle Music) and Variety Business Intellige ...
. On its second week, it fell to number 24, selling only 59,962 copies, a 62.8% drop in sales. In total, the album only appeared on that chart for twelve weeks. On May 2, the album was certified gold by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA), denoting 500,000 units sold. However, it has yet to reach platinum status, making it Pantera's only major-label studio album not to reach sales of 1,000,000. According to
Nielsen SoundScan Luminate Data, LLC (formerly MRC Data and P-MRC Data) is a provider of music and entertainment data. Established as a joint-venture in 2020, it brought together Nielsen Music, Alpha Data (formerly BuzzAngle Music) and Variety Business Intellige ...
, the album has sold 593,000 copies domestically as of October 2003. It also debuted at number eight on the Top Canadian Albums chart. In a 2022 interview with ''Gibson TV'',
Rex Brown Rex Robert Brown (born July 27, 1964) is an American musician. He is the longtime bassist for heavy metal band Pantera, having joined the band in 1982. Following the band's reunion in 2022, Brown is the longest-serving member of the band. He i ...
blamed the album's lacklustre success compared to the band's previous albums on the dominance of the
nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, with a metal umlaut) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop music, hip hop, funk, industrial music, industrial, and grunge. Nu ...
genre at the time of its release.


Reception

The album was generally well received upon release, though reviews were less enthusiastic than on their previous albums. ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' gave the album a score of 3.5/5, and called it "Metal-revivalist....relying on the genre's primal elements of rage and analog noise...chopped up with squealing dissonance....brutal enough to please underground purists and familiar enough for weekend headbangers." ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' stated that it "...resumes their scorched-earth policy with vigor....dropping aural anvils
long Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mens ...
with a dash of inventiveness..." '' Q'' magazine gave it 3 out of 5 stars and said it was "Pantera's attempt to upgrade /nowiki>
Judas_Priest.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Judas Priest">/nowiki>Judas Priest's''British Steel (album)">British Steel''-era pure metal spirit." ''Alternative Press (music magazine)">Alternative Press Alternative press may refer to: Individual publications * ''Alternative Press'' (magazine), an American music magazine Alternative journalism * Alternative media ** Alternative media (U.S. political left) ** Alternative media (U.S. political r ...
'' echoed this sentiment, calling it "An undiluted, unvarnished slab of riffs paying distinct homage to Judas Priest's ''British Steel'', and not just in a titular sense, but in basic song construction." AllMusic reviewer Steve Huey gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, and stated "''Reinventing the Steel'' is a nonstop assault on the senses, offering no respite from the intensity until the album has stopped playing. Yet somehow, it comes off as a cut below their best albums; perhaps it's that the band's sound lacks the sense of freshness that sparked ''Cowboys from Hell'', ''Vulgar Display of Power'', and ''Far Beyond Driven''."


Accolades

In the 2000 ''
Metal Edge ''Metal Edge'' was a magazine covering heavy metal music published by Zenbu Media. The magazine was founded in the summer of 1985, during the height of glam metal's success. While its sister publication, ''Metal Maniacs'' focused more on extreme ...
'' Readers' Choice Awards, the album was voted "Album of the Year" and "Album Cover of the Year" (tying with
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...
's ''
Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931, and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hier ...
'' for the latter), while the single "
Revolution Is My Name "Revolution Is My Name" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera. It was the first single from the band's final album, '' Reinventing the Steel''. It was also included on the band's compilation album '' Far Beyond the Great Southern Cowbo ...
" won "Song of the Year". "Revolution Is My Name" was nominated for a
Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
for
Best Metal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards to recording artists for works (songs or albums) containing quality performances in the heavy metal music genre. The Grammy Awards is an annual ceremony, where ...
in 2001, but lost to
Deftones Deftones is an American alternative metal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by frontman Chino Moreno, lead guitarist Stephen Carpenter and drummer Abe Cunningham, with bassist Chi Cheng and keyboardist and tu ...
' "Elite". The album was ranked at No. 2 on ''
Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists and fans of guitar-based music and trends. The magazine has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original a ...
s Readers Poll for "The Top 10 Guitar Albums of 2000".


Reissue

A three-disc 20th anniversary set was released on October 20, 2020. The first two discs with the original tracklist each feature re-mixes done by longtime Pantera producer Terry Date in addition to the remastered versions. Singles that were previously not released on any studio albums also remixed by Date, and radio edits of some tracks are also included.


In other media

A section of "Death Rattle" was re-recorded and renamed to “Pre-Hibernation” for the ''
SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' is an American animated television series, animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It first aired as a sneak peek after the 1999 Kids' C ...
'' episode "Pre-Hibernation Week". The song appears in the '' SpongeBob SquarePants: Original Theme Highlights'' album.


Track listing

All credits adapted from the original CD issue.


Disc 3: Bonus Tracks


Personnel

Pantera *
Phil Anselmo Philip Hansen Anselmo (born June 30, 1968) is an American musician best known as the lead singer for groove metal band Pantera, southern metal supergroup Down (band), Down, and Hardcore punk, hardcore band Superjoint, amongst other musical proj ...
– vocals *
Dimebag Darrell Darrell Lance Abbott (August 20, 1966 – December 8, 2004), known professionally as Dimebag Darrell, was an American musician. He was the guitarist of the heavy metal music, heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan, both of which he co-founde ...
– guitars *
Rex Brown Rex Robert Brown (born July 27, 1964) is an American musician. He is the longtime bassist for heavy metal band Pantera, having joined the band in 1982. Following the band's reunion in 2022, Brown is the longest-serving member of the band. He i ...
– bass *
Vinnie Paul Vincent Paul Abbott (March 11, 1964 – June 22, 2018) was an American musician best known for being the drummer and co-founder of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Pantera. He also co-founded Damageplan in 2003 with his younger brother, ...
– drums Additional personnel *
Kerry King Kerry Ray King (born June 3, 1964) is an American musician, best known for being the co-lead guitarist and songwriter of thrash metal band Slayer. He co-founded the band with Jeff Hanneman in 1981 and is one of two members to stay with the band ...
– outro guitar on "Goddamn Electric" Technical personnel * Sterling Winfield – production, engineering, mixing *Vinnie Paul – production, engineering, mixing *Dimebag Darrell – production *
Howie Weinberg Howie Weinberg is an American audio mastering engineer. Over the course of his career, he has received over 2,257 mastering credits, three TEC Awards, 21 Grammy Awards, two Juno Awards, and one Mercury Prize. Career Weinberg mastered Herbie Ha ...
– mastering at
Masterdisk Masterdisk is an American multimedia company in New York, located at 8 John Walsh Boulevard in Peekskill. They provide production services such as audio mastering, vinyl cutting and enhanced CD and DVD production. Their clients include such n ...
, New York *Recorded at Chasin Jason Studios, Arlington, Texas


Charts


Certifications


References

{{Authority control 2000 albums Pantera albums East West Records albums