LIVE REVIEW + PHOTOS: Pantera in Mansfield, MA (07.02.25)
American heavy metal icons Pantera were back in New England recently for a show in Mansfield, MA. When the band dissolved in the early 2000s fractured by tragedy, loss, and time it felt like the book had closed forever. The senseless murder of Dimebag Darrell and the later passing of Vinnie Paul left wounds too deep to ever truly heal. That Pantera would ever take the stage again seemed unthinkable. And yet, on a hot July night at the Xfinity Center in 2025, the impossible happened. And I was there, camera in hand, disbelief in heart.
Then the lights cut. No intro tape, no fluff just a blast straight into “Hellbound”, heavy as ever, loud enough to rattle bones. Phil Anselmo, barefoot as always, commanded his space with that signature carpet beneath him, howling into the mic like a man possessed. Beside him, Zakk Wylde — living legend, Ozzy Osbourne’s right hand, and now wielding Dimebag’s legacy — was absolutely ripping it, head down, hair obscuring his face most of the night.
Zakk had just returned from Ozzy’s funeral in England, a loss that clearly hung heavy. But his playing wasn’t somber, it was searing and electric. During the final bends of his solos, he’d occasionally tilt his head up, eyes closed, hand to the sky, a silent tribute to his fallen brothers: Dime, Vinnie, and Ozzy. No words, just the music.
Then came “2 Minutes Alone”, a firestorm in both sound and spectacle actual with flames flaring from behind the stage, true to Pantera’s full-force legacy. Rex Brown was an absolute freight train on bass, reminding everyone why his groove remains unmatched. And Charlie Benante, behind the kit, brought a fury that would make Vinnie proud. You could feel Vinnie’s spirit in every beat. It didn’t feel like someone filling in. It felt like resurrection.
“Strength Beyond Strength” followed, Phil was in rare form, growling and snarling through the verses, then pausing to address the crowd: “We’re gonna do some deep cuts tonight… if y’all are with us.” And we were. All the way.
When the band launched into “I’m Broken” and “Becoming”, the entire crowd; every row, every section—screamed the lyrics back at them. That familiar pounding riff, the breakdown, the unfiltered emotion—it was cathartic. A unity I hadn’t felt at a show in years. Thousands of voices becoming one.
They didn’t just stick to the hits either. We were treated to deeper cuts like “Slaughtered” and “Use My Third Arm”, with a stunning, dirge-like take on “Floods” that had Zakk channeling Dime’s iconic solo with such reverence, it felt like a séance. The big screens even flickered with archival footage of the Abbott brothers, a moment that had more than a few of us choking back tears.
By the time they closed with “Cowboys from Hell” and “Walk”, the venue had transformed. It was a reckoning, a celebration, and a memorial all at once.
I came to this show thinking I’d be documenting the past, what remained of a band I loved. Instead, I witnessed something present, living, and still capable of absolute domination. Pantera in 2025 isn’t a reunion. It’s a resurrection. And for one night, in Mansfield, Massachusetts, they proved that the legacy lives on—not in memory alone, but in every riff, every scream, every fist in the air.
Photos – Pantera at Xfinity Center in Mansfield, MA on August 2nd:
