So, I could easily make this one of my shortest reviews ever by just saying, “Pantera live.” Because, seriously, you know what you’re getting, right? And you know whether you’ll like it. Well, I did. Both knew and liked. But it kind of goes without saying that this album is thunderingly ferocious and also that the instrumental talents on display here are really without parallel. It’s just a lot of head-banging fun. Paul remains one of the three or four best drummers ever and there are some really wonderful breakdowns with Rex Brown here. Brown’s always been a vastly underrated bass player, I think; no one talks about him when they talk about Paul and Dimebag, but his pulsing thunderous bass is indispensable to the band. And, yeah, Dimebag. Enough said. Anyway, good record. The rendition of Walk here is great and Five Minutes Alone deserves to be called out as just being maybe the standout on the record. It’s not an album that’s going to change your mind about this kind of music, but if you need your mind changed, **** you. Man, I always get a little belligerent after a Pantera record, right? Doesn’t replace and is not as essential as their more studio stuff, but yeah, good stuff. 3 stars.
tl;dr – astoundingly talented metal band transfers in-studio ferocity to the stage, with blistering results. 3 stars.