"Mouth for War" | ||||
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Single by Pantera | ||||
from the album Vulgar Display of Power | ||||
Released | 1992 | |||
Recorded | 1991 | |||
Genre | Groove metal | |||
Length | 3:56 | |||
Label | Atco | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Terry Date | |||
Pantera singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Mouth for War" on YouTube |
"Mouth for War" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera. It was first released on the band's sixth album Vulgar Display of Power and was the first single off that album. It was later released on the band's compilation album, The Best of Pantera: Far Beyond the Great Southern Cowboys' Vulgar Hits!
The song was released as downloadable content for the music video games Rock Revolution and Rock Band 3 , alongside "Walk", "I'm Broken" and "5 Minutes Alone".
Vocalist Phil Anselmo stated in a 1992 interview on Much More Music, that "Mouth for War" is about channeling your hate into something productive. This is evident in the lyrics "When I channel my hate to productive/I don't find it hard to impress". According to Anselmo, the song was written about the then middleweight champion James Toney. [1]
The video shows the band playing the song to an audience. The majority of the video is shot in black and white, and a screenshot of the video was used as the cover for "Walk". It was directed by Paul Rachman who also directed the videos from the band's first album, Cowboys from Hell, and the feature documentary film American Hardcore .
"Mouth for War" was the band's first single from their Vulgar Display of Power album. The song is one of Pantera's most popular songs and experienced moderate commercial success, becoming the band's first song to ever chart, reaching number 73 on the UK Singles Chart. It was used as the theme song for MTV's Headbangers Ball .
Metal Hammer ranked the song number 7 on their list of the 50 best Pantera songs. [3]
Odyssey considered "Mouth for War" to be the best Pantera song. They rated it 5/5, and wrote that it was a metal classic and had an iconic solo. [4]
"Mouth for War" has been covered by Italian melodic death metal band Disarmonia Mundi on their third album, Mind Tricks . Another cover version by Biohazard appears in the Metal Hammer tribute to Dimebag Darrell. An instrumental, all-cello version was recorded by The Portland Cello Project on the Kill Rock Stars label. Avenged Sevenfold covered the song live in 2011, featuring Vinnie Paul on drums.
In March 2021, Lzzy Hale of Halestorm, Reba Meyers of Code Orange, Gina Gleason of Baroness, Madi Watkins of Year of the Knife, Ben Koller of All Pigs Must Die and Mutoid Man, and Jordan Olds (aka Gwarsenio Hall) collectively released a cover of the song on the "Two Minutes to Late Night" YouTube channel. [5]
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Mouth for War" | 3:57 |
2. | "Rise" | 4:38 |
3. | "Cowboys from Hell" (live) | 4:16 |
4. | "Heresy" (live) | 5:05 |
Chart (1992) | Peak position |
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UK Singles (OCC) [6] | 73 |
Pantera is an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas, formed in 1981. The group's best-known lineup consisted of the Abbott brothers, along with bassist Rex Brown and lead vocalist Phil Anselmo; the former, who joined in 1982, is the sole constant member of Pantera. In addition to their development and popularization of the groove metal subgenre, Pantera is credited for being part of the second wave of thrash metal scene from the late 1980s to early-to-mid 1990s. Pantera is regarded as one of the most successful and influential bands in heavy metal history, having sold around 20 million records worldwide and having received four Grammy nominations.
Vulgar Display of Power is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Pantera. Released on February 25, 1992 through Atco Records, it was the band's second collaboration with producer Terry Date, after having previously worked with him on their breakthrough album Cowboys from Hell (1990).
Darrell Lance Abbott, best known by his stage name Dimebag Darrell, was an American musician. He was the guitarist of the heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan, both of which he co-founded alongside his brother Vinnie Paul. He is often regarded as one of the greatest heavy metal guitarists of all time.
Far Beyond Driven is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Pantera, released on March 22, 1994 by East West Records. Pantera's fastest-selling album, it peaked at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and was certified Platinum by the RIAA. The album was also certified Platinum by the Canadian Recording Industry Association. Far Beyond Driven is the first album by Pantera where the band's guitarist Darrell Abbott is credited as "Dimebag Darrell", having changed his nickname from "Diamond Darrell" soon after Vulgar Display of Power was released. The Japanese and the Driven Downunder Tour '94 Souvenir Collection editions contain a bonus thirteenth track, "The Badge", a Poison Idea cover. This cover was also featured on The Crow soundtrack.
The Great Southern Trendkill is the eighth studio album by American heavy metal band Pantera, released on May 7, 1996, through East West Records. It reached number 4 on the Billboard 200 chart, and stayed on the chart for 16 weeks. During the album's production, Phil Anselmo recorded the vocals alone at Trent Reznor's Nothing Studios in New Orleans while Dimebag Darrell, Rex Brown, and Vinnie Paul recorded the music at Chasin Jason Studios in Dalworthington Gardens. This would be the Pantera's last studio album to be produced by Terry Date, who had worked with the band since Cowboys from Hell (1990).
Damageplan was an American heavy metal band from Dallas, Texas, formed in 2003. Following the demise of their previous group Pantera, brothers Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul Abbott wanted to start a new band. The pair recruited former Diesel Machine and Halford guitarist Patrick Lachman on vocals, and later Bob Zilla on bass. Damageplan released New Found Power, their only album, on February 10, 2004. New Found Power debuted at number 38 on the Billboard 200, selling 44,676 copies in its first week.
Vincent Paul Abbott was an American musician best known for being the drummer and co-founder of the heavy metal band Pantera. He also co-founded Damageplan in 2003 with his younger brother, 'Dimebag' Darrell Abbott, and was a member of Hellyeah for 12 years from 2006 until his death in 2018.
"Walk" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera from their sixth album Vulgar Display of Power. A live performance of "Walk" is included on Official Live: 101 Proof, and the studio version is also on the band's greatest hits album, The Best of Pantera: Far Beyond the Great Southern Cowboys' Vulgar Hits!.
Rebel Meets Rebel is a country metal album by David Allan Coe and Pantera members Dimebag Darrell, Rex Brown, and Vinnie Paul. The music was written and recorded by the band when the musicians had time aside from their other projects, including Pantera's world tour supporting Reinventing the Steel.
"Cowboys from Hell" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera. First appearing on the band's 1989 demo album, the song is the band's first single. It was released later on the major label debut album Cowboys from Hell, and on the band's compilation album.
"This Love" is a power ballad by American heavy metal band Pantera. It was first released on the band's best-selling album, Vulgar Display of Power, and later on the band's compilation album, The Best of Pantera: Far Beyond the Great Southern Cowboys' Vulgar Hits! A live version was also included on Official Live: 101 Proof.
"The Art of Shredding" is a song by the American heavy metal band Pantera. It was released in 1990 on their sixth studio album Cowboys from Hell, and is the twelfth and final song on the album.
"A New Level" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera. It is the second track on their sixth studio album Vulgar Display of Power.
"Live in a Hole" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera. It was released in 1992 on their album Vulgar Display of Power.
"I'm Broken" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera from their seventh album, Far Beyond Driven. It was the first single issued from the album. Kerry King said on the Japanese TV show Rock Fujiyama that it's his favorite guitar riff.
"5 Minutes Alone" is a song by American groove metal band Pantera from their 1994 album Far Beyond Driven. The song also appears on the band's live album. The song was released as downloadable content for Rock Revolution and Rock Band 3 and can be heard during a cut-scene in Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier.
"Hollow" is a power ballad by American heavy metal band Pantera from their 1992 album Vulgar Display of Power. A live medley of "Hollow" and another Pantera song, "Domination", is featured on Official Live: 101 Proof as "Dom/Hollow".
Vulgar Video is the second home video by American heavy metal band Pantera. It was released on VHS on November 16, 1993.
Cowboys from Hell: The Videos is the first home video by American heavy metal band Pantera. It was released on VHS on April 2, 1991.
3 Watch It Go is the third home video by American heavy metal band Pantera. It was released on VHS through Elektra Records on November 11, 1997. The video features band footage and includes music videos for "Planet Caravan", "I'm Broken" and "5 Minutes Alone" from the studio album Far Beyond Driven (1994), and for "Drag the Waters" from The Great Southern Trendkill (1996). It won a 1997 Metal Edge Readers' Choice Award for Best Video Cassette.