WELL, THAT WAS quite a year, wasn’t it? 2022 had more than its fair share of interesting developments — from the surprise return of Pink Floyd with new single “Hey Hey Rise Up,” released in solidarity with the people of Ukraine, to the Pantera reunion that had been long-rumored (while always seeming just a tad too unlikely). Other headlines included Kirk Hammett releasing his first-ever solo recording in the form of the atmospheric Portals EP, proving that there’s more to him than just thrash metal. Which, by the way, made an unexpected mainstream comeback, thanks to Metallica’s collaboration with hit sci-fi series Stranger Things.
Then there was the stunning display of fretwork from Wolfgang Van Halen at the Taylor Hawkins tribute shows in London and Los Angeles; Mr. WVH nailed every part of “On Fire,” “Hot for Teacher” and “Panama’’ in homage to the late Foo Fighters drummer, while also paying respects to his own father, who passed away two years ago. There were, of course, other moments that left us speechless — and for different reasons — from an $8K Les Paul being stuffed down someone’s pants in a Canadian guitar store and some nasty guitar-centric credit card fraud, to the U.K. woman who discovered that the old Les Paul left in a closet by her father was actually made in 1960 and therefore worth a pretty penny.
Yes, it’s been quite a ride — so let’s go to the videotape!
SOMETHING PANTERA-ESQUE THIS WAY COMES
of a Pantera reunion for many years now, though while drummer Vinnie Paul was alive it was something that always felt beyond the realm of possibility. Sadly the sticksman passed away in 2018 — some 14 years after his brother Dimebag Darrell’s tragic death — leaving singer Phil Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown as the group’s only surviving members (excluding early singer Terry Glaze, whose recordings
