Back in 1990, metal music was still at the forefront of the recording industry. Bands like Anthrax, Megadeth, Slayer, and Exodus were still riding high on the tide of heavy thrash metal. There was a little band that came out of Texas at that time, by the name of Pantera. They were an all out assault on the ears. The band consisted of Phil Anselmo on vocals, Dimebag Darrel on Guitar, Rex on bass, and Vinnie Paul on drums. The musical chemistry of these four men was nothing less then incredible. They released an album called "Cowboys From Hell" that would be one of the best albums of it’s genre ever.
So it made sense that the best tribute band-to-Pantera would call themselves the “Cowboys From Hell”. The Los Angeles-based Cowboys From Hell players are; the talented Steve Marshall on guitars, the newest addition, Fabricio Ravelli on drums, Elaina Bangma, girl-gunner on bass and our favorite cookie monster, Sean Okin on vocals. Depicting Pantera to the T, the Cowboys From Hell blaze a path for many of the local tribute bands on the scene. This evening at Paladino’s was a true testament of their immense talent and musicianship, not to mention the all out hero worship for their favorite band.
They opened their set with The Great Southern Trendkill. This tune has a schizophrenic song structure, swathed in gunmetal-gray vocals. “You rob a dead man’s grave. . .Then flaunt it like you did create.” The song spins arbitrarily from a crazy-fast speed to brisk chugging and back again. A heavily distorted chorus was served up in traditional Pantera style. Sean practically heaved up the lyrics involuntarily. The band then broke it down into slow, relaxed groves while Steve layed down what may be Dimebag Daryl’s most underrated solo in the Pantera library. Trendkill trailed away and they did the second song, A New Level. O.K., I couldn’t help but notice Elaina Bangma here. She just basked in glory. I thought for a second that she was being specially lit. But no, that was just her just literally glowing. This girl couldn’t wipe the smile off her face and I loved watching her. Last year I featured Elaina in an All Access Magazine article for the Women of Rock issue (May, 2005). I was inspired to write about her because she was really good and totally underrated. Since then, she’s clearly gained much more confidence and it just shows, all over the place. She is clearly in her element playing this music. This was another phenomenal cut, unrelenting in it’s heaviness.
Domination was next. Clearly a crowd favorite. The mosh pit was a scene and remained in a rumbling state throughout the show. 
They all exuded good raw, ragged sound and had an excellent way of communicating the tension and electricity of the exciting relationship between the band. Next up, Goddamn Electric, was a good, steady beat and a repeated, emphatic sound effect, establishing exhilarating context for the barrage of raps and riffs. Very killer and very evil. The song shows Pantera's true metal diversity and the Cowboys displayed their ability to tribute them.
Five Minutes Alone was played and Sean Oken screamed out to Paladinos’, “You’ve waged a war of nerves ~ but you can’t crush the kingdom!” This song could be the big brother of ‘Walk’. The intro/chorus riff seemed almost embroidered, but engaging nonetheless. Steve cunningly imitated Dimebag with every note. In verse mode, the song mutated substantially, straying from the ‘Walk’ path with a flurry of sharp, stinging riff fragments, more concerned with rhythm than melody. Sean gripped the vocal’s sharp edges with bloody hands. There were two snaky, head-spinning riffs that appeared midway through the song, that respectively, were worth the price of admission alone! These were really just gorgeous metal moments that epitomize the magic of every night anyone has spent screaming and sweating in a mosh pit. Steve’s Dimebag solo surprised, by being more glossy than a regular conventional lead, yet it’s precisely the kind of gleaming, sheet-metal layer of perfection that worked best over Farbricio’s (Vinnie Pauls’) casual, self-reliant groove. The Cowboys bowed out with the same ‘Walk-like” pimp-swagger, this time bolstered by Sean calling and answering his croaking self in tones that articulate the essence of Pantera perfectly.
Then they did the unequivocal metal classic, Cemetery Gates. This is my personal favorite Pantera song, so my attention was undivided. This is the song that really gives you the full picture of how complete a band Pantera really was. This seven minute cut deals lyrically with grievance and went from melodic to thrashy, from barking to falsetto and back again. Sean revealed an almost falsettoish voice at times during this cut. It really is an epic song that’s full and rich, and listenable time after time after time. A great tune and a great guitar solo, again, showing off Steve’s licks, that were no less than spectacular.
The Cowboys performed Mouth For War after that, from the album Vulgar Display Of Power. It opened with slyly syncopated chord progression with an intro/chorus riff that vocalizes a language of sadistic intent. The guitar riffs had drill-like tone and a nasty, up-kick in tempo that threw quick, biting, left hooks. This tune had parameters that, in the tradition of Metallica’s ‘Fight Fire With Fire’ and Slayer’s ‘Angel Of Death’, formulated a whole new grammar of noise for a whole generation of future metal practitioners. And just like their heros, Pantera, it’s abundantly clear to the rest of us that this language remains theirs and theirs alone.
Strength Beyond Strength was up next, with a combustible, white-hot lead. 
The band exploded in beloved-metal-double-time, showcasing Fabricio’s footwork. Unlike most Pantera tracks, there is no buildup or pause to let one’s head get accustomed to this particular number’s headbanging cadence. Only frantic, malignant, jugulating rhythm, as Sean belts out the lyrics originally sang by Phil, bordering on hysteria. After three feverish choruses, the bottom dropped out and the Cowboys slowed it down to a death march. Strength Beyond Strength is the perfect anthem for any headbanger. This tune exudes self-confidence and the Cowboys played it with just that. Revolution Is My Name was punchy and done with velocity. They then knocked out I'm Broken after that and everyone loved it.
Walk, the Pantera classic, was next on the Cowboy’s set list, revealing the pumping heart and lungs of the beast, inviting you to throw out everything you know or guess about metal, and just focus on lovely, brutish basics. It’s almost a metronome’s 4/4 time with a tight, dry, two-note riff to match. The singer jackbooted, strutted and swaggered surprisingly focused and coherent lyrics about backstabbing friends, whom he’ll show the door to with pleasure. Essentially, ‘Walk’ succeeds by covering the base elements of metal repeatedly and lovingly, basking in the sort of mid-tempo, swing-time-groove that puts a smile on any seasoned headbanger’s face. The smile widens once you realize the whole band is hammering this one out with the same childlike glee. Steve Marshall contributes one of Dimebag’s signature left-turn solos and had a whale of a time abusing his six-string, with splashy blues fills, random bridge noise, fingertapping, vibrato, delay, squealing bends. Eventually, that irresistible riff and chorus thump their way back into brain cells, spinal cords and clenched fists, leaving the song convulsed in death-rattle shakes, the drummer carefully finished the hit over a slow, hypnotic fade.
Fuckin' Hostile again proved Cowboys From Hell have that Pantera sound nailed.
The last song of the night was the title track, Cowboys From Hell ~ "You see us comin' and you all together run for cover... we're taking over this town”, Sean Oken guttererly barked out to the crowd.
True Pantera fans are major-discriminating, so it really takes balls to do this kind of tribute. Not worrying about any stigmas and always considering themselves an all out metal band, the Cowboys From Hell, Tribute to Pantera, will clearly continue to be a force to reckon with on the LA music scene for a long time to come. Look out for them, go see them ~ I am sure you’ll be impressed. For more info on the Cowoys From Hell, see their website at www.tributefromhell.com
