VINNIE PAUL Remembers DIMEBAG (Video)

AOL's Noisecreep recently asked HELLYEAH's legendary drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott to reflect on the legacy of his late brother and former PANTERA and DAMAGEPLAN bandmate, Darrell Lance Abbott, a.k.a. Dimebag Darrell, who was tragically killed on stage in Columbus in 2004.

"The bottom line with Dimebag is he got off on making people happy," Vinnie said. "It didn't matter if it was about playing his guitar, shaking their hand, giving them a guitar pick. It didn't matter… He got off on making people happy.”

He added, "My last experience with my brother… We were playing in Buffalo, New York. We had 173 people come to see DAMAGEPLAN, which sucked, 'cause DAMAGEPLAN kicked fucking ass… [laughs] We had a radio show early the next day… He was, like, 'Man, I'm gonna stay on the bus and just chill.' So me and Mayhem, our security guard at the time — he got killed that night [in Columbus], too — we went gambling in Niagara Falls. And the bus shows up to get us, and I get on the bus and there's, like, eighteen people in the fucking front lounge drinking with Dime. I'm like, 'What the fuck are you doing, dude? I thought you were going to sleep?' He goes, 'I couldn't let these people down. They wanted to party, man.' And I was like, 'Yeah!' And that's just how he was, man. He would not let you down. He was everything you wanted him to be, and then some. And we all miss him."

Vinnie continued, "[Dime is] the biggest inspiration in my life. I know he inspires these guys [the rest of HELLYEAH]; I guarantee he's proud of this band. He's a part of this band. He might not be standing next to us, but I guarantee he fucking inspires every one of us to kick ass every fucking day and we won't let him down. And that's the bottom line."

When PANTERA broke up in 2003, Dimebag and his brother Vinnie Paul formed DAMAGEPLAN. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by Nathan Gale. He was 38 years old.

February 25 marked the 20-year anniversary for PANTERA's "Vulgar Display Of Power", a landmark album widely acknowledged as one of metal's most enduring and influential masterworks. Recorded by singer Philip Anselmo, guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, bassist Rex Brown and drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, the album has been certified double platinum by the RIAA and features several of the group's most iconic songs including "Walk", "Mouth For War", "This Love" and "Fucking Hostile".

To celebrate, Rhino channels the album's relentless blitzkrieg of musical aggression onto a two-disc Deluxe Edition. The CD includes the original album remastered and "Piss", a recently discovered unreleased track from the recording sessions. The DVD contains an unreleased live performance filmed in Italy in September of 1992 plus the three official music videos from the album.

Due out May 15, 2012 from Rhino, the CD/DVD set will be available at retail outlets, including Pantera.com and Rhino.com, for a suggested list price of $19.98. A version of the release will also be available digitally.