Pantera
Projects In The Jungle

“Projects In The Jungle,” the second album by Pantera, in my opinion the most beautiful of their Glam Years, the period starting in 1983 with “Metal Magic” and ending in 1988 with “Power Metal.” When they started, they were just fifteen, but they demonstrated from the beginning that they had what it takes to become someone. During this period, Pantera produced a total of 4 albums, using Metal Magic Records as their label, the first three albums with singer Terry Lee Glaze, and the last, after a few years, with Phil Anselmo. I literally fell in love with these early albums, feeling an inexplicable refusal to listen to their later productions, starting with Cowboys From Hell. The fact is, I could never explain, let alone digest, their change: their wonderful 80s Glam Rock music became something I don't even know what after a few years, as their recent look in photos never convinced me, and now I see their name on t-shirts of kids with a nu-metal style, and I just don't get it... But let's go back to the '80s, leaving behind transformations, and novelties... Let's go back to “Projects In The Jungle” and start with the cover, which features the four Pantera members performing supported by the hands of the “Beast,” certainly a peculiar image, rather crude...

And now the music... Terry's voice is wonderful, drawn out and high-pitched like Dime's guitar sound... The album flows brilliantly; I always listen to it in one go because the rhythm is fast, driving, tense, almost sensual, and all the songs have a musicality that gets under the skin... The first track is “All Over Tonight,” and when I listen to it, I seem to see Terry in one of the very few videos from that time we have, an amateur video from 1984, doing his spectacular high notes. Then comes “Out For Blood,” which features backing vocals that would later reappear in “Power Metal” with Phil Anselmo. The third track is instrumental, naturally sensational, showing off the great technique of the still adolescent Diamond... Then there's “Like Fire,” my favorite, captivating and intriguing, followed by tracks like “Over My Head” and “Projects In The Jungle,” both beautiful but often overlooked in concerts... Following is number 7, “Heavy Metal Rules,” the name says it all: powerful basic chords, a driving drumbeat, and a bass that insinuates itself wherever it can... Track 8 signals a bit of a dip in the initial energy of the album because it becomes more reflective and sweet, but the concentration picks up with “Killer,” which is decidedly stronger and harder... And finally, the cherry on top, track 10, “Takin’ My Life,” magical, what I call the cigarette smoked after making love (though I don’t actually smoke, but you get the idea, right?!)...

Perhaps many of you will disagree with my opinions and think I've written a load of nonsense, and maybe you're right... The fact is, I like Pantera this way, and I like to see them like this: still in the '80s, with their teased hair, their super tight spandex, and their leopard-print tank tops...