Slayer or Pantera

Pantera by far- probably the best 5 metal records ever released......ever....by anyone

Pantera

Pantera by far

Slayer is shite live.

Pantera, by miles. I don't even like Slayer.

Influence - Slayer

Fandom - Slayer (arguably the most intense and loyal fans in metal)

Talent - Tossup (Hanneman and King wrote some of the most recognizable riffs in heavy metal, as did Dimebag. Phil is arguably the greatest frontman post-1980s, but Slayer has one of the most influential extreme metal drummers ever in Dave Lambardo).

This really is a challenging decision to settle on. Neither band operates under the same sub-genre or originates from the same era/scene. They arguably only share a handful of similarities.

I guess all you can do is compare Slayer's best five releases vs. Pantera's best five.

Show No Mercy
Hell Awaits
Reign in Blood
South of Heaven
Seasons in the Abyss

vs.

Cowboys from Hell
Vulgar Display of Power
Far Beyond Driven
The Great Southern Trendkill
Reinventing the Steel

I just can't choose between either band. Vulgar Display of Power and Reign in Blood are each pinnacle achievements in metal.

I would argue that Pantera's variety in sound, not including their hair metal days, is superior, but Slayer's decision to slow down on South of Heaven and Seasons in the Abyss cannot be understated. While everyone else in extreme metal was getting faster and faster, Slayer proved that heaviness and speed are not mutually inclusive.

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Pantera by far- probably the best 5 metal records ever released......ever....by anyone

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I would agree with their first four, but Reinventing the Steel is such forgetful album for me. Every release prior to that they had forged a new sound and advanced their aggression and intensity. Then again, it's pretty damn hard to top The Great Southern Trendkill.

By the way, when you say the best five metal records ever released...do you mean consecutive or overall? Because although Pantera is near the top of best metal bands ever, I could nominate multiple bands who could match their best five.

Metallica:
Kill 'Em All
Ride the Ligthing
Master of Puppets
...And Justice for All
Metallica

Black Sabbath:
Black Sabbath
Paranoid
Master of Reality
Sabotage
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath/Vol. 4/Heaven and Hell

Judas Priest:
Sad Wings of Destiny
Sin After Sin
Painkiller
British Steel
Hellbent for Leather/Stained Class/Screaming for Vengeance

Iron Maiden:
Iron Maiden
Number of the Beast
Powerslave
Piece of Mind
Killers/Somewhere in Time/Seventh Son of a Seventh Son

Death:
Scream Bloody Gore/Leprosy
Human
Individual Thought Patterns
Symbolic
The Sound of Perseverance

Opeth:
Blackwater Park
Still Life
Your Arms...My Hearse
Ghost Reveries
Damnation/Morningrise/Deliverance

And that's not even including Slayer.

I'm gonna say Slayer. Pantera was good, but nothing they put out was as good as Reign in Blood.

TBH, I like some of Phils side projects more than Pantera.

Pantera