Zakk Wylde speaks on canceled Pantera shows: “There’s nothing I can do about that”

ABC Audio

Zakk Wylde has commented on Pantera‘s recent canceled concerts in Germany and Austria.

The Black Label Society frontman plays guitar in the reformed version of the “Walk” metallers, which features longtime members Phil Anselmo and Rex Brown alongside Wylde and Anthrax‘s Charlie Benante in place of the late Abbott brothers, “Dimebag” Darrell and Vinnie Paul, respectively.

In January, Germany’s Rock am Ring and Rock im Park festivals removed Pantera from its lineups, citing “criticism” surrounding the booking. According to German news site DW.com, said criticism stems from when Anselmo yelled “white power” while giving the Nazi salute during a performance at the 2016 Dimebash concert. Austria’s Gasometer festival canceled Pantera’s set a few days later.

During an interview with Guitar World published Thursday, Wylde was asked if he has a “reaction” to the cancellations.

“There’s nothing I can do about that, you know what I mean?” Wylde responded.

“In terms of my role, it’s always a case of being ready for whatever — as in seeing if the fellas want to add any more songs or anything like that while we’re out rolling together on this tour,” he continued. “If I get a call from Phil or Rex and they want to change up the set or do whatever, I’m usually just in the back lounge working on more songs!”

Anselmo apologized several times following the initial incident in 2016, while his band Down was dropped from several European festivals that year.

Pantera is set to play Japan in March, followed by a European tour kicking off in May. They’re also scheduled to launch a U.S. headlining tour in July, in between playing several U.S. festivals and opening for Metallica.