Pantera has just announce a devastating news….

Zakk Wylde stressed that Dimebag Darrell’s musical genius was not only about his blistering fretwork but also about the late guitarist’s writing choices.

For the past couple of years, the Black Label Society mastermind & longtime Ozzy Osbourne collaborator has had plenty of time to get into the nitty-gritty of his old friend’s playing style, having previously noted how his relationship with Dime was mainly about having a good time together, and not learning each other’s guitar parts.

Given that Zakk’s playing with the newly-reformed Pantera has been met with nothing but massive fan excitement, it’s safe to say that Zakk has completely mastered the intricacies of his late friend’s style, and, as he explained during a recent interview on the “Talk Toomey” podcast, getting to know Dime’s works inside out led him to some interesting observations (transcription via Blabbermouth):

“What I just found really awesome was Dime’s… I mean, the reason why we’re still talking about Dime’s greatness, and [that of] all the guys that we love, whether it’s King Edward [Eddie Van Halen], St. Rhoads [Randy Rhoads], Jimi Hendrix, all the guys, it’s what they wrote.”

“Aside [from] Dime’s great technique, how amazing he was, and how fast he could play, everything like that, it’s what he wrote… Dime’s writing, his chord choices and everything, it’s just, like, ‘Oh, wow. That’s definitely really cool.’ So, a lot of unexpected pre-choruses and things like that.”