Gary Holt and Charlie Benante each have had the daunting task of filling the shoes of legendary musicians in iconic metal bands. While they are legends in their own right, the thrash veterans have faced challenges in each of those roles.
In 2011, longtime Exodus guitarist Holt stepped in for Jeff Hanneman in Slayer while the latter battled necrotizing fasciitis. Holt remained in Slayer following Hanneman’s tragic passing in 2013, and stayed in the band until its breakup in 2019.
Meanwhile, Anthrax drummer Benante recently took on the late Vinnie Paul’s role in Pantera, as a revamped lineup of the groove-metal masters began touring in late 2022. A headlining North American outing is slated for this summer, as is a run of dates supporting Metallica’s 2023-2024 tour.
During Anthrax’s recent tour with Exodus, Benante and Holt checked in with Heavy Consequence via video Zoom, and each of them opened up about the obstacles they’ve faced in filling in for Vinnie Paul and Jeff Hanneman, respectively.
Holt said he was mostly welcomed by Slayer fans, save for a few incidents. “Fortunately, [Charlie and I] share something in common in that we are widely accepted by most fans of the guys we were stepping in for,” Holt remarked in the video above. “I think in almost 10 full years of Slayer, I had two hecklers. … I had one guy in Germany … flipping me off and [saying] ‘Fuck you.’ I’m like, ‘Dude, you bought this ticket!’ And another guy in Milan was front row just fuckin’ hurling abuse at me the whole show. And he was kind of surprised when the set ended and I hopped down on the subwoofer and was about six inches away from him, asking him what he’s got to say now.”
Benante, meanwhile, has had a bit of a rougher go of it, as far as Pantera fans are concerned. “I don’t go looking for things [online],” the drummer said in the same video above. “There’s people who send me [negative comments], and I’m like, ‘Why did you send me this?’ Why ruin my day?’ And I think these people who [make] these comments, I don’t think they realize how much of an effect they can have on people. Whether or not you hate the situation …why can’t you find some sort of restraint? … I’ve never seen more of it in my life than I’ve seen in these past couple of months.”
Both Holt and Benante also discussed their approach to the gigs, with Holt saying he didn’t set out to copy Hanneman’s style of playing, but still wanted to match his vibe. Benante explained that he “spent a lot of time on Vinnie’s parts, and more importantly, the tones that Vinnie had, because I wanted it to sound like Pantera.”
Holt also shared the story of Slayer telling Hanneman that they were going to use a fill in, as shared by Hanneman’s widow Kathy. “His head sunk, and he was bummed. And then he lifted his head, and said, ‘Who is it?’ And they said ‘Gary Holt,’ and Kathy said, he goes, ‘Fuck yeah!'”
Watch the conversation between Gary Holt and Charlie Benante in the video above. Pick up tickets to Pantera’s aforementioned shows via Ticketmaster or StubHub, and to Exodus’ upcoming European jaunt with Testament through the band’s website or StubHub.
Trouble viewing the video interview in the player above? Watch on YouTube.
