Dimebag Darrell – “Dimevision, Vol.2: Roll with It or Get Rolled Over” [DVD Review]

The loss of Dimebag “Darrell” Abbott of Pantera and Damageplan in 2004 remains a tragedy on a few levels. Putting aside how he died, or the fact that he was someone’s son, brother and significant other, he was still at his prime musically. It is unclear if a Pantera reunion would have ever happened, as based on the publicly-exposed heat between vocalist Phil Anselmo and the Abbott brothers, but undoubtedly Darrell Abbott had a lot ahead of him as a musician and songwriter.

Dimevision, Vol.2, as released by Metal Blade Records, is the second in a series of compilations of unreleased and rare footage featuring Dimebag Darrell. As Dimebag himself notes a few minutes into Vol. 2, before there was Jackass, there were Pantera home videos. The format of the Dimevision series is free-form, like the aforementioned Jackass, where it cuts from section to section without introductions. Sometimes you are watching touring debauchery at its finest, other times you see home videos, other you are watching straight-up musical performance; early into the video, we see a young Dimebag playing a medley of Randy Rhoads riffs at a Rhoads tribute show in 1988, and around 27 minutes in we see David Allan Coe playing a Kid Rock song backstage. A lot of said debauchery is related to alcohol, yet the jovial nature of Dimebag Darrell never lets that come across as troubling or sad. He simply comes across as “the life of the party,” making everyone feel good. But it’s not all rated R, as we humorously see Abbott getting a mani-pani, buying Girl Scouts cookies, and hanging out with some gardeners.

The perfect 10 rating for Dimevision, Vol.2 is there not only because this is an entertaining release, but because it is exactly what you would want to watch if you were a long-time fan of Dimebag Darrell Abbott and/or Pantera. “Warts and all” — male nudity is part of the two-disc package — it is not there to make Abbott look like an angel, instead showing how he was exactly the guy you had hoped he would be and more both onstage and off. Hopefully, Rita Haney and Daryl “Bobby Tongs” Arnberger have more Dimevision releases planned….

Run Time: 78 minutes
Release Date: November 24, 2017

Check out the official Dimevision, Vol.2: Roll with It or Get Rolled Over trailer