Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul’s cause of death officially revealed
He died in June aged 54
An official coroner’s report has confirmed that Vinnie Paul died of a heart condition.
According to the Clark County Coroner’s Office, Vinnie suffered from dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition which restricts the heart’s ability to pump blood.
The Pantera drummer and co-founder was also suffering from severe coronary artery disease at the time of his death on 22nd June aged 54.
A short statement issued by the Coroner’s Office reads: “Vincent Paul Abbott died from natural causes, specifically, dilated cardiomyopathy.
“Severe coronary artery disease was identified as a significant condition to the cause of death according to the official report submitted by the Clark County Coroner’s office. We ask that you please continue to respect the privacy of the family and friends of Vinnie Paul. No further statement will be issued.”
Alongside his late younger brother ‘Dimebag’ Darrell Abbott, Vinnie founded Pantera in 1981 and over the course of their first three albums they embraced a glam metal sound that had parallels to bands including KISS and Van Halen.
With Phil Anselmo recruited as frontman in the late eighties, they took their music into heavier realms and in 1992 unleashed their influential sixth album ‘Vulgar Display of Power.’
After Pantera split in 2003, Vinnie and Dimebag went on to form Damageplan and they released one studio album ‘New Found Power’ before Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by Nathan Gale at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio in December 2004. He was just 38.
In June 2006, Vinnie formed Hellyeah which also featured Chad Gray and guitarist Greg Tribbett from Mudvayne, guitarist Tom Maxwell from Nothingface, and bassist Bob Zilla from Damageplan.
Alongside fellow conctant members Maxwell and Gray, they released five studio albums together including, most recently, 2016’s ‘Undeniable’