Becoming (song)

"Becoming"
Single by Pantera
from the album Far Beyond Driven
B-side	"5 Minutes Alone"
Released	1994
Recorded	1993
Genre	Groove metal
Length	3:05
Label	Eastwest Records
Writer(s)	Dimebag Darrell, Vinnie Paul, Phil Anselmo, Rex Brown
Producer(s)	Terry Date
Pantera singles chronology
"5 Minutes Alone" (1994) "Becoming" (1994) "Drag the Waters" (1996)

"Becoming" is a song by American heavy metal band Pantera from their seventh album Far Beyond Driven. It was released as a 2-track promotional-only vinyl 12", with "5 Minutes Alone" as its B-side.

The song features a guitar riff by Dimebag Darrell which involves a DigiTech Whammy pedal as well as extensive double bass drumming from Vinnie Paul. It also uses an unusual guitar tuning, as it sits between C# and D-tuning.

Meaning

Phil Anselmo explained the meaning behind the song saying "The most popular heavy metal bands in the world at that time were, in my estimate and definitely all of our estimates, playing the game," Anselmo says. "They had reached this pinnacle; now they were kind of tapering off and writing more commercial stuff, whereas we realized our strong point, once again, was sticking to heavy metal and making it as heavy as our style would allow. Therefore, with 'Becoming,' it is what it says. We were becoming. Honestly, we had arrived."^[1]

Live performance

During live performances of the song, the band would play Becoming and combine it with the outro of "Throes of Rejection", a Pantera song also featured on the album Far Beyond Driven. A live performance of the song is also available on the band's live album "Official Live: 101 Proof".

Track listing

12" single

1. "Becoming"
2. "5 Minutes Alone"

Release and reception

Despite its limited release, the song peaked at #18 on the U.S. Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart, equaling a position of #118 on the main Billboard Hot 100 chart, making it one out of three Pantera singles to appear on the chart.

Charts

References