Superjoint Ritual, later known simply as Superjoint, was an American sludge metal and hardcore punk band formed in the 1990s and fronted by Philip Anselmo, the vocalist of Pantera and Down. The project gave Anselmo a creative outlet for his most aggressive and punk-influenced musical impulses — stripping away the groove metal sophistication of Pantera and the Southern rock atmospherics of Down in favor of a rawer, faster, more confrontational sound that drew from hardcore punk, sludge metal, and thrash. The band's lineup included guitarist Kevin Bond, bassist Joey Gonzalez, and drummer Joe Fazzio alongside Anselmo.
Use Once and Destroy (2002) on Sanctuary Records was the band's debut full-length, arriving at a particularly turbulent moment in Anselmo's life — Pantera was in the process of dissolving amid bitter personal and professional conflicts, and the album's aggression reflected the chaos of that period. The record was well received in underground metal circles as an authentic expression of Anselmo's punk influences and demonstrated a side of his musical personality distinct from his more celebrated work. A Lethal Dose of American Hatred (2003) followed in rapid succession, continuing the band's relentlessly aggressive approach.
The band disbanded in 2004 as Anselmo dealt with personal issues following Pantera's dissolution and the death of guitarist Dimebag Darrell in December 2004. Anselmo reformed the project under the shortened name Superjoint in 2013, releasing Caught Up in the Gears of Application (2016) and returning to the aggressive punk metal sound of the original band. Superjoint's catalog occupies a respected place in the underground metal world as an authentic document of Anselmo's punk influences and one of the rawest expressions of his musical personality across a career defined by heaviness and intensity.
