While rolling their tanks across the United States on their current headlining tour, the metal purists of Pantera have managed to nail down plans for a summer trek that kicks off June 20 in New Haven, Connecticut.

Slayer, Static-X, Skrape and Morbid Angel will join the Texas headbangers for the Extreme Steel Tour, which is slated to hit arenas through late July.

"Air-conditioned comfort at a high-decibel level will be the theme of Extreme Steel," Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul said in a statement announcing the tour. "We wanted to kick off the summer with a little metal madness of our own. Being Texas boys, we know how brutal the outdoors can be once June rolls around. We figured our fans are ready for a little evening excitement without any humidity other than the heat they'll generate all on their own."

The air-conditioned comfort should provide a stark contrast to the band's sun-baked stint on Ozzfest last summer. Pantera have been working on bringing together their Extreme Steel bill for months, and recently confirmed the involvement of Slayer and Static-X (see [article id="1441336"]"Pantera Headlining Summer Tour With Slayer, Static-X"[/article]).

Before diving into their Extreme Steel trek, Pantera will hit Alaska, Korea, Australia and New Zealand in May on what the group calls the "up north, over the Pacific and back home again" leg of its world tour.

Extreme Steel Tour dates, according to a Pantera spokesperson: