- Home
- Metallica
- Led Zeppelin
- Kiss
- Slipknot
- Megadeth
- Slayer
- Thin Lizzy
- The Who
- Anthrax
- Tenacious D
- AC/DC
- The Undertones
- Iron Maiden
- Lordi
- Aerosmith
- Queen
- Sum 41
- All American Rejects
- Black Sabbath
- Electric Guitars
- Korn
- Green Day
- U2
Anthrax
Anthrax is an American, New York City-based thrash metal band, who released their first full-length album in 1984. The band was one of the most popular bands of the 1980s thrash metal scene and are notable for combining metal with rap and hardcore music early on. They have sold over 10 million albums worldwide They are classified as one of the "big four" of thrash metal alongside Metallica, Megadeth, and Slayer.
They have made several appearances on television including: Married... with Children, WWE Raw, NewsRadio, Cheers, and Ask Dr. Ruth amongst others. The band has also appeared in movies such as Run Ronnie Run (performing as the fictional band Titannica) and Calendar Girls. Their song "Madhouse" was used in the videogame Grand Theft Auto: Vice City in-game radio station V-Rock and in Guitar Hero II. Their song "Caught in a Mosh" was also featured in Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s. In 2006, guitarist Scott Ian was a cast member of VH1's reality show SuperGroup and is also featured on many other VH1 shows such and I Love the 80s and I Love the 90s.
Early Days
Anthrax was formed in mid-1981 by guitarists Scott Ian and Danny Lilker. They found the name in a biology textbook and claimed it because it sounded sufficiently evil. Vocalist John Connelly (Nuclear Assault) joined, as did drummer Dave Weiss and a bassist named Kenny. Kenny was replaced very early on with Paul Kahn, who was found insufficient as well, so Danny Lilker took over on bass, and Greg Walls joined as second guitarist. Then Connelly and Weiss left, being replaced by Greg D'Angelo (White Lion) on drums, and after a series of vocalists (including Scott's brother Jason), they found Neil Turbin.
This lineup gigged frequently locally, featuring original songs like "Satan's Wheels" (a song about drugs), "Hunting Dogs", and more, and also covers by Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Kiss, and more. The lineup recorded a NWOBHM-sounding demo in July, 1982. Greg Walls left in the summer of 1983, and his replacement was Bob Berry for a few gigs.
Then, Dan Spitz (formerly of Overkill) joined the band, replacing Bob Berry. With Dan, the second demo was recorded. In September, Charlie Benante replaced Greg D'Angelo on drums. This lineup recorded the Soldiers of Metal 7`` single, produced by Ross the Boss of Manowar. (The B-side of this single has one of the old demos with Greg D'Angelo on it, the only ``official`` recording with Greg!)
This demo got them a recording deal with Megaforce records, for which they recorded their debut album, Fistful of Metal, in late 1983. It was released in January of 1984, and a US tour followed, during which tensions grew between Danny Lilker and Neil Turbin. Danny Lilker was let go, and he formed Nuclear Assault with John Connelly, before moving on to a variety of other projects (Brutal Truth, Hemlock, Holy Moses, and more.)
Frank Bello (Charlie's nephew) joined on bass, and then Turbin was fired in July of 1984 very near the end of the tour. The last few dates featured Matt Fallon on vocals, but he was very temporary. In late 1984, the band appeared as a 4-piece, ``The Diseased``, with Scott on vocals. They performed a few punk covers, including ``Protest and Survive`` by Discharge, which was later recorded and released on Anthrax's "Attack of the Killer B's". Joey Belladonna was hired on February 27, 1985, and an EP titled Armed and Dangerous was recorded. Some old Neil Turbin recordings were added to fill out the album (two live tracks from early 1984, and the songs from the old 7``). Later in 1985, Scott, Charlie, and Danny Lilker appeared on the S.O.D. album Speak English or Die. Anthrax's feature album, Spreading the Disease, came out in the same year, and US and European tours followed.