New Anthrax Album

[blueflame]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Maybe I'm a little behind but here goes. For all of the Bush era Anthrax haters - you are the ones that need to buy this cd. I started with these guys when Fistful of Metal came out and stayed a die hard fan all the way thru the split with Belladonna and Spitz, but I never liked the material with Bush as much. Stomp 442 and Volume 8 just plain sucked in my opinion and I still hold that opinion. But I bought W.C.F.Y.A. as soon as I saw it, and I haven't listened to anything else since. Up until I first heard it I thought nothing would be able to beat Soilwork's latest cd, I just knew nothing would rock me as much as that. But Anthrax proved me wrong. The more I listen, the better it gets. And Scott Ian is a Jackson endorsee!! Now I am seriously considering a JJ with hot rod flames as the next purchase. I could sit around and play all the 'Thrax riffs on my JJ!! For all those who like me yearned for the glory days, yearn no more. The new album has all the A.D.D. energy and fire that the old albums with Belladonna did, but John Bush finally proves that Scott and Charlie made the right decision firing Joey. And the new guy Rob Caggiano does a great job with his role. No, he's not Danny Spitz, but he blows away all of the efforts I've listened to on major releases of late. If you need some good metal that is not too thrash and not too soft, look no more. Anthrax 2003 kicks the **** outta Metallica 2003, no question.

[StuTDavis]

Re: New Anthrax Album

I'm not a Bush-hater at all, myself. I really like his voice, and LOVE Sound of White Noise, but I didn't like Stomp and Volume at all. For me, it was definitely the sylistic musical changes that Anthrax has made that made me dislike those albums. They had been pushing towards more and more "dark aggressive" music since Persistence of Time. But, like the new Metallica sound, Anthrax's "heavier" sound eventually became almost completely undefined, too mishmash and lacking in much focus. Like Metallica, their earlier music revolved around tight, very obvious and defined, hooking riffs...but they abandonded that style for something else. At least they didn't go as wishy-washy soft as Metallica in the meantime (Load/Reload). But, instead opted for what I have always seen as a musical conglomeration of 2 bands I absolutely can't stand--Slayer and Pantera. At least, though, you can see the influence is real, because Scott Ian blabs about loving those 2 bands every chance he opens his mouth heheh. The only full song I've heard off WCFYA is "Safe Home"...and I hope the rest is better. I'd wrote on the Anthrax board to Scott Ian (though who knows if he actually answers himself), and he said that the new album was much "riffier"..."Safe Home" doesn't give me as much hope to the truth of that as I'd like.


Scott Earls,

You might wanna give the JJ a try-out at the store before you jump on one. I'm a big Anthrax fan, so naturally I was interested to try one. I found sitting down with the shape to be horribly awkward, the dip where the leg goes seems too close to the neck of the guitar for me. You mentioned sitting around playing it, so I wanted to throw that thought out there, in case you were literal hehe...I sit and play quite a bit, myself.

Stu

[blueflame]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Thanks Stu, I understand about the shape of the guitar. Unfortunately I've never been face to face with a JJ, even though I have frequently been window shopping at stores that sell Jacksons. The shape is not a big deal, I feel like its so close to a Les Paul, which I have played. Ya know, the Paul with the double cutaways that looks like a Jr. but is called a Les Paul. I never could figure that out, by the way.

Safe Home really is the most watered down of all the new Anthrax tracks, if you can, try to find a sample of Refuse to Be Denied or Any Place But Here. The best metal songs I have heard all year.

[Swillmaster]

Re: New Anthrax Album

I picked up WCFYA two days ago. While I really liked Stomp and Volume 8, this release is taking a bit longer to sink in. I've been a John Bush fan from his Armored Saint days, so I prefer him over Joey B by far. Just proves that everyone's tastes are different. I'm most impressed by the mix on this one, it kicks *ss in the car.
I do also have a JJ4, pretty nice axe if you get rid of the Duncan Designed pickups. Thin neck, small body, and the kill button is kinda cool too.

[LRGman]

Re: New Anthrax Album

I think Anthrax with John Bush is better than they have ever been. I respect your guys opinion but John Bush has been one of my favorite heavy singers since Symbol Of Salvation. Before him it seems like every album had a couple good songs that really grooved and then filler.

I saw them a couple of years ago when the were with Megadeth and Crue(yuk sorry).They were in the first slot that night and they got the shaft from the sound like all first bands. But, they smoked. Heavy, tight, focused. If anything they are one of the few bands that have stayed true to their music. The don't talk a bunch of **** they just smoke. How many heavy bands from the 80's are still putting out cd's. Let alone heavy and Scott'still playing Jacksons. They still don't give a rats ass what anybody says and they rock. I don't see the analogy to slayer even if Scott likes them. They sound nothing like Slayer. I think he digs Slayer cause they are still heavy and one of the other few 80's bands around.

Buy Anthrax albums. Everyone *****es about no Jackson artists but when it comes to it,no one really gives a rip, they just like to *****.

[ June 05, 2003, 08:43 PM: Message edited by: LRGman ]

[StuTDavis]

Re: New Anthrax Album

My mention of Slayer was in reference to Anthrax's sound becoming "darker sounding" like Slayer's. I love Sound of White Noise, but I'm a huge fan of the earlier Belladonna years, and their sound during those years. Their sound over the years just got "darker" like Slayer and somewhat "less bright/crisp/defined" like Pantera, starting with Persistence of Time, and those changes became more and more evident as time went on. To me, these qualities up to Sound of White Noise were positive, but, personally, I think after that their sound got a bit too dark, loose and mushy for my taste. It's to the point where it's absolutely nothing like the sound on their earlier albums.

[LRGman]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Thats cool Stu, we all like what we like. Have you picked up their universal masters collection. Its all their good old songs on a compilation.

[StuTDavis]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Hmm...never heard of that one. I haven't really kept up with the peripheral stuff. I have pretty much all the CDs from Spreading through White Noise (except the I'm the Man EP). Is there anything else on the compilation that's ultra-cool? Thanks [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[LRGman]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Basically probably all stuff you already have.

But heres a link with whats on it. link

[StuTDavis]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Ahhh yeah, lots of good ones in there. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] Thanks for thinking to mention it, though.

[Jerry From Ghana]

Re: New Anthrax Album

My Anthrax love was at its peak in 1992, after Killer B's came out. I loved all their records with Joey. I also dug Sound of White Noise when that came out. But maybe a little less. I didn't dig Stomp and Vol 8 at all. Anthrax fell off my radar.
What's interesting however, is that I now find ATL/SOE/POT quasi-unlistenable, especially the first two. I hate Joey's voice, I hate the production, I hate the never ending dumb palm muted thrash riffs. However I still dig the John Bush records as much as I did when they came out (SOWN a lot, the others not much). I still dig the maiden records from that period as much as i ever did (sidenote: how did they manage to avoid the reverb drenched snares and all those ****ty 80's production cliches? props to martin "the guv'nor" or "the animal" birch). I still dig the Slayer & Metallica records from that period. It seems to me that the so-called Anthrax golden period (ATL to POT) has aged much, much worse than its big-name contemporaries.
I've heard Safe Home off the new record and I'm pretty impressed. I personally don't give a **** about the style or heaviness. What I like is good songwriting. That's a great rock song. Looking forward to buying the new record.

[Venomboy]

Re: New Anthrax Album

I've listened to the new one a bunch of times now and I totally LOVE it. GREAT songs, great production. Charlie is a monster on the drums. Buy this record. My least favorite song is Safe Home...there's TONS of heavy grooves on this record.

[StuTDavis]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Jerry,

Based on your change in tastes, I would say that you are a prime example of the success of what grunge, nu-metal, and everything related and in between have been doing to the musical world of hard rock and metal in general. Not just the listeners, but the other artists (like Anthrax and Metallica) have fallen into the trap, soaking up their characteristics like a sponge. Don't take that the wrong way, it's just an observation based on general genre musical characteristics...

80s Thrash Metal:
Very tight, defined sound, tight chording, very articulate solos, everything about it was the very definition of showing one's expertise in playing by way of how much actual ability it required to control the body, the guitar, and playing it, very fast, complex songs.

Grunge, Nu-Metal, related:
Less defined, very loose in general, chords are allowed to sustain more, so there is more room for error, and it doesn't require as much control or technical ability, mistakes are not as obvious or apparent, simple or no guitar solos in songs, very simple songs, with much less changes in rhythm and structure.

Anthrax, over the years, turned more towards the latter, for whatever reason. "Heavier sounding" to some, personally just mish-mash to me. Guitars were put in the background, and the rhythms went the way of...well...not really "riffs" so much to me, as just thrown-together and layered sound garble. The guitar sound itself, even, more like newer metal, it's not tight and defined, it's grungy and loose. But, they have probably done it because of what else is out there, to some extent, whether they like it or not. It's the product of what the main heavy music industry became, and what they wanted everyone else to feel forced to become. And that's also made some people now think that the older style of music they used to love isn't so great anymore. Why did they love it then, and now it's just "so-so"? The music didn't change...their perception of it changed...for whatever reasons.

It's just all interesting to me...

Stu

[Jerry From Ghana]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Stu:

I thought Anthrax's albums have remained tight. In my opinion they sound too tight and sterile in fact.

Believe it or not, I hate nu-metal and grunge.
The decline of what I deem good metal made me get into death and black metal after hearing Slaughter Of The Soul by At The Gates. To me that album was to the 90's what Reign In Blood was to the 80's. I did not hear another death or black metal record that I enjoyed as much.
Another metal record that I loved to death was "To Ride, Shoot Straight, and Speak the Truth" by Entombed. A Death 'n' Roll masterpiece.
I didn't hear any other metal that resonated in me like the 80's classics and the abovementioned albums.

Today, the only metal bands that I still follow are Maiden and The Haunted (guess why). Entombed was on that list too, but since Nicke Andersson left to do the Hellacopters, the 'Copters have kicked the 'Tomb's ass in terms of songwriting.

Nowadays I mostly listen to what most metalheads would deem "gay" music. Stuff like Beck, Stooges, Can, Nick Cave, Cibo Matto and.. Supergrass [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

My point wasn't that I didn't like the sound of 80's thrash. It's just Anthrax. In my opinion, the sound of Reign In Blood, South of Heaven and Seasons is so much more timeless than the Anthrax stuff from that period.

[markb]

Re: New Anthrax Album

Originally posted by StuTDavis:
chords are allowed to sustain more, so there is more room for error

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">[img]graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img]

I would agree with Jerry, old Anthrax material has not stood the test of time. Why? Because years later, after the novelty of palm muted riffs wears off and gets stale, all you have left are the songs, and Anthrax is a bit weak. Grunge did't do anything to thrash, thrash flamed out on its own. Megadeth, Slayer, Sacred Reich, Nuclear Assault, Metallica, Anthrax, Testament, they all just ran out of ideas and spark eventually, started to repeat themselves, and fell apart of their own accord. The last 3-4 albums by every band on that list basically sucked. (the ones that lasted long enough that is). Grunge, Nu-metal, are just diiferent approaches, but it still comes down to songwriting. I was the worlds biggest thrash fan, but I couldn't imagine a worse situation than every band on earth having a palm-mute, late 80's thrash sound. There needs to be more variety than that in the musical landscape. The level of musicianship wasn't quite as high in that genre as you seem to think either. Judge bands individuall on their own merit, not their genre.Thrash brought some new elements to music, but frankly so did grunge and numetal. I own exactly zero numetal cd's, but I still recognize that it was at least a fresh approach. The power of a band comes from many factors. I saw Anthrax twice. They were a good live band. I also saw Alice in Chains and Soundgarden. In a live situation, both of those bands just crushed Anthrax. In their own way they were more menacing and powerful, as well as more original. Metallica most definitely lost their way and chased the grunge scene around for a while, but that was their decision. Thrash metal was a trend, like everything else, meaning a few flagship bands and hordes of imitators ride high for a while and collapse under their own weight eventually. Change is necessary dude. I don't want to hear Ride the Lightning rewritten 72 times, do you?