{"id":28696,"date":"2018-06-04T10:41:19","date_gmt":"2018-06-04T14:41:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/?p=28696"},"modified":"2018-06-04T10:41:22","modified_gmt":"2018-06-04T14:41:22","slug":"on-stage-thrash-metal-fans-tonight-is-your-night","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/?p=28696","title":{"rendered":"On Stage: Thrash metal fans \u2014 tonight is your night"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff<\/strong>, Entertainment Editor, The Times<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Slayer<\/p><\/div>\n

Tonight, area fans of thrash metal music know that there is only one place they should be \u2013 the Santander Arena (700 Penn Street, Reading, www.santander-arena.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Tonight, the arena in Berk County is hosting \u201cSlayer\u2019s Final World Tour — Leg 1, North America.\u201d Joining Slayer is second-billed Anthrax, thus offering fans an opportunity to see live performances by two of the world\u2019s best \u2013 and oldest \u2013 thrash metal bands. Anthrax got its start in 1981 in New York City \u2013 the same year that Slayer got its start in Huntington Park, California.<\/p>\n

For more than three decades, Slayer\u2019s onslaught has proven the band to be the supreme thrash metal band on the planet,\u00a0the band that other heavy acts are measured against and aspire to.<\/p>\n

The two bands which are playing in Reading tonight form 50 per cent of thrash metal\u2019s \u201cThe Big Four\u201d — Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax. These are the four bands that defined the thrash metal genre and secured their place in music history.<\/p>\n

On January 22, 2018, Slayer announced its decision to do one last world tour to thank its fans for their decades-long support — and then move on.<\/p>\n

Anthrax \u2013 Scott Ian, rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1981\u2013present); Charlie Benante, drums (1983\u2013present); Frank Bello, bass guitar, backing vocals (1984\u20132004, 2005\u2013present); Joey Belladonna, lead vocals (1984\u20131992, 2005\u20132007, 2010\u2013present); Jonathan Donais, lead guitar (2013\u2013present) — is still motoring ahead in its career with the pedal to the metal.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would hope it\u2019s not our farewell tour,\u201d said Bello, during a phone interview Thursday afternoon from a Canadian tour stop in Montreal, Quebec.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re doing this tour because Slayer asked us. We like touring with them. We\u2019ve been friends for a long time. This tour is huge and fans from each band cross over. The best thing is that people who haven\u2019t had a chance to see Anthrax play are getting that chance. It\u2019s a perfect opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Anthrax<\/p><\/div>\n

Anthrax was formed in 1981 by Scott Ian and Dan Lilker. The group was considered one of the leaders of the thrash metal scene during the 1980s and is the only one of the \u201cBig Four\u201d thrash metal bands from the East Coast. As of April 2017, the band has released 11 studio albums, several other albums, and 26 singles, including collaborating on a single with American hip hop group Public Enemy. According to Nielsen SoundScan, Anthrax sold 2.5\u00a0million records in the United States from 1991 to 2004, with worldwide sales of 10 million.<\/p>\n

As part of the band’s 35th anniversary year, Anthrax released one of 2016\u2019s most-anticipated thrash metal albums \u2013 \u201cFor All Kings.\u201d The album, which was released by Megaforce in North America and Nuclear Blast internationally, debuted at #1 on\u00a0Billboard’s\u00a0Hard Rock Chart, and #9 on\u00a0the\u00a0Top 200 and became Anthrax’s highest-charting album in more than two decades.<\/p>\n

Over its 35-year career, Anthrax has been a pioneering band with its unique style, sound and heavy brand of thrash metal. Anthrax has sold more than 10-million units,\u00a0received multiple Gold and Platinum certifications, six Grammy nominations and a host of other accolades from the media and the record industry. Anthrax was the first metal band to have its music heard on Mars when NASA played \u201cGot The Time\u201d to wake up the Mars Rover,<\/p>\n

\u201cIn any gig you have, you have to be fortunate to be in it for more than 30 years,\u201d said Bello. \u201cWith a band, it\u2019s not easy. I\u2019m thankful for it. I could be digging ditches.\u201d<\/p>\n

Obviously, Anthrax has the musical expertise to rise to the top of its genre. But, there is an even bigger reason for the band\u2019s continuing success.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe work very hard,\u201d said Bello. \u201cWe\u2019re a blue-collar band. Now, we have a fan base that spans generations, you\u2019ll see 12-year-old kids and people in their 60s at our shows. The \u2018\u2019Big Four Tour\u2019 (an earlier tour with Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax) allowed a lot of people to see Anthrax and we got exposed to a whole new generation of listeners.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both the band and its fans have been anticipating a follow-up to the \u201cFor All Kings\u201d album \u2013 but that isn\u2019t likely to happen any time soon.<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>We\u2019ve been non-stop touring,\u201d said Bello. \u201cWe weren\u2019t supposed to be touring now. We were supposed to be in the recording studio. But, now we\u2019re booked up until December with this tour. It\u2019s hard to write on the road. But, I\u2019m still always writing.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the end of the day, you write what you feel. You can\u2019t lie. If it gets us going, we hope it will connect with people who are like-minded to us. Topics have changed over the years but it\u2019s still about angst. That\u2019s always going to be there.\u201d<\/p>\n

The members of Anthrax have stayed close to their musical roots \u2013 and close to their geographical roots.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re still the guys from New York,\u201d said Bello. \u201cI still live in New York and have no plans on ever moving.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a band to remain together for just under 40 years, there music be something special in the mix.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe secret to our longevity is respect,\u201d said Bellow. \u201cWe\u2019re like brothers. We give each other space \u2013 and respect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video link for Anthrax \u2013 https:\/\/youtu.be\/LuLvfm5yDlw<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show at the Santander Arena, which also features Slayer as headliner along with Lamb of God, Behemoth and Testament, will start at 5 p.m.<\/p>\n

Tickets start at $29.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times Tonight, area fans of thrash metal music know that there is only one place they should be \u2013 the Santander Arena (700 Penn Street, Reading, www.santander-arena.com). Tonight, the arena in Berk County is hosting \u201cSlayer\u2019s Final World Tour — Leg 1, North America.\u201d Joining Slayer is second-billed Anthrax, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28698,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7529],"tags":[10313,6518,10312],"class_list":["post-28696","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-d-arts-entertainment","tag-anthrax","tag-featured","tag-slayer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28696","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28696"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28696\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28697,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28696\/revisions\/28697"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28696"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28696"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kennetttimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28696"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}