We've Come For You All

Anthrax

Sanctuary Records, 2003

http://anthrax.com

REVIEW BY: Paul Hanson

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 07/28/2003

To prepare myself for reviewing this CD, the latest effort from one of the thrash metal genre's leaders, I spent a lot of time with their greatest hits release Return Of The Killer A's, which chronicles the band's career. I introduced my children to the song "Indians" as well as the frantic pace of their cover of the Joe Jackson tune "Got the Time." I also enjoyed their more recent tracks like "Only," realizing that the band has progressed from their early releases like Fistful Of Metal and Armed And Dangerous. More recently, the band has found out that you don't have to play 100 MPH to be a heavy band, a la Metallica.

Listening to their greatest hits gave me the perspective to conclude my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250 We've Come For You All is a stellar release. Anthrax continues what worked on their last release, Volume 8 - The Threat Is Real, and throws enough references to their early thrash roots to satisfy veteran and newbie fans.

It's at the 1:41 mark of "What Doesn't Die" that the band sounds like the old days of thrash metal. The crescendo is one that makes you imagine the band playing this song live. And that's a major thrust of this release. While there are some overdubs and special effects, the bulk of this material sounds like four guys that set up their instruments and started jamming. Vocalist John Bush sounds excellent, especially during "Nobody Knows Anything," which is also a stellar track for drummer Charlie Benante, who constructs a frantic drumbeat. The single "Safe Home" could serve as a suitable introduction to the band, who has still, despite Metallica's radio success, never really made a splash on the radio.

The song that I would think would make more of an impact is "Think About An End," a Charlie Benante-driven mid-tempo stomp. After multiple listens, this is the song I come back to as personifying the progress Anthrax has made on this release. It has the trademark Benante drumming, which relies more on tom-tom rhythms than a straight rock beat between hi-hat and snare.

At the 2:20 mark, Benante's bass drum stomp helps introduce a retro '80s riff, upon which Bush gives his best performance on this release. At the end of the day, Anthrax is continues the theme the theme of their song "I'm the Man," when they declared "We like to be different and not cliche."

In 2003, that is true. They are in the midst of a credible tour, sharing the stage with bands like Lamb of God, Lacuna Coil and E-Town Concrete. Chances are Anthrax mainstream fans, the ones that only introduced the band through "Safe Home," are not familiar with any of those bands. I must admit I've heard of all these bands, but I couldn't name a single song they recorded without looking up the band on the internet. My ignorance of these supposedly stellar bands holds up as an example of why Anthrax continues to be important in the music scene of 2003.

Rating: A

User Rating: Not Yet Rated


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© 2003 Paul Hanson and The Daily Vault. All rights reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of Sanctuary Records, and is used for informational purposes only.