By Christopher David<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a good time to be a fan of thrash metal.<\/p>\n
Megadeth\u2019s Dystopia<\/em> is one of their best albums ever, Slayer is set to embark on a massive world tour in support of 2014\u2019s Repentless<\/em>\u2026and to my mind, sitting at the top of this mountain is Anthrax.<\/p>\n The hardest working band in the so-called \u201cBig Four,\u201d Joey Belladonna\u2019s return to the fold in 2010 promised big things\u2014things that were delivered in spades on 2011\u2019s Worship Music\u2014<\/em>and five years later, the New York quintet is set to release one of the best albums they\u2019ve ever written, For All Kings<\/em> (2\/26). In preparation for that release, the band has been on the road with Lamb of God and Deafheaven for the last few weeks, and Chicago\u2019s show at the Aragon Ballroom proved to anyone still doubting that Anthrax\u2014currently celebrating their 35th<\/sup> anniversary–are at the top of their game.<\/p>\n While Saturday\u2019s Aragon show was an opening set, you\u2019d never know it from the reaction of the capacity crowd and the band\u2019s fervor as they tore into \u201cFight Em Til You Can\u2019t\u201d from Worship Music<\/em>, leading a chain of classics \u2013 \u201cCaught In A Mosh,\u201d \u201cGot the Time,\u201d and \u201cAntisocial\u201d\u2014before the band stopped to catch its breath.<\/p>\n Pausing to greet the crowd and introduce a new song, iconic guitarist Scott Ian asked the crowd if they liked thrash metal, to which the response was predictable. \u201cThen you\u2019re welcome,\u201d he grinned, before leaping into the razor-edged riff that guides \u201cEvil Twin,\u201d the first of two new singles from For All Kings. <\/em>\u201cIn the End,\u201d the band\u2019s homage to Dimebag Darrell and Ronnie James Dio, was highlighted with murals of the two fallen metal icons flanking the stage. That song, perhaps more than any other in the set, remains a highlight of the band\u2019s career and calls to attention just how adept they are at crafting an anthemic, hook-driven crossover between metal and hard rock, all while focused around a riff that every budding metal guitarist on earth probably wishes he or she had written.<\/p>\n \u201cBreathing Lightning,\u201d another new song (and perhaps the most accessible tune in the band\u2019s catalog) and the long-time mosh anthem \u201cIndians\u201d closed out a set that was, alas, all too short, but such is the opening slot. Pausing midway at the song\u2019s breakdown, Ian called an audible and the band stopped. \u201cWe want everyone on their feet, Chicago,\u201d he snarled, \u201cyou people down here<\/em>, down here<\/em>, and all of you motherfuckers sitting up there in the balconies like it\u2019s Sunday in church.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 As the front half of the ballroom erupted into the classic war-dance, the band got its wish. (Strangely absent were any cuts from 1985\u2019s Spreading the Disease<\/em>, currently celebrating its 30th<\/sup> anniversary with a deluxe reissue, but perhaps their headlining tour later this year will see some action from that classic slab.)<\/p>\n Anthrax have always been a band whose members are individually as strong as the whole. Bassist Frank Bello is a Tasmanian devil of crowd-rousing, while Benante continues to flourish as arguably the best drummer in metal. Belladonna and Ian, both excellent showmen, have long been the \u201cface\u201d of Anthrax for many fans, and new guitarist Jonathan Donais brings a new shot of adrenalin to the band\u2019s lead guitar slot. Calling to mind the style of Eric Clapton in the sense that he makes the most blazing solo look so damn easy, Donais may just be the best lead guitarist in the band\u2019s history so far \u2013 time will tell.<\/p>\n Regardless, For All Kings<\/em> will usher in a new and vibrant chapter in the Anthrax story, and at the Aragon, the band proved beyond doubt that they\u2019re up to the challenge<\/p>\n <\/p>\n For photos of the show, click here<\/a><\/p>\n