Album Review : Anthrax – Worship Music
Anthrax, a name which almost every person knows when it comes to Thrash Metal. Yes, they are one of the highlights of the BIG 4 but personally many people feel they dont deserve the tag of BIG 4 after the departure of their insane vocalist Mr. Joey Belladonna. After showing us the darker side of Anthrax in 80′s with albums like Among the Living, Spreading the Disease and inturn paving way to 90′s epic thrash metal record Persistence of Time, Anthrax deserved the title of BIG 4, unfortunately after his departure things didn’t seem to work in a way they wanted. Well fuck the past, after almost two decades, the big daddy is back and time has come for Anthrax to prove the people why they deserve to be called one of the BIG 4 and inturn celebrate their 30th Anniversary.
I am not interested to compare John and Joey here so lemme go straight to the point. Its been a long time since they released their last album We’ve Come for You All. With 3 vocalists(Dan Nelson, John Bush and finally Joey) changed over a span of 2 years was indeed chaotic for all the fans and to be honest, fans of Anthrax were very excited to hear Joey behind the mic. Finally the wait is over, they have released an incredible album Worship Music after 8 long years. Its produced by Anthrax, Scrap 60, and Jay Ruston.
Tracklist:
01. Worship
02. Earth On Hell
03. The Devil You Know
04. Fight ‘Em Til You Can’t
05. I’m Alive
06. In The End
07. The Giant
08. Judas Priest
09. Crawl
10. The Constant
11. Revolution Screams
At almost hour long list, the album kicks off with an intro Worship where you can some nice cello work by Alison Chesley. A pretty descent instrumental leads to Earth On Hell, a super charged crazy riff attack. The moment you hear the clock tick, its totally a speed metal beer bash. Its groovy and crazy Anthrax introduction to all fans. Personally i have missed these moments from Anthrax from long time and finally they delivered. Its pretty much straight, picture perfect assault with Charlie belting some insane blast beats all over. Right from the go its Joey vocals at its best. The chorus sounds fucking brilliant, thumping bass and crushing riffs reminds the Persistence era. Song structure is at its best, takes a thrashy route and knows what exactly they gotta do. You guys wanna whup someone’s ass brutally???? Earth On Hell is the way \m/
Then comes The Devil You Know, a hard rockish approach where Joey again nails his dramatic vocals to the core. This song has got crazy guitar lines by Rob Caggiano and classic Scott fret burning work. Its surrounded by lot of Alter Bridge vibe. The moment you hear the chorus of this song, you got no choice but to give a fucking bow down to Jeoy. Man he’s still blessed with awe-fuckin-some voice. If you are a true Anthrax fan, then you cant imagine them without Joey.
Next comes the fast paced, motherfucking assault Fight ‘Em Til You Can’t, This song was released as a single few weeks back and it has everything what a fast paced metal fan wants. Crazy chuggs of riffs, insane skin bashing, brutal bass lines and not to forget the legendary voice all over it. Almost 3 songs over and Anthrax are already unleashed, damn this single deserves a devil horns throughout.
Some great lines by Joey:
“The darkest devil nightmare blacker than their evil souls you gotta fight ‘em I’ll end you
God save us prayers fall on deaf ears so put your faith in force you gotta fight ‘em; I’ll end you”
I’am Alive is another fantastic grunge track. Before i give you my analysis, bare in mind this tune is gonna be in your fucked up brain for years. With acoustic intro leads to very well executed beats by Charlie and ass whooping bass work by Frank, this song has melody written all over it. The moment you hear this it will remind you of Iron Maiden and what makes this song more insane is the guitar medley by Scott and Rob. You finding it merciless and chaotic??? Fuck yeah, Anthrax is unleashing all the frustrations over the years in this song.
Then comes In The End, a 7 min epic song where you get to hear some insane production work, fast paced riffs and Joey again nailing full force vocals. He is the right fucking person for the band and they know it. This legend doesn’t need a practise session. I certainly felt he directly recorded his vocals in studio without any practise. From Metallica to NWOBHM, this track is a true respect and tribute to Ronnie and Dime. You cant find even a single flaw. As some crack fucker in late 80′s said: ‘Joey never disappoints’. This track concludes on an epic melodic riffs written so damn precisely.
Now comes The Giant, this track was disappointing because it clearly felt things aren’t coming the way they should have. Although the chorus made the mark but rest just seemed to be messy. The track Judas Priest has some connection with the legendary band of same name, although the song was written the time Epitaph was announced. Heavily influenced by them, i expected some great guitar work and this track proves it.
“Reign, reign
The ending of yours has begun
The ending of yours has begun”
Right from the word go, this song strikes the chord. A classic tribute to classic Judas Priest.
Then comes the power ballad Crawl which is slow paced. Its disappointing as it again felt out of place. Although we can call it an experimental track where Anthrax tried to explore thier skills beyond some level. Highly appreciated but didn work. Damn it doesn’t alter kickass Worship Music when considered as a whole. Now we reach The Constant which is another straight forward approach. Its fast, crazy but doesn’t leave the impression like the beginning tracks.
Finally we reach the concluding track Revolution Screams, here the low range voice of Joey leaves a great impression. What makes this track a memorable outro is the killer guitar work and skin bashing by guitar duo Scott, Rob and Charlie. A pretty good way to end the album if not the best way. The moment you hear this track, you can feel the intense work on cards.
Now i shall note down the pro’s and con’s of this album as follows:
Pro’s:
1. No doubt, its the best Anthrax album after Persistence of Time.
2. With Joey back on vocals, its surely a treat to listen this man belting the ass out of this record. He is at his best. The band have made this album keeping aggressive vocalist in mind.
3. Song writing is at its best and the band members have delivered it to the core.
4. Guitar work by Rob and Scott are memorable and their solo’s really deserve respect. Frank deserves applause for some great bass lines.
5. Skin basher Charlie is no doubt at his career best with the intensity at which he nails those blast beats and insane double patterns.
6. Not to forget the way these guys have taken the song writing to another level compared to their earlier work. This is certainly better than Metallica’s Death Magnetic when considered coming back to thrash roots.
Con’s:
1. First half of the album is 100 fucking percent crazy Anthrax but what disappoints is the later section which doesn’t have the feel which certainly would have made this record a brilliant masterpeice.
2. Compared to other BIG 4 bands, Anthrax have come close to other albums like Endgame, World Painted Blood and recently released Thirteen. But Worship Music lacks that consistency and efficient approach.
3. Lyrically this album has many flaws and sometimes embarrasing.
If not for those flaws this album is truly a comeback and a way to prove people that Anthrax deserves the BIG 4 title. With crystal clear production and fast paced first section at their best we fans must truly WORSHIP MUSIC.
Hail Anthrax \m/
Rating: 8/10
