Anthrax - For All Kings
Release Date: February 26, 2016
Anthrax is one of those bands where I feel I should have listened to them a while ago, but never really had the motivation to do so, or I just didn't know enough about them to get into them. I do know for a fact that they are a part of the "big four of thrash" and from what i've seen through the years, Anthrax is one of those bands that doesn't get the attention they deserve. But that's probably more due to the fact that Metallica and Megadeth took a lot of the spotlight, but honestly, every time I've listened to Anthrax, and it's not much, I have found them more enjoyable than most of Megadeth and Metallica's discography. Not saying they are superior in any means, hell I don't know which of the big four are better than the others, but for Anthrax to get the sort of back seat while the other three get all the attention isn't entirely fair. Upon further investigation, Anthrax have actually released a total of eleven studio albums. Looks like I've got some work to do.
For All Kings if you aren't aware is the most recent album released by Anthrax. It was released back in February. How I missed this release is beyond me, but hey, better late than never. So again, I want to stress that I've never really been the type to be super into this band, but after listening to this album, I may have to change that right away. This album is fantastic. Every track is catchy. Every track is fun to listen to. In a way, I'd say it's a cleaner form of thrash but done so in a way that it doesn't feel stripped of thrash at all, especially with the heavy riffs and vocal styles. You definitely won't be hearing Metallica and Megadeth with this music is what I'm trying to say, and honestly, maybe that's a good thing. It's sort of a breath of fresh air to hear thrash done in this way. I grow tired of the heavy / gritty vocals after a while, though I do love Megadeth's most recent release. Anyway, while I'm trying to get through a lot of the new releases this year, the new albums just keep coming up, and I'm enjoying them for the most part.
Overall, I've certainly got some homework to do in terms of Anthrax, because I've heard that if I like this album, I'm going to love some of their older albums. I've been told that this isn't even near their best work, so if this is what it sounds like when they aren't putting their best foot forward, I'd be curious to hear how their best albums sound like. Very nice way to get into their music though. Certainly a good release for this release, and it's nice to go to a good new release after being super disappointed with Rob Zombie's most recent album, which I talked about in this journal already.