LOS ANGELES, CA – TUESDAY, January 15, 2013 — Anthems, Anthrax’s long-awaited, eight-track EP that pays tribute to the classic songs by some of Anthrax’s favorite bands from the 1970s, will be released in North America on March 19 (MRI/Megaforce), and on March 22 in Europe (Nuclear Blast). Anthems’s track listing features Rush’s “Anthem,” Thin Lizzy’s “Jailbreak,” “TNT” by AC/DC, Boston’s “Smokin’,” “Big Eyes” by Cheap Trick, Journey’s “Keep on Runnin,” as well as the album version and a special remix of Anthrax’s “Crawl” from the band’s critically-acclaimed 2011 album Worship Music.
 
Said the band’s vocalist Joey Belladonna, “These are all bands I grew up with and have listened to forever. It’s just great music. I had fun singing these songs and I was happy recording together with Anthrax, doing classic rock songs. Fun stuff!”
 
On Boston’s “Smokin’,” Anthrax brought in a special guest to play keyboards – Fred Mandel, who has played with Alice Cooper, Queen, Elton John, Cheap Trick, Supertramp and on Pink Floyd’s The Wall. About the track, drummer Charlie Benante said, “If ever there were a perfect first album, it’s Boston’s first album. The harmony leads they did would later be heard by Iron Maiden, which of course would lead to thrash metal.”
 
The EP will be available on CD as well as digitally via iTunes and other online retailers. In addition to Anthems’ cover art (attached), Benante and artist Stephen Thompson have subtly redesigned each track’s original album cover art to “Anthrax” it. The Anthems EP will first be housed in one of the “re-imagined” digipak covers, and then inserted inside the main CD cover sleeve. The main cover sleeve has been designed in such a way so fans will be able to see which one of the six “re-imagined” covers is inside.
 
Anthems was produced by Anthrax, Jay Ruston and Rob Caggiano, and recorded for the most part throughout 2012 literally all over the world: at Benante’s home studio, in Ruston’s New York studio, on the band’s tour bus while on last summer’s Mayhem Tour, in hotel rooms, and backstage at their Berlin show last December.
 
The Grammy-nominated Anthrax – Belladonna, Benate/drums, Scott Ian/guitar and Frank Bello/bass – will hit the road in support Anthems on February 16 with dates in India and Australia, and then return to North America to headline the Metal Alliance Tour that kicks off March 22. For all of these dates, Anthrax will be joined by Shadows Fall guitarist Jon Donais.
 
(Update 1/18/13): Anthrax’s cover of Rush’s “Anthem” is now available for streaming at RollingStone.com.
 

 
IrishTimes.com: They were lost for a while, but 1980s metal megastars Anthrax are back, with old frontman Joey Belladonna, a new album and a new energy. “We sell more tickets now than in 1986,” says guitarist Scott Ian.
 
THERE ARE NO second acts in American life, according to F Scott Fitzgerald, but somebody forgot to tell Anthrax. In the 1980s, they were in the vanguard of thrash heavy metal riffs played at punk-rock pace, which changed heavy metal forever, and for the better.
 
In 2009, after more than a decade of diminishing returns, they had recorded an album of new material, but had no singer – ironic given that they have had eight since the band’s formation. They had parted ways with Dan Nelson and then his replacement John Bush, who had been in the band previously and was the longest-serving vocalist Anthrax had ever had.
 
The death rattle of a band in its final throes was audible. What to do? Ian now admits that he should never have fired Belladona in the first place. “People say ‘why it is so hard to keep a line-up together?’. People don’t get it. It’s worse than family,” he says.
 
The induction of Metallica, the undisputed kings of thrash, into the Roll and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009 provided another fillip. Ever scheming and dreaming of ways to keep Metallica in the public eye, drummer Lars Ulrich came up with his most audacious plan to date, a tour involving the “Big Four” of thrash metal, Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax.
 
“I can’t really say enough about those shows. Metallica have many reasons for their success over the years, and timing certainly is one of them. Success in the entertainment business is luck and timing. It really gave us the kick in the arse to keep moving forward.

 
Released at a time when the 80′s thrash-metal genre was exploding, Anthrax’s “Among The Living” joined Metallica’s “Master Of Puppets”, Slayer’s “Reign In Blood” and Megadeth’s “Peace Sells”, in birthing what came to be known as the Big Four.
 
Anthrax singer Joey Belladonna and guitarist Scott Ian, discuss at length stories behind the making of their gold-certified 1987 album that includes some of the band’s most popular tracks — “I Am The Law”, “Indians” and “Caught In A Mosh”.