Anthrax - XL
Anthrax
XL
Release Date: July 15th, 2022
Label: Megaforce Records
Review by Jared Stossel
Anthrax have officially been around for over forty years, officially founded in Queens in July of 1981 by Scott Ian and Dan Lilker. The band exploded onto the thrash metal scene in 1984 with the release of their first album Fistful of Metal, catapulting themselves in thrash superstardom and emerging as one of the “Big Four” acts responsible for making the genre what it is today along with Slayer, Metallica, and Megadeth. A big anniversary for a band like Anthrax requires a tour to properly celebrate, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic still blazing through the country, a large-scale tour wasn’t exactly an option. Instead, the band got together and hosted a global livestream event in Los Angeles on July 16th and 17th, 2021, spending nearly two-plus hours ripping through hit songs and deep cuts from their extensive catalogue.
The result is XL: a two hour and seventeen-minute heavy metal assault that finds the thrash metal pioneers sounding tighter than ever as they careen through song after song. Guitarists Scott Ian and Jon Donais glide their hands over the fretboard with ease, making it look effortless as they shred their way through riff after riff. Frank Bello’s bass lines sing on these performances, with just enough overdrive and grit pouring through the amplifier to both hear every note properly enunciated and feel it in your chest. Charlie Benante’s drumming throughout XL is top-tier, and it’s clear to understand why he’s been tapped to fill in for the late Vinnie Paul on next year’s Pantera tour. Vocalist Joey Belladonna is at the top of his game, never wavering or faltering throughout any moment on XL’s twenty-five career-spanning tracks.
Anthrax have released several live albums before, but never something where they’ve sounded as tight as they do on XL. There may not be a crowd in attendance (although you do hear the occasional “woo” from a crew member), but the New York five-piece sound punchier and angrier than they ever have. Public Enemy’s commanding MC Chuck Deven joins in the fun, teaming back up with the band to once again deliver the genre-bending “Bring The Noise”, a collaboration that took the world by storm when it premiered in 1991. A great deal of credit should also be attributed to the sound engineers that worked on the performances that make up XL, as they have done a tremendous job using the mix to bring out the best elements of each of these players.
We still may be waiting for that highly anticipated twelfth album from Anthrax, but the release of XL is a great way to tide things over until then. XL is a celebration of forty years of one of thrash metal’s best creations, a culmination of forty years of blood, sweat, tears, and moshing. Here’s to forty more.
The performances on XL are also available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD, and you can click here to get your copy.
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