Looking back on my early metal journey, there couldn’t have been a better time than the early ’10s for me to discover Anthrax. Thanks to the return of classic singer Joey Belladonna and their participation in the Big 4 concerts, not to mention the ongoing thrash revival, the band underwent a massive resurgence. This culminated in the release of their oft-celebrated comeback album, Worship Music (2011), which was very…OK. Even as a green-faced 12 year old who bought this album the day it dropped, there was nothing on there that moved the needle for me the way “Lone Justice” or “Imitation of Life” did. Between Music Choice’s metal channel and Eddie Trunk’s program, I can’t tell you how many times I heard “Fight ‘Em ’til You Can’t”.
Worship Music followed in 2016, and was equally uneventful. Again, there were some decent cuts, but by and large, it was another in-one-ear, out-the-other release that lacked the hooks and charisma of their ’80s heyday. Which brings us to the present day. I’m a decade older, fatter, and somewhat wiser (so I like to think). So are Anthrax, who have returned with their first album in 10 and a half years, Cursum Perficio. Again, keep in mind this band had a decade and change to work on this album. Of course, a lot happened in that time: A global pandemic, Scott Ian joining an iteration of Mr. Bungle, Charlie Benante joining an iteration of Pantera…you get the idea. And yet this band still continues to wallow in the pools of thrash metal mediocrity with reunion era album #3.
Much like For All Kings and Worship Music before it, Cursum Perficio isn’t all bad. I might even go so far to crown “It’s for the Kids” to be the best song of their reunion era thus far. It’s got breakneck thrash riffs, signature Belladonna vocal lines, and a downright nasty slamming breakdown reminiscent of “Keep It in the Family” off Persistence of Time (1990). If the entire album was in this vein, it’d still probably be quite derivative, but at least more compelling than what we ended up with. “Everybody’s Got a Plan” is also quite strong, utilizing the heavy-thrash sound the band has leaned heavily towards since their reunion, but with an aura that’s almost State of Euphoria-esque (1988).
As for the rest of Cursum Perficio, we’ve got a whole lot of OK and a handful of downright awful. With its black metal tremolo riffing and blast beats, “The Edge of Perfection” is easily the most intriguing Anthrax song in recent memory. Is it good? Not really. If you took away the blackened undertones, you’d have a generic slab of middle of the road prog metal. The opening “The Long Goodbye” and “NYC 93” are fine for what they are. And then there are those painful reminders that when push came to shove, in the dark days of the ’90s, this band hopped on any bandwagon they could when given an opportunity to do so in a desperate effort to remain culturally relevant. From downer alt rock (“Infectious”) to lowest common denominator groove metal (“Target on My Back”), Anthrax still act as if they’re more than “just” a thrash band, like that’s something to be ashamed of.
Scott Ian, if you’re reading this in between Behind the Music appearances, I highly recommend you reach out to your fellow east coast thrash brethren, Overkill, for some pointers. Now there’s a band who are content with their identity. Better yet, reach out to your current tourmates, Iron Maiden: 50 years and 0 compromises. Sure, there are albums I like more than others (5 years on and Senjutsu still does nothing for me), but even at their lowest point, Maiden never stopped being Maiden. It’d sure be nice if Anthrax started being Anthrax again.
5 out of 10
Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Genre: Thrash Metal
For fans of: Metallica, Testament, Megadeth
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