Despite the fact that he was not willing to talk about SOD and his problems with Record Labels, Charlie Benante was quite talkative when interviewed about his band Anthrax, their latest release “Music of Mass Destruction”, and his appreciation for the masters of Progressive music, Rush.
Sitting quite comfortably on a couch at the backstage of the London Astoria, I heard why the capital of England makes Charlie feel like home, and why the members of the band’s road crew always have dirty black hands.
Hi.. Can you give us the latest news from the Anthrax camp? Quite recently we had the departure of Frank Bello from the band, which took us quite by surprise. What happened there?
Charlie: Basically, like I said on my website, I think it was a separation that needed to happen. Frankie just needs to work out some things, you know…I think that his departure was a good thing for us at this point. We’ll see how things will go after this - we’ll try to make things work out. He’s a member of the family, so…
No hard feelings towards him?
Charlie: Not yet, no.
Have you found any permanent replacement for him? Rumours say that you’re going to use Joe Vera’s assistance for this coming tour.
Charlie: Joey started with us during the Japanese and Australian tour in April. He was kind enough to come over here, and help us out doing these shows. Joey is great – he’s just a great bass player, and it just felt really natural…from the first show that he played with us, it just felt natural. I guess it’s because we’ve known him for so long, and John (Bush, the band’s singer) of course has been in the same band with him (Armored Saint) – John’s known him ever since they were kids, so it just felt like the machine didn’t stop – it just kept running, you know? It’s good!
I was mostly impressed because I know that Fates Warning are in the process of recording a new album.
Charlie: He did that in the break between. When we came back from Australia he went to do that (record the album with Jim Matheos and Co), and he just finished it before we left for this tour, so he’s a busy boy.
You have very recently released “Music of Mass Destruction”, which was recorded during a gig in Chicago. What made you choose that specific location – any special bonds with the City of Winds?
Charlie: There is a (laughs)…We feel like it’s our home. It is my home, because I’ve been living there, but the band Anthrax has always had this thing with Chicago. It’s one of the places where they showed such a liking for us since the beginning of the band, and they never stopped – they just grew. Every time we play there, we have these shows that are just completely unbelievable! We always said: “We got to record a show there, we got to record a show there”, and the time came that we did. This is great – this is a f***ing killer man! We couldn’t have asked for a better night.
The double copy that I received has a CD, and a DVD from this specific gig. Does that mean that we’re not going to have a proper DVD released from the band in the near future?
Charlie: Well, that is it! We thought that this is a proper DVD, but it’s going to be released here (Europe) in July. It is released as an import for the time being, but it is going to be officially released in Europe this July.
I believed that it’s always difficult to choose songs for a compilation or a live performance, when bands with the experience and the discography are involved. How easy was it to create the play list for this release, and why did you chose to ignore once again the band’s first two releases?
Charlie:Oh no, on the DVD there is also “Metal Thrashing Mad” – I think that “Madhouse” is on there too. I know that “Metal Thrashing Mad” is on there. It’s from another show that we did in Michigan, and it’s a bonus track. We play something from every record. We play things from the first record, to the newest record. I think that the only record that we don’t play…oh no, we play something from that record too…oh no we don’t, sorry.
At some point I believed that you may no longer want to play stuff from your earlier records.
Charlie: Oh no, we love that stuff. As a matter of fact, there’s going to be a record coming out at the end of the year, that all it is is old stuff redone. It’s all picked by the fans, the songs that they wanted to hear and we re-recorded for them.
It’s been almost one and a half years since the release of “We’ve Come for you All”, which was quite an amazing album. How do you feel about this release as we speak? Do you believe that this album managed to attract both the old and the new fans of the band?
Charlie: Looking back at the record, I think that it was a great package. Everything on that record is 100%, and I think that it did attract the older fans, and of course some new fans. I think that it’s better than any record that has come out this past year – it pisses on all that sh**, and that’s what I feel. It was a good record.
What about the compositions of the album. Who was involved the most?
Charlie: John wrote some stuff too - he wrote some lyrics for the songs.
So the rumours that you have created most of the riffs of the songs in the band’s history are true?
Charlie: (He smiles, but doesn’t answer).
You are, as far as I’m concerned, one of the most innovative bands in the history of Metal, and songs like “I’m the Man”, and “Bring The Noise”, are the living proof of that statement. What’s the reason for this kind of “experiments”? Is it just a case of Anthrax simply enjoying themselves, or a crusade against narrow-mindedness?
Charlie: I think that it’s a question of whatever we’re enjoying at the time, as far as influences go. Then the music just comes out, and the look and everything. Nothing is really so calculated, you know? It’s just pretty much the way it goes, the way it evolves, you know what I mean? We don’t sit there with pens and papers going “this could be good”. It’s simply one idea and we go with it – if it sucks, it sucks!
I think that it takes guts- other bands would think twice before doing such a thing.
Charlie: I think that nowadays…maybe fifteen years ago it wasn’t so free to try to do different things, but nowadays you can do whatever you want, you know what I mean? The Metalheads still have a bit of this closed-mindedness. They like what they like, and they’re not free to open up to other forms. For me, I listen to everything. Metal to me and Hard Rock is where we come from. I also like this and that and try to incorporate it in the whole mixture…it’s just that sometimes Metalheads can be so closed-minded, you know?
What’s the reaction of people towards the band nowadays? You used to have problems with the band’s name not quite long ago. Is it true that when you decided to send samples of “Safe Home” to radio stations you deliberately chose not to use the band’s name? It sounds like we’re still living in the middle ages!
Charlie: That’s not true. Everything worked out ok, thank God, everything was good. I’m glad that the whole Anthrax scare didn’t last that long. A few people died, which is terrible, but…anyway, I’m just glad that it didn’t go as far as people thought that it would.
Most of the bands that have been around for as long as you guys are kind of fed up touring. This, on the other hand, is probably the fourth or the fifth time that I’ll see you guys touring the UK in a period of less than two years. How important is touring for Anthrax? Can you ever imagine yourselves becoming a studio band?
Charlie: Well, you know this record it seems to me that we’ve toured a lot on, in more and so than our last three records. We just changed it up, this is what we did. We just wanted to come and play for more people, hit different territories that we haven’t been. We just came from France – we played Lyon, Salzburg and we also played Paris, and you could just tell – you could look at these kids in the audience, and they were so happy, you know, like it’s been a long time. To me that is what it’s all about. You go there, and people are so happy to see you, they want to hear the music and that is a great thing. That’s what it’s all about – making people happy, I think. Last night it was the same thing. We played Nottingham, and it was great.
So, what’s the programme as far as touring is concerned after today’s show?
Charlie: After today? We still have more shows to play. Wacken, which is one of the most important festivals, is in August. This tour ends on July 10th, and then we come back on the 30th, and we finish in Budapest. Then we will go home in order to work on this other record with the old stuff.
As you just mentioned, you are also going to participate in this year's Wacken Festival. How does it feel to be able to perform in front of big crowds after all these years? Did you ever imagine that you would have achieved so many things, when you first created the band back in 1981?
Charlie: Who’s headlining, Saxon?
Scott Ian: Yes
Charlie: Yeah, you know what? It will be great to play with all these bands – that’s all that I’ll say (he seemed to have been angry about something, but I chose not to ask him why).
I’m not really into that sh**. I mean, I love Saxon, I love the first two records, but… I grew up listening to songs like “Strangers in the Night”, so it will be really cool to see something like that. It’s great to play festivals – you just get up there and it’s all these people…but you just need to do what you have to do.
Anthrax is part of the US Thrash Metal holy trinity, with the other two bands being Metallica and Slayer. Did it ever cross your mind, back then, that one day you would have achieved so many things with this band?
Charlie: No (laughs). When I got in the band, to me what we were doing just wanted to become something like idols, like Kiss and Judas Priest. When we actually achieved to play with these bands, it was crazy. But now, it’s too exciting - it still gets me. I don’t know if it still feels the same like back then, because back then I was just having that experience for the first time. I’m used to certain things now, but I still get excited when I have to go out and play…you just feel it – everything is running inside you.
What about SOD? Bigger Than the Devil was released back in 1999, and we were promised another release from the band. Didn’t things work out between the members of the band after all?
Charlie: - yeah, I don’t really know! I don’t really talk about it!
Quite a diplomatic answer.
Charlie: I don’t want to talk about that!
Ok. Have you kept contact with any of the band’s past members? Will it ever be possible to see you again sharing the same stage with Danny Spitz or Joe Belladonna?
Charlie: (laughs)oh well, when we do the Anthrax band camp, we’ll have them come out. I mean, I don’t know. I can only speak for right now, I don’t think that’s going to happen (laughs).
I have quite recently interviewed members from both Exodus and Death Angel, and they both claimed that the reason that made them play music were KISS. Which are the artists that influenced you in order to become a musician?
Charlie: I’ll be totally honest with you. Kiss was a big influence for me when I was a kid. I f***ing love Kiss – everything that they do is simply incredible, but I will say that as far as this Thrash Metal type of thing, when we were in the 80’s…for us, Metallica and Slayer, the band that we always agreed to name as our main influence was Rush. Rush was the band that we had this common denominator – I don’t know what it is. I guess the musicianship and the songs.
It’s not a secret that one of the biggest weapons in Anthrax’s arsenal is the lyrics. Who’s the main lyricist of the band nowadays?
Charlie: It’s John, but we all pretty much write lyrics for the band.
Where do you draw your inspiration from nowadays?
Charlie: I think that most of the times it’s John. He gets it from personal experiences, and sometimes those types of things are easier to relate to. Writing about a story that you made up, or a book that you’ve read… I think that personal issues are the ones that people understand and relate easier to, because one way or another, you’ve gone through that – some struggle that you’ve had. I think that people can relate to that.
You’ve had quite a few problems with record labels in the past, and I’m referring to Island Records – don’t tell me that you don’t want to comment again, because I won’t have anything to write about at the end of the day (laughs). How did you reach an agreement with Nuclear Blast, and how happy are you to be working with them?
Charlie: I will say that I’m happy with Nuclear Blast, and I’m happy with JVC in Japan, and that is it! That’s everything that you need to know about this sh**. Nuclear Blast? They got in contact with us actually, and you have to understand that, that whole team in Germany love hard music – they love Hard Rock and Heavy Metal – every single person there loves this music. To me, that’s the best place to be. You know they will work hard for you, and they do – that’s the bottom line! We have problems in America with this label Sanctuary, because they just don’t care – that’s the truth.
Sanctuary is the label that represents the band in the States? I saw that the new CD/DVD is released through them, and I was a bit confused, I have to admit.
Charlie: It’s only released through Sanctuary, because for the moment it comes here as an import. Over here it comes out on the 22 of July through Nuclear Blast.
You are a member of a very successful band. Which are these things that you need to achieve still, in order to feel complete as a personality and as a musician?
Charlie: For me, this last record we did has made me achieved things as a drummer, which I haven’t managed to do in our previous records. Something happened and I had this burst of creativity. Who knows, the next record could be nothing, but I’m happy with the way I play these days, and I just feel more confident than I ever did before. Same with songwriting.
Can you describe an ordinary day in the studio with Anthrax?
Charlie: that’s a weird question, because sometimes being in the studio can be non productive, and others can be really productive, you know. Sometimes you walk in feeling that you’re 100% like “I’m going to be great today”, and you get there, and you suck. It depends on how it goes.
Do the hands of your roadies look as horribly black as they did during the “Among the Living” tour?
Charlie: (laughs) they’re just naturally dirty (laughs). If they have a bad show, then we have a bad show. What is always tough for a band are the monitors. People need to understand that. If your monitors are crap for you, it can make your show crap, because you cannot hear anything. If my monitors are crap, or John’s monitors are crap, then your attention is on the monitor and not at what you’re doing and that makes a bad show.
How long do you think that this dream is going to last with Anthrax? Do you have plans on doing something else when you decide to stop touring and writing music?
Charlie: That’s a hard question to answer, because we still feel passionate about music. I will go on for as much as I can – do what I do.
Your finest memory as a member of Anthrax?
Charlie: Seeing many places, meeting different people. I met some great people with whom I became friends. I’m lucky to be where I am and done what I did in my life. A lot of people from where I come from wouldn’t be able to say that. I’ve seen more things than many people that come from over there, and that’s because of me being in the band…I met my wife…I met many people that I made a good relationship with, and that’s great, you know? Creating music that make people happy, that’s the one thing that I always hear from the fans of this band “I’ve been through many bad things in my life, and that music helped me a lot” – I like that.
Do you think that you and the band have been treated fairly by the music press throughout the years?
Charlie: No, of course not! There have been so many bands out there that have created sh** records over the years, and they’re still in talks with the music press. That makes me sick - that’s all!
Is that completely the fault of the music press, or is it also the fault of all these people who buy an album just because it’s been promoted a lot?
Charlie: Well, you know, there is a big magazine over here, who doesn’t give us much coverage at all, and when this magazine was starting it was blasting our pictures all over their covers in order to sell. Now they just sleep on us, they don’t put us in – I say “f*** you, I don’t need your sh**” (Note: for whom the bell tolls???). We’re still playing here without any big support.
What is it that you would like to tell to your fans in the UK, and to those throughout the world?
Charlie: What kind of message should we give to London? London is the sh**, it’s the greatest. I’ve always wanted to come and play in England, and it never disappointed me. When I come here, I feel familiar with the environment. That’s great – I don’t feel as a foreigner, I feel like I belong here. I thank you all for that.
Interview © 2004
John Stefanis
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