Anthrax: An Interview with Joey Belladonna

Jenn Cohen | October 8, 2011 | 1 Comment

By Groovey

Thrash metal legends, Anthrax, have reunited with vocalist Joey Belladonna and released their 10^th studio album, “Worship Music.” After dropping on September 13^th to nearly universal rave reviews and “Metal Album of the Year” hopes, Anthrax hit the road with Testament and Death Angel, and is scheduled to appear at Summit Music Hall on October 19^th. Destined to be one of the best shows of the year, here’s what front man, Joey Belladonna, had to say about the new album and all things Anthrax.

CMB: As the (lead) vocalist, what were your initial thoughts when you heard the music that was written for “Worship Music”? Did you think this thing was going to be huge from the start or..

JB: Well, you know, all you can do is analyze the songs and try to develop them into a song that can be the best option . . . that would fit me vocally. I knew there were plenty of good songs that I could probably take and run with, which we did, but there is different styles and expectations for other people to hear from the album, so at that point all you can do is say, ‘I like what I did and I hope they like it.’ All I can say is that we like it, and that’s one achievement as a musician, like, ‘Man, I really dig what we did. It sounds good. The songs came out great. I love what you did, and I love what he did. I’m cool.’ When people start diggin’ it then you’re like, ‘Wow.’ And that’s like a whole other kind of feedback that you don’t expect.

CMB: Were there any challenging songs that were difficult to come up with melodies or hooks?

JB: There are songs that are just a little bit more challenging because they’re different. They are your typical sing-along kind of thing. What is a chorus to somebody might not sound like a chorus in certain songs that we have, and the arrangements are longer than other songs. You don’t know what it takes sometimes, like, how much more you need or how much you need to change it if you had to, but overall, I’m always thinking of hooks. Vocally, I just try to find a way to spin it up and make it sound like something you could sing along to, or at least have something catchy even if it is a ‘chorus-chorus’ type thing.

If I had to name a song, or whatever, it would be like, ‘Where’s the chorus for that song?’ And I’d be like, ‘It just went by. Oh, okay.’ It can be one line, you know. Look at “In My World.” “In My World” is, ‘I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid, in my world.’ It’s catchy, but not your typical chorus. There’s some songs that really just have the strangest choruses and some of them are just more set up for a hook. You find some great great parts to songs that you can put some good hooks to and, of course, I love singing hooks.

CMB: There are some cool lyrical themes going on with this album. Were they inspired by any specific movies or books?

JB: It’s just inner thoughts. Anything that you can bring out in a song. It’s a short, short story and I just use that curiosity to drive something home and make it sound cool. Sometimes it’s cool not to know what the thing is about and you have your own thoughts on it. I’ve had people get disappointed, ‘Aw, I thought it was about this . . . I coulda swore.’ But it’s all based on someone else’s imagination and what it means to them; which is cool, unless they really have to know. Sometimes I’m writing stuff alone and I come up with something, and it’s like, ‘Do I really want to say that? Yeah, yeah it works, it rhymes.’ And all of sudden you got this weird story that comes out which makes the thing come to life in such a short time.

CMB: Did you explore any different vocal styles or go to a vocal coach for this album?

JB: No. I just found 14 days open for singing, went out there, printed the lyrics and did it. We had a few moments of listening to the stuff on the bus prior to studio time but nothing extensive enough that I could even take with me. I knew that once I got out there it would be a fresh start on everything. Me and (producer) Jay Ruston, we went to his pad and studio. We didn’t do anything much different than we normally would do. We just took it song by song and really just put my best effort towards each song as much as I could, as in what I heard and how I heard them–what key they were in and how the words were pronounced. You know, ‘Am I singing the right word? Am I in key?’ Just the normal stuff you do when you sing.

I don’t think I had as much pressure as I would have had long ago when everybody was like, ‘No, you don’t do that, you gotta do it like this. Are you having problems? We have them too. Let me show ya.’ There was none of that crap. Everything was really, ‘Just get in there and do what you do.’ And I had all the confidence; I think that helped. There shouldn’t be any rough stuff, it should be fun doing it and explore. And I’ve never taken lessons, I like to be as natural as I possibly can.

CMB: So how did it feel to play at Yankee Stadium for the Big Four show? (Sept. 15th)

JB: It’s an awesome feeling to get offered to play there. What a great line-up to bring in there and just– New York City, it’s always a fun day. There’s plenty of people who come from all over to New York City and enjoy an afternoon of metal. It’s one for the books, you know?

CMB: So with a crowd that big do you still get butterflies at all?

JB: No. In fact, it seems to get easier there because there’s such a wide range and depth of people that to me it works the other way around. When you play clubs you are right on top of each other but I try to focus on the event itself. It’s a gig. ‘Here’s my set, here’s the songs.’ I get plenty of butterflies as far as just excitement, [but] I don’t let one ride the other. Like a big show like that ,probably [most] concern is the people and friends in the back stage area, and to make sure they got their tickets and where do they go. Before and after the show is probably more of a hassle than it is just playing the show.

October 19, 2011 Anthrax, Testament, and Death Angel at Summit Music Hall

www.anthrax.com