UMUR "Worship Music" is the 10th full-length studio album by US thrash/alternative metal act Anthrax. The album was released through Megaforce Records/Nuclear Blast Records in September 2011. "Worship Music" is the first album by the band since "We've Come For You All (2003)" and marks the return of former frontman Joey Belladonna who hadn´t recorded original material with the band since "Persistence Of Time (1990)".

After waiting 8 years for a new album expectations have been high from the fans, and listening to "Worship Music" I´m pretty sure most of them are satisfied with what they hear. While definitely not a full fledged thrash metal album, "Worship Music" features more thrash metal elements than any of the four albums released without Belladonna and I think it´s a relief to many. When that is said the album also features traditional heavy metal and alternative/groove metal elements, but it all come together in a style that´s unmistakably the sound of Anthrax and display that the band are neither retrospective nor stagnant in their songwriting style. They´ve always sought to challenge themselves and the metal scene in general and "Worship Music" is another example of that.

The album features several kickass tracks like "Earth on Hell", "The Devil You Know" and "I'm Alive", but also a power ballad type track in "Crawl" and several more melodic tinged tracks like "Fight ´em til You Can´t" and "The Constant". The latter features melodic guitar themes that somewhat remind me of "Potters Field" from "Sound Of White Noise (1993)". So all in all it´s a varied tracklist but at the same time it´s overall a cohesive album. Having Joey Belladonna back behind the microphone doesn´t change that much IMO. He has a slightly more melodic singing style compared to John Bush, but I like them both, and I could easily hear John Bush singing the tracks on "Worship Music" and do them as much justice as Joey Belladonna does. The musicianship is of course excellent throughout the album and the powerful sound production is only another strong asset that makes "Worship Music" a successful release.

"Worship Music" is Anthrax sounding as fresh as ever. I like the fact that even though they´ve somewhat returned to a more thrashy sound, they don´t sound retro. I think they have a pretty contemporary sound without losing their integrity and that´s a pretty hard balance to strike. A 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.

Stephen 'Worship Music', the first Anthrax album in 21 years with original singer, Joey Belladonna, which is quite funny because this album is not intended to be recorded with his vocal in the first place, and not even John Bush at all, but Dan Nelson, their short-lived replacement singer. Initial reception of this release has been overwhelming and highly positive, mainly because it's the long-awaited return of Belladonna and an original material of Anthrax, but objectively, I can't agree that it's a flawless album, in fact, it's quite far from perfect.

The first half is obviously much stronger, thanks to the contribution of two monstrous tracks. 'The Devil You Know', a very melodic thrash outfit, even bordering commercial, the riffs are sensational, and the best track here; and 'Fight Em Till You Can't', again, still a very melodic tune but the riffs are furious too. 'Earth On Hell' with its occasional blast beat drumming, is pretty good opener, and 'I'm Alive' is a nice track with a neat guitar interlude.

'In The End' is more heavy metal while 'The Giant' is similar but more thrashy, in fact, I found that on the second half, Anthrax is stripping down thrash and tried to flirt with heavy metal and even hard rock. 'Judas Priest' is confused whether it's going to become a thrash or modern metal. 'Crawl' is definitely the worst track, this is like Anthrax doin' a Soundgarden tune. 'The Constant' is slightly better, but still a weak track after all, and the alternative feel is too much.

My first impression is even worst, claiming this a 60% album and very average from start to finish with probably only couple of strong tracks, but after more spins, I'm settling in around 75%, but still a disappointment judging from those rave reviews I've read. This is basic Bay Area thrash with many melodic moments, infused with modern element and traditional heavy metal flavor, and probably will stand in the middle between their early years and John Bush era.

Kingcrimsonprog Anthrax released their tenth full length studio album Worship Music in 2011, which was the first album to feature singer Joey Belladonna in 21 years, and their first studio album at all in 8 years.

The story behind the album is fairly well discussed; the rumors of Corey Taylor joining the band, the mysterious dismissal of new singer Dan Nelson, the Big Four tour with the Sonishpere Festival etc. In the nineties Anthrax were left in the proverbial wilderness when their record company imploded and it seemed they’ve been back there again ever since their Alive 2 DVD was released in 2005.

You aren’t likely to get many impartial opinions on this record. Some people have been clamoring for a new Joey Belladona fronted Anthrax album for over a decade however some people think the band have become irrelevant since parting ways with John Bush, the singer on the four studio albums released since Belladona left, and whichever singer a person prefers is likely to unfairly colour their opinion on the actual record.

On its own merits, Worship Music is a good record full of impressive musicianship and songs that don’t feel as though you’ve already heard them before by a thousand other bands. Importantly however, it isn’t exactly a return-to-thrash nostalgia record. The music was written before Joey even returned and only tweaked to suit him later, consequently the album feels like a mixture of both Anthrax styles, with songs that they’d never have written with Joey before as well as songs that they’d don’t sound like they’d suit John anymore.

Half of the tracks, like the initially slow `In The End,’ (which is an album highlight) and the eclectic `Judas Priest,’ provide the next logical step to We Have Came For You All, and would feel very out of place on any other Belladonna record, yet he makes them his own here on Worship Music and fits the album perfectly. If you came to the album without knowing the history, it isn’t beyond the realms of possibility that you couldn’t imagine the songs with anyone but Joey, and that is a testament to the quality of the finished product.

Of course; at least some of the music is directed at the return-to-form blurbs, such as the pre-released tracks `Fight Em Till You Can’t,’ and `The Devil You Know,’ as well as the very 80s-Anthrax sounding `Giant,’ all of which are great Thrash tinged songs that should give you an idea of the direction of the other half of the album. The only thing that seems out of place altogether is a hidden cover of Refused’s classic `The New Noise.’

Aside from the music, the production is superb. You can imagine that the band had a lot of time in the studio to get it just perfect and it really shows, the band mix all the advancements made in technology with a key understanding of the relationship between the bass guitar and the drumkit that defines the signature 80s Anthrax sound.

Overall; Worship Music is a good album that may not be what everybody wanted and that will likely be met with mixed reviews from people who prefer one era of the band to the other. For those who like Anthrax period, who love the way Scott Ian’s wrist moves, and the feel of Charlie Benante’s kick drum, this is an absolutely great album that you shouldn’t hesitate to check out or allow the history behind it to spoil your enjoyment of.

Time Signature I'm alive...

Genre: An-thrash

After two turbulent decades and plenty of downs and disappointments, the 'Thrax is back in full force with "Worship Music", a beast of a metal album, and perhaps their best release since "The Persistence of Time".

Having operated within groove and alternative metal territory (with a couple of heavier things, too) in the John Bush era, Anthrax have returned to a more melodic thrash oriented style which is very similar to their classic 80s albums. Thus, Anthrax bombard the listener with crushing thrash riffs and fast drums intermingled with more melodic and traditional heavy metal elements, and, while this album represents a return to the band's traditional metal and thrash metal roots, Anthrax have not completely abandoned the alternative groove metal that they experimented with in the 90s, and there are a couple of very groovy passages which fit perfectly into the overall sound of "Worship Music".

The album starts out with a solemn atmospheric intro called 'Worship', which is abruptly interrupted by the chaotic, noise-accompanied blastbeat that is the introduction to 'Earth on Hell' - and the thrash-fest starts. 'Earth on Hell', 'The Devil You Know', and 'Fight 'em 'til You Can't' are primarily uptempo rockers, with "Earth on Hell" and 'Fight 'em...' being melodic thrashers and 'The Devil You Know' being more of a traditional metal tune. 'I'm Alive' is more akin to the Bush-era alternative metal style of Anthrax and is based on some pretty cool riffs, while Joey Belladonna adds a melodic aspect above and beyond what could be heard on Anthrax's output in the 90s. 'Hymn 1' is a dark and almost intense cello-intermezzo which is followed by the heavy riff-ladden "In the End" which draws on thrash metal, power metal and traditional metal and contains a passage with the same sort of drive as in 'Belly of the Beast'. 'The Giant' speeds things up and has the same sort of intensity heard on "Persistence of Time", which is neatly balanced by its melodic rock-ish chorus. After 'Hymn 2' which is a snare drum solo of sorts, 'Judas Priest' kicks in and delivers delivers the goods in the form crushingly solid metal riffs galore. 'Crawl' is is an Alice in Chains-tinged affair, while 'The Constant' combines Southern groove with the characteristic 80s Anthrax melodic thrash sound, and the solid 'Revolution Screams' is a multifacetted tracks with lots of changes and impressions going on.

The musicianship is top notch across the board: Scott Ian's rhythm guitars are crushing and precise, while Rob Caggiano's guitar solos are multifacetted, combining both melodic leads and shredding, and the Bello-Benante rhythm section is as rock solid as a really solid rock. The highlight for me is the return of Joey Belladonna, though, and, while he does not hit the same high notes as he did on the 80s releases (his singing style is more akin to his performance on "Persistence of Time", his performance adds both power and melody to the overall sound on the album is a manner that no other vocalist can, and his voice is just as integral a part of the Anthrax sound as the guitars and bass and drums are, and he proves that his voice fits both melodic thrash metal and groove metal.

'Thrax is back and, combining the best of the power-thrashing 80s with the best of the groovy 90s, they have committed what I think is their best album in more than fifteen years, and "Worship Music" is both retrospective and prospective at the same time. It's a riff-fest. It's a melody-fest. It's a thrash-fest. It's a groove-fest. It's Anthrax!