Apologies in advance for the long read and if I mix up some details...I'm writing this a few days afterwards and may have forgotten something.
I finally saw my first Anthrax show, October 10 at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, IA. I had thought about driving to Chicago since that looked like the closest the band was going to make it to me, but then the very next day I saw the date posted for Clear Lake, and I knew then I had my chance to see Anthrax.
Unfortunately, none of my friends were able to go, either due to lack of funds, or not being able to take a day off from work. So I left home in Jamestown, ND early Sunday morning and began the 456-mile drive to Clear Lake. I took Monday off from work, since there was no way I was going to make a 912-mile round trip in one day and make it to work on time in the morning.
I won't bore you with the mundane details of what l did before the show, so I'll cut right to the chase.
I got to the Surf about 10 mins. before the doors opened, and about 50 people or so had already lined up. A lot of Dio shirts in line, I think I only saw 2 or 3 Anthrax shirts. There were more once the show started though.
Finally the doors opened and we went in. I made my way to the merch table to pick up a shirt and check out the other swag for sale. I was hoping to get the Thraxagram shirt, but they were out of XL, so I bought the Greater of Two Evils shirt with the tour stops on the back.
Once I got my shirt, I headed over to the bar, got a beer, then made my way towards the stage for Fireball Ministry. I hadn't ever heard any of their music, and I wasn't disappointed, but then again I was looking forward to Anthrax. As soon as FM finished playing, about 75% of the people near the stage turned around and left their spot. So me and some other guys who were about 5 or 6 people deep away from the stage made a beeline for the rail and were right up close.
The band took the stage and opened with N.F.L., which is quickly becoming one of my favorite Anthrax songs. Joey was already going nuts with his facial expressions and his gestures while playing...he definitely has a good time on stage! During the chorus we were practically screaming in Rob and Joey's face, trying to see if we could get louder each time.
Next was Caught in a Mosh, which got the crowd a bit more into it. No pits or anything like that, but the heads started bobbing a lot more. Things slowed down a bit with Safe Home, again some pretty decent crowd participation.
John was pretty interactive with the audience, asking if there were any old schoolers in the house, before launching into Antisocial, another favorite song of mine. I don't think the crowd was much into this song, since not too many people knew the words, or if they did, they weren't singing along. Like on MOMD, at the end of Antisocial, John led the audience in repeating it after him, complete with the low vocal effects...pretty cool even though I'm sure this is routine at all the shows.
(At this point, two drunk guys elbowed their way up to me, and offered me $20 to get up to the rail. Any sober person would have easily noticed the rail was not far away, and all they had to do was walk up about 5 feet and they'd be there. Naturally, I accepted his offer, but what he thought was a $20 was only $10. Still, free money is better than nothing, so I took it.)
John then mentioned The Greater of Two Evils, saying how the fans voted for the songs appearing on it, and something to the effect of "and here's track #14 from that album, 'Keep it in the Family!"
I can't remember if it was before or after Keep it in the Family, but John made a funny comment about the people sitting in the booths along the side and in the back of the Surf. He asked if they were waiting for dinner, and pointed to the side and said, "Is this side chicken?" and "Is this beef?" (or something similar) towards the back. Those of us up front got a good laugh out of that one.
What Doesn't Die was next, awesome drumming from Charlie, but then again what else is new? John then introduced Scott, and Scott then started talking about hair, and how he didn't care if you were bald, still sporting a mullet, or whatever, he wanted to see some old-school headbanging, and having people wake up with a case of metalneck. "From 1984, the first song off the first Anthrax album, "Deathrider!"
The band closed with Only, which is my favorite song from the Bush-era Anthrax. Even though 50 mins. had already passed, it seemed like half that, and the set was done. My ears were ringing, my heart was pounding, but I had finally seen the mighty Anthrax in person.
Before leaving the stage, Charlie threw out his sticks. The first stick came towards me, but I jumped just a bit soon and instead of grabbing the stick out of the air, I managed to tip it to the guy standing behind me. Close but not quite. Then when Scott tossed out his picks, I got elbowed and shoved out of the way, so I missed out on those.
As Dio's roadies began setting up, I headed back towards the merch table and picked up the "Scott Ian Value Pack," as seen on Thrax-Mart. It only cost me $5, since I had $10 courtesy of the drunk dude from earlier on. Not a bad deal for 2 auto'd stickers and 8 picks...
I grabbed a Pepsi and made my way towards the back for Dio. I thought about leaving, but considering the crowd was about 2/3 clad in Dio shirts, I figured I'd get lynched if anyone saw me leave early...so I stuck around. Not a bad show, but if you asked me to name a Dio song, the only one I could come up with would be Holy Diver.
I got back to the hotel around midnight, watched some football highlights on ESPN, and went to bed, resting up for the return trip home in the morning.
Overall, I had a blast. Anthrax is an awesome band live...each member puts so much energy and passion into his performance, and it really comes through to the audience. I've seen bands perform like they feel forced to be on stage, and their performance suffers as a result. But with Anthrax, I got the idea that they love performing live, and whether they play in front of 600 or 60,000, it doesn't matter.
To the band--thanks for a great show and a night I'll never forget. Next tour, try to see if you can get to Fargo or Minneapolis!
I finally saw my first Anthrax show, October 10 at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, IA. I had thought about driving to Chicago since that looked like the closest the band was going to make it to me, but then the very next day I saw the date posted for Clear Lake, and I knew then I had my chance to see Anthrax.
Unfortunately, none of my friends were able to go, either due to lack of funds, or not being able to take a day off from work. So I left home in Jamestown, ND early Sunday morning and began the 456-mile drive to Clear Lake. I took Monday off from work, since there was no way I was going to make a 912-mile round trip in one day and make it to work on time in the morning.
I won't bore you with the mundane details of what l did before the show, so I'll cut right to the chase.
I got to the Surf about 10 mins. before the doors opened, and about 50 people or so had already lined up. A lot of Dio shirts in line, I think I only saw 2 or 3 Anthrax shirts. There were more once the show started though.
Finally the doors opened and we went in. I made my way to the merch table to pick up a shirt and check out the other swag for sale. I was hoping to get the Thraxagram shirt, but they were out of XL, so I bought the Greater of Two Evils shirt with the tour stops on the back.
Once I got my shirt, I headed over to the bar, got a beer, then made my way towards the stage for Fireball Ministry. I hadn't ever heard any of their music, and I wasn't disappointed, but then again I was looking forward to Anthrax. As soon as FM finished playing, about 75% of the people near the stage turned around and left their spot. So me and some other guys who were about 5 or 6 people deep away from the stage made a beeline for the rail and were right up close.
The band took the stage and opened with N.F.L., which is quickly becoming one of my favorite Anthrax songs. Joey was already going nuts with his facial expressions and his gestures while playing...he definitely has a good time on stage! During the chorus we were practically screaming in Rob and Joey's face, trying to see if we could get louder each time.
Next was Caught in a Mosh, which got the crowd a bit more into it. No pits or anything like that, but the heads started bobbing a lot more. Things slowed down a bit with Safe Home, again some pretty decent crowd participation.
John was pretty interactive with the audience, asking if there were any old schoolers in the house, before launching into Antisocial, another favorite song of mine. I don't think the crowd was much into this song, since not too many people knew the words, or if they did, they weren't singing along. Like on MOMD, at the end of Antisocial, John led the audience in repeating it after him, complete with the low vocal effects...pretty cool even though I'm sure this is routine at all the shows.
(At this point, two drunk guys elbowed their way up to me, and offered me $20 to get up to the rail. Any sober person would have easily noticed the rail was not far away, and all they had to do was walk up about 5 feet and they'd be there. Naturally, I accepted his offer, but what he thought was a $20 was only $10. Still, free money is better than nothing, so I took it.)
John then mentioned The Greater of Two Evils, saying how the fans voted for the songs appearing on it, and something to the effect of "and here's track #14 from that album, 'Keep it in the Family!"
I can't remember if it was before or after Keep it in the Family, but John made a funny comment about the people sitting in the booths along the side and in the back of the Surf. He asked if they were waiting for dinner, and pointed to the side and said, "Is this side chicken?" and "Is this beef?" (or something similar) towards the back. Those of us up front got a good laugh out of that one.
What Doesn't Die was next, awesome drumming from Charlie, but then again what else is new? John then introduced Scott, and Scott then started talking about hair, and how he didn't care if you were bald, still sporting a mullet, or whatever, he wanted to see some old-school headbanging, and having people wake up with a case of metalneck. "From 1984, the first song off the first Anthrax album, "Deathrider!"
The band closed with Only, which is my favorite song from the Bush-era Anthrax. Even though 50 mins. had already passed, it seemed like half that, and the set was done. My ears were ringing, my heart was pounding, but I had finally seen the mighty Anthrax in person.
Before leaving the stage, Charlie threw out his sticks. The first stick came towards me, but I jumped just a bit soon and instead of grabbing the stick out of the air, I managed to tip it to the guy standing behind me. Close but not quite. Then when Scott tossed out his picks, I got elbowed and shoved out of the way, so I missed out on those.
As Dio's roadies began setting up, I headed back towards the merch table and picked up the "Scott Ian Value Pack," as seen on Thrax-Mart. It only cost me $5, since I had $10 courtesy of the drunk dude from earlier on. Not a bad deal for 2 auto'd stickers and 8 picks...
I grabbed a Pepsi and made my way towards the back for Dio. I thought about leaving, but considering the crowd was about 2/3 clad in Dio shirts, I figured I'd get lynched if anyone saw me leave early...so I stuck around. Not a bad show, but if you asked me to name a Dio song, the only one I could come up with would be Holy Diver.
I got back to the hotel around midnight, watched some football highlights on ESPN, and went to bed, resting up for the return trip home in the morning.
Overall, I had a blast. Anthrax is an awesome band live...each member puts so much energy and passion into his performance, and it really comes through to the audience. I've seen bands perform like they feel forced to be on stage, and their performance suffers as a result. But with Anthrax, I got the idea that they love performing live, and whether they play in front of 600 or 60,000, it doesn't matter.
To the band--thanks for a great show and a night I'll never forget. Next tour, try to see if you can get to Fargo or Minneapolis!
