Anthrax
Among The Living

THE REVIEW

A very worthy successor to the absolute masterpiece and brilliant debut “Spreading The Disease” from the previous year, this “Among The Living” album, dedicated to the memory of the great Cliff Burton, the Metallica bassist who passed away shortly before its release, is the second effort by the legendary Anthrax. It saw the light in the distant year of 1986 and has always been slightly overlooked and overshadowed due to the other “usual” historical giants it had to face that year.
It is no coincidence, in fact, that the album is nothing more than a point of contact between the old Anthrax, those five (almost) Italians who in the early '80s ignited the East Coast with virulent Thrash Metal featuring great melodic openings, and the later Anthrax, increasingly committed to experimenting and blending unexpected and less assimilable genres, often inserting elements of clear Punk, Hardcore, and even Rap origin (!!!) which over time came to even take over the clearly Thrash core that animated them, thus cutting themselves off and unable to recover the good old origins that made them so famous and respected.

Inside here you'll find a bit of everything, from good pure Thrash (the title track, “Caught In A Mosh,” “Skeleton In The Closet”) to more “hardcore-ized” Thrash (the last three tracks are a great example), passing through blatantly Maiden-like inserts, to hard and pure Hardcore (listen to “Efilnikufesin,” which you have to read backward to get a “sensible” title, and see if you can prove me wrong). The only common thread is the strong emphasis on unrestrained speed and the “tupatupatupa,” characteristics already present on “Spreading The Disease,” but here further accentuated, a clear invitation to let loose and mosh with the radiator of your room (as I did).

Nothing to say about the individual performance of the band's members: the charismatic Joey Belladonna is as lively, superlative, and over-the-top as ever, and with his unique, clear, bright, inciting to “moshing” voice, at times very, very ironic and fun, permeating the whole album, he makes us understand that, even in a genre not known for singers' technical abilities, there is always the delightful exception that doesn't prove the rule; Charlie Benante is simply unstoppable and likely marks here the best drumming performance in the entire Anthrax discography along with the immortal predecessor, doing great both in pure speed parts and slower parts where he showcases all his creativity; the two axes Dan Spitz and Scott Ian break perfectly, with fast and absolutely sharp riffs, slightly trivial solos but always satisfying and breathtakingly melodic parts à la “Armed And Dangerous” that widen the heart; the two fast fingers of bassist Frank Bello confirm the notable talent demonstrated on “Spreading The Disease,” with excellent, always interesting but never trivial interventions, elevating him among the best Thrash bassists in history.

At this point, a summary seems more than necessary: the album is excellent and among the best in Anthrax’s discography, but…
…But if you're hard and pure Thrashers and absolutely don't want to hear about highly questionable external influences or very melodically combined parts, you probably won't be able to fully appreciate the atmosphere that permeates the album: a cheerful atmosphere that speaks much of “breaking with the past, without denying its importance, though.”
If, on the other hand, you want to appreciate the point of contact between the old and “new” Anthrax, are willing to tolerate a bit too much punkish influence or some riff too Maiden-like or melodic to be called Thrash, this album is absolutely unmissable and carefree!