- Apr 28, 2005
- 832
- 1
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Wow... I was reading some old-ish interview material and Scott sort of chumps the people he is trying to sell tickets to right now. Kind of hit me like a sucker punch. .........
http://www.perfectpitchonline.com/v01i11/anthrax.php
Mere months ago, Anthrax rose from industry hardships, put the finishing touches on some new songs and came for us all with an album called Weve Come For You All. And now theyre in the middle of the fun part touring the world with no sleep, no showers, and no fucking mercy.
While making his way through the popular summer vacation hotbed known as Hartford, Connecticut, Anthrax guitarist and thrash metal legend Scott Ian spoke with us and shared (almost) all his favorite stories of the past and present like an uncle with one arm and no legs describing the Vietnam War. Except youll have to substitute army rations with seafood salad, the drill sergeant with S.O.D. frontman Billy Milano, Vietnamese prostitutes with 2 Unlimited, Danang with the Detroit venue Harpos and grenades with hot dogs.
Where are you?
Hartford. We dont play until later tonight, so were just hanging out.
Where have you hung out so far today? Are there any places that you made a point to visit?
In Hartford? [laughs]
Ive never been to Hartford. So I take it that its not as rad as it sounds?
No, not at all. I had coffee, thats about it. And Im looking for a place to buy Lord of the Rings on DVD. Thats my day in Hartford.
You recently played in Detroit at a venue called Harpos and your hatred of the club is no secret. What exactly is it about that place thats so bad?
Its in the worst neighborhood in Detroit, which is saying a lot for Detroit. We have friends there who are cops and they say that district has the highest violent crime rate per capita in the nation. And then the venue itself the facility is terrible. The PA, the monitor and the lights are all terrible; its big and dark and damp and shitty. It used to be a great place to play in the 80s, but people have gotten shot and stabbed outside, and they had problems for years with skinheads coming to shows and beating people up. Its really become a place where people dont want to go see a show. Would you want to pay $20 to see a show at a place where your life is in danger, and the bands going to sound like shit on top of it? Its just not a place where anybody should ever have to go.
So its a slightly below average venue. Noted. Weve Come For You All has been out for several months now. Whats some of the more memorable feedback youve gotten on the album so far?
I dont know. I can say that across the board, whether its been in the metal or mainstream press, or even in the local music papers, no ones had anything bad to say. I havent read one negative thing about the record. It makes me feel really good to know that people like the record, but Ive never been one to believe that you can please everybody. And so far it seems like we have.
That is surprising, especially since the metal crowd tends to bitch a lot you didnt stay true to this, you didnt stay true to that
Yeah. I think the people who would say something like that about the record probably dont even listen to us anymore. Those are the people stuck in the 80s and still listening to State of Euphoria
Whats the worst meal youve ever eaten while on tour?
Ive learned to never touch the deli tray in the dressing room, which we actually stopped getting a long time ago no one eats the rainbow meat. Actually, we were doing Monsters of Rock in Europe with Iron Maiden at the end of the 80s. We had a day off in Italy. And the worst meal Ive ever eaten was actually also one of the best meals Ive ever eaten, because we were at this killer restaurant in Venice but at some point after that meal I came down with food poisoning. I was brutally sick with a fever. I couldnt go to the bathroom usually with food poisoning, youre constantly going to the bathroom, but this was the opposite. I had some sort of bacteria in me, I couldnt go, and I couldnt eat because if I ate Id just get sick. I had this for ten days and the doctor said it was some bacteria that was probably from the cold seafood salad I had eaten.
I interviewed Anthrax vocalist John Bush a few months ago, and he admitted to being a big 2 Unlimited fan. How often does John subject you to his shameless love for 2 Unlimited?
Never. Thats the thing the only reason he actually liked them was because he thought the girl in the video was hot. He doesnt ever listen to it on the bus Ive never actually heard him listen to it, truthfully, other than when they were showing their videos on MTV in Europe. He just thought the girl was hot. That was the extent of his 2 Unlimited vibe.
Whats the guiltiest pleasure in your CD collection?
I dont have any guilty pleasures. If I like something, I like it I like all kinds of music. I think there are four good songs on the new Christina Aguilera record.
Whats the most embarrassing alcohol-induced incident that you dont remember being a part of?
I dont black out. I always remember good or bad what happened the night before. And the worst ever was when I broke into Legends Field down in Tampa and ran the bases and got arrested. So thats the worst thing by far.
Thats a great story though. And nobody got hurt.
Well, I did. Financially. [laughs]
Whats the worst day job youve ever had?
I worked at a fish store in a shopping center across the street from where my mom and I lived. I would come in around 5:30pm, around the end of the day, and I would clean up until about 8pm. That was, hands down, the worst job Ive ever had. I was surrounded by fish guts for three and a half hours. Fucking horrible. The only positive thing about it was that at this store, they prepared dishes that you could just take home and throw in the oven, so I was always allowed to take things home. So at least I could go home with some really rad Shrimp Parmesan or something every day. But three hours of fish guts for minimum wage it wasnt a happy place.
The press tends to focus on all the cutthroat things that [S.O.D. frontman] Billy Milano has to say, but whats the nicest thing that the guy has ever done for you?
Deep down, Billys one of my best friends in the whole world. Hes like a brother to me. Thats why after all is said and done, Ill always love the guy, and I know its vice versa. I know I would take a bullet for him, and Im pretty sure he would do the same for me. The guys got a heart of gold, its just that he doesnt process sometimes before he yells at you. [laughs]
In your Metal Sludge tour diary, you mentioned that youve got hours of drunk [Anthrax guitarist] Rob [Caggiano] footage. Whats your favorite drunk Rob story?
I think people are just going to have to wait for the DVD. I dont want to give too much away. Actually heres my favorite story, this one isnt part of the footage. During his first tour with the band when we were opening for Judas Priest, wed just played the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles and we had the next day off. I went home, and had to come back the next morning to get to the bus to drive to Denver. So were all standing there, but Robs the only one whos not on the bus. We knew hed gone out the night before with some of our friends he shows up late, he comes running on the bus and tells us he just got out of jail. It turns out that he, John Tempesta [ex-Testament, Rob Zombie] and another friend of ours named Dante had gone to a club and got shitfaced, and they ended up in a taxi where Rob got in a fight. The driver didnt want him eating in the car, so Rob threw his hot dog at the driver. The driver stopped, and they all got out and ran. The driver called the cops and they got arrested and thrown in jail for assault with a hot dog. And stupidly enough, when it seems no one got hurt Rob did. For a stupid thing like that, it ends up costing a lot of money just to get out of it.
You should include a dramatic reenactment of that in your DVD. Have you ever gotten laid while listening to your own music?
Yes.
Tell me about it.
No.
http://www.perfectpitchonline.com/v01i11/anthrax.php
Mere months ago, Anthrax rose from industry hardships, put the finishing touches on some new songs and came for us all with an album called Weve Come For You All. And now theyre in the middle of the fun part touring the world with no sleep, no showers, and no fucking mercy.
While making his way through the popular summer vacation hotbed known as Hartford, Connecticut, Anthrax guitarist and thrash metal legend Scott Ian spoke with us and shared (almost) all his favorite stories of the past and present like an uncle with one arm and no legs describing the Vietnam War. Except youll have to substitute army rations with seafood salad, the drill sergeant with S.O.D. frontman Billy Milano, Vietnamese prostitutes with 2 Unlimited, Danang with the Detroit venue Harpos and grenades with hot dogs.
Where are you?
Hartford. We dont play until later tonight, so were just hanging out.
Where have you hung out so far today? Are there any places that you made a point to visit?
In Hartford? [laughs]
Ive never been to Hartford. So I take it that its not as rad as it sounds?
No, not at all. I had coffee, thats about it. And Im looking for a place to buy Lord of the Rings on DVD. Thats my day in Hartford.
You recently played in Detroit at a venue called Harpos and your hatred of the club is no secret. What exactly is it about that place thats so bad?
Its in the worst neighborhood in Detroit, which is saying a lot for Detroit. We have friends there who are cops and they say that district has the highest violent crime rate per capita in the nation. And then the venue itself the facility is terrible. The PA, the monitor and the lights are all terrible; its big and dark and damp and shitty. It used to be a great place to play in the 80s, but people have gotten shot and stabbed outside, and they had problems for years with skinheads coming to shows and beating people up. Its really become a place where people dont want to go see a show. Would you want to pay $20 to see a show at a place where your life is in danger, and the bands going to sound like shit on top of it? Its just not a place where anybody should ever have to go.
So its a slightly below average venue. Noted. Weve Come For You All has been out for several months now. Whats some of the more memorable feedback youve gotten on the album so far?
I dont know. I can say that across the board, whether its been in the metal or mainstream press, or even in the local music papers, no ones had anything bad to say. I havent read one negative thing about the record. It makes me feel really good to know that people like the record, but Ive never been one to believe that you can please everybody. And so far it seems like we have.
That is surprising, especially since the metal crowd tends to bitch a lot you didnt stay true to this, you didnt stay true to that
Yeah. I think the people who would say something like that about the record probably dont even listen to us anymore. Those are the people stuck in the 80s and still listening to State of Euphoria
Whats the worst meal youve ever eaten while on tour?
Ive learned to never touch the deli tray in the dressing room, which we actually stopped getting a long time ago no one eats the rainbow meat. Actually, we were doing Monsters of Rock in Europe with Iron Maiden at the end of the 80s. We had a day off in Italy. And the worst meal Ive ever eaten was actually also one of the best meals Ive ever eaten, because we were at this killer restaurant in Venice but at some point after that meal I came down with food poisoning. I was brutally sick with a fever. I couldnt go to the bathroom usually with food poisoning, youre constantly going to the bathroom, but this was the opposite. I had some sort of bacteria in me, I couldnt go, and I couldnt eat because if I ate Id just get sick. I had this for ten days and the doctor said it was some bacteria that was probably from the cold seafood salad I had eaten.
I interviewed Anthrax vocalist John Bush a few months ago, and he admitted to being a big 2 Unlimited fan. How often does John subject you to his shameless love for 2 Unlimited?
Never. Thats the thing the only reason he actually liked them was because he thought the girl in the video was hot. He doesnt ever listen to it on the bus Ive never actually heard him listen to it, truthfully, other than when they were showing their videos on MTV in Europe. He just thought the girl was hot. That was the extent of his 2 Unlimited vibe.
Whats the guiltiest pleasure in your CD collection?
I dont have any guilty pleasures. If I like something, I like it I like all kinds of music. I think there are four good songs on the new Christina Aguilera record.
Whats the most embarrassing alcohol-induced incident that you dont remember being a part of?
I dont black out. I always remember good or bad what happened the night before. And the worst ever was when I broke into Legends Field down in Tampa and ran the bases and got arrested. So thats the worst thing by far.
Thats a great story though. And nobody got hurt.
Well, I did. Financially. [laughs]
Whats the worst day job youve ever had?
I worked at a fish store in a shopping center across the street from where my mom and I lived. I would come in around 5:30pm, around the end of the day, and I would clean up until about 8pm. That was, hands down, the worst job Ive ever had. I was surrounded by fish guts for three and a half hours. Fucking horrible. The only positive thing about it was that at this store, they prepared dishes that you could just take home and throw in the oven, so I was always allowed to take things home. So at least I could go home with some really rad Shrimp Parmesan or something every day. But three hours of fish guts for minimum wage it wasnt a happy place.
The press tends to focus on all the cutthroat things that [S.O.D. frontman] Billy Milano has to say, but whats the nicest thing that the guy has ever done for you?
Deep down, Billys one of my best friends in the whole world. Hes like a brother to me. Thats why after all is said and done, Ill always love the guy, and I know its vice versa. I know I would take a bullet for him, and Im pretty sure he would do the same for me. The guys got a heart of gold, its just that he doesnt process sometimes before he yells at you. [laughs]
In your Metal Sludge tour diary, you mentioned that youve got hours of drunk [Anthrax guitarist] Rob [Caggiano] footage. Whats your favorite drunk Rob story?
I think people are just going to have to wait for the DVD. I dont want to give too much away. Actually heres my favorite story, this one isnt part of the footage. During his first tour with the band when we were opening for Judas Priest, wed just played the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles and we had the next day off. I went home, and had to come back the next morning to get to the bus to drive to Denver. So were all standing there, but Robs the only one whos not on the bus. We knew hed gone out the night before with some of our friends he shows up late, he comes running on the bus and tells us he just got out of jail. It turns out that he, John Tempesta [ex-Testament, Rob Zombie] and another friend of ours named Dante had gone to a club and got shitfaced, and they ended up in a taxi where Rob got in a fight. The driver didnt want him eating in the car, so Rob threw his hot dog at the driver. The driver stopped, and they all got out and ran. The driver called the cops and they got arrested and thrown in jail for assault with a hot dog. And stupidly enough, when it seems no one got hurt Rob did. For a stupid thing like that, it ends up costing a lot of money just to get out of it.
You should include a dramatic reenactment of that in your DVD. Have you ever gotten laid while listening to your own music?
Yes.
Tell me about it.
No.
