Anthrax
Explore the band's historical lineups, musicians, and studio albums.
Active9 formations12 studio albums
Formation chronology
Newest first
Formation 9 of 9
Aug 14, 2013 – Present
Members
- Joey BelladonnaLead VocalsFrom Aug 2013
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsFrom Aug 2013
- Jonathan DonaisLead Guitar, Backing VocalsFrom Aug 2013
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsFrom Aug 2013
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsFrom Aug 2013
Formation facts
- In 2024, founding bassist Dan Lilker returned to perform with Anthrax as a temporary substitute for Frank Bello, marking his first appearances with the band in 40 years. Lilker joked that when Anthrax parted with him in 1984, they had told him to stick around in case they needed him four decades later.
- Rob Caggiano left Anthrax in January 2013, and Jonathan Donais initially joined as a touring replacement. After months of performances with Donais, Scott Ian publicly identified him as Anthrax's guitarist in August 2013.
Studio albums
- Cursum Perficio (Sep 2026)
- For All Kings (Feb 2016)
Formation 8 of 9
May 10, 2010 – Jan 4, 2013
Members
- Joey BelladonnaLead VocalsMay 2010 – Jan 2013
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsMay 2010 – Jan 2013
- Rob CaggianoLead Guitar, Backing VocalsMay 2010 – Jan 2013
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsMay 2010 – Jan 2013
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsMay 2010 – Jan 2013
Formation facts
- Anthrax completed a version of Worship Music with Dan Nelson in 2009 and originally planned to release it that year, but Nelson's departure caused the album to be shelved. After Joey Belladonna returned, parts of the material were substantially reworked and Belladonna recorded new vocals for the version ultimately released in 2011.
- After Dan Nelson left Anthrax in July 2009, John Bush returned for a series of performances but did not recommit to the band permanently. Joey Belladonna officially rejoined in May 2010 for both touring and the completion of a new studio album.
Studio albums
- Worship Music (Sep 2011)
Formation 7 of 9
Dec 10, 2007 – Jul 21, 2009
Members
- Dan NelsonLead VocalsDec 2007 – Jul 2009
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsDec 2007 – Jul 2009
- Rob CaggianoLead Guitar, Backing VocalsDec 2007 – Jul 2009
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsDec 2007 – Jul 2009
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsDec 2007 – Jul 2009
Formation 6 of 9
Apr 1, 2005 – Jan 24, 2007
Members
- Joey BelladonnaLead VocalsApr 2005 – Jan 2007
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsApr 2005 – Jan 2007
- Dan SpitzLead Guitar, Backing VocalsApr 2005 – Jan 2007
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsApr 2005 – Jan 2007
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsApr 2005 – Jan 2007
Formation facts
- Frank Bello left Anthrax in March 2004, and Joey Vera temporarily filled in on bass for the band's touring commitments. Bello returned the following year as Anthrax reunited its Belladonna-era lineup with Dan Spitz.
Formation 5 of 9
Aug 2001 – Mar 4, 2004
Members
- John BushLead VocalsAug 2001 – Mar 2004
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsAug 2001 – Mar 2004
- Rob CaggianoLead Guitar, Backing VocalsAug 2001 – Mar 2004
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsAug 2001 – Mar 2004
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsAug 2001 – Mar 2004
Formation facts
- After anthrax spores were used in the 2001 bioterror attacks, Anthrax suddenly found its band name associated with fear and death rather than music. The band joked about renaming itself “Basket Full of Puppies,” then appeared at a sold-out New York benefit wearing shirts that spelled “We're not changing our name”; proceeds from the show went to families of police officers and firefighters killed on September 11.
- Anthrax let its fans determine the program for The Greater of Two Evils, asking them to vote online for songs from the band's 1984-1990 catalog to be re-recorded with John Bush. Thousands of votes selected the fourteen-song program, which Anthrax then revisited during a winter weekend at Avatar Studios in New York.
Studio albums
- We've Come for You All (Jul 2003)
Formation 4 of 9
1995 – 2000
Members
- John BushLead VocalsJan 1995 – Dec 2000
- Scott IanGuitar, Backing VocalsJan 1995 – Dec 2000
- Paul CrookLead GuitarJan 1995 – Dec 2000
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsJan 1995 – Dec 2000
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsJan 1995 – Dec 2000
Formation facts
- Anthrax delivered Stomp 442 while Elektra Records was undergoing a major leadership shake-up. John Bush later recalled that the label's new president told the band she would not have signed Anthrax, leaving them to release the album knowing they no longer had strong support from their own record company.
- Anthrax recorded Volume 8: The Threat Is Real at its rehearsal studio for less than $20,000, using four ADAT recorders and a Mackie console. Paul Crook, who had been recording and touring with Anthrax since the Stomp 442 era, also co-produced and engineered the album.
Studio albums
- Volume 8: The Threat Is Real (Jul 1998)
- Stomp 442 (Sep 1995)
Formation 3 of 9
1992 – 1995
Members
- John BushLead VocalsJan 1992 – Dec 1995
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsJan 1992 – Dec 1995
- Dan SpitzLead GuitarJan 1992 – Dec 1995
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsJan 1992 – Dec 1995
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsJan 1992 – Dec 1995
Formation facts
- Anthrax parted with Joey Belladonna in March 1992 only about a week after signing a reported $10 million deal with Elektra Records. The band then recruited John Bush, who made active involvement in songwriting a condition of joining rather than serving only as a replacement vocalist.
- For “Black Lodge” on Sound of White Noise, Anthrax worked with Twin Peaks composer Angelo Badalamenti, who added the song's atmospheric strings. The band's connection to the series also brought Frank Silva, who played the villain BOB, into Anthrax's video for “Only.”
Studio albums
- Sound of White Noise (May 1993)
Formation 2 of 9
Nov 1984 – Mar 1992
Members
- Joey BelladonnaLead VocalsNov 1984 – Mar 1992
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsNov 1984 – Mar 1992
- Dan SpitzLead Guitar, Backing VocalsNov 1984 – Mar 1992
- Frank BelloBass, Backing VocalsNov 1984 – Mar 1992
- Charlie BenanteDrums, Backing VocalsNov 1984 – Mar 1992
Formation facts
- While Anthrax was finishing Spreading the Disease in 1985, Scott Ian and Charlie Benante used studio downtime to launch Stormtroopers of Death with former Anthrax bassist Dan Lilker and Billy Milano. Ian and Lilker wrote the material in about five days, and the resulting Speak English or Die was recorded in only three days.
- “I'm the Man” began as a joke in Scott Ian's bedroom, built around the Jewish folk melody “Hava Nagila” and rap lyrics about the members of Anthrax. The band originally planned for the Beastie Boys to perform the rap, but scheduling prevented it, so Scott Ian, Frank Bello and Charlie Benante recorded the vocal parts themselves.
- Among the Living drew heavily on Scott Ian's interests outside music. The album's title and artwork were inspired by Stephen King's The Stand, “I Am the Law” was based on Judge Dredd, and “Indians” grew from a Time magazine article Ian had read about conditions on Native American reservations.
- Anthrax encountered a bizarre sequence of disasters across two recording cycles. A fire struck while the band was writing Persistence of Time, an earthquake hit during its recording, and the Sound of White Noise sessions were interrupted by a studio flood after a decaying dog's head blocked a roof drain.
- Anthrax's 1991 version of Public Enemy's “Bring the Noise” was assembled without the two groups recording together. Public Enemy sent its vocals to Anthrax, and Scott Ian and Charlie Benante spent about a week manually cutting and aligning them with Anthrax's instrumental track before the collaboration grew into a joint tour.
- After Neil Turbin left Anthrax in 1984, Matt Fallon briefly handled lead vocals before Joey Belladonna joined in late November.
Studio albums
- Persistence of Time (Aug 1990)
- State of Euphoria (Sep 1988)
- Among the Living (Mar 1987)
- Spreading the Disease (Oct 1985)
Formation 1 of 9
1983 – Jan 1984
Members
- Neil TurbinLead VocalsJan 1983 – Jan 1984
- Scott IanRhythm Guitar, Backing VocalsJan 1983 – Jan 1984
- Dan SpitzLead GuitarJan 1983 – Jan 1984
- Dan LilkerBassJan 1983 – Jan 1984
- Charlie BenanteDrumsJan 1983 – Jan 1984
Formation facts
- Scott Ian and Dan Lilker formed Anthrax in Queens on July 18, 1981. Ian later said he chose the name after encountering anthrax in a high-school biology class because he wanted something different from the many local bands whose names ended in “-er.”
- Anthrax's first commercial release, the 1983 “Soldiers of Metal” / “Howling Furies” single, sold more than 3,000 copies in two weeks. The recording grew out of the demo that caught Megaforce founder Jon Zazula's attention and led to the band's debut-album deal.
- Dan Lilker was dismissed from Anthrax around the release of Fistful of Metal after escalating conflict with vocalist Neil Turbin. Lilker and Scott Ian later said Turbin drove the decision, while Turbin disputed that account and cited broader band and musicianship concerns. Frank Bello replaced Lilker on bass; Turbin himself left Anthrax about seven months later.
Studio albums
- Fistful of Metal (Jan 1984)