by nick m
Belladonna 4-9-08 Denver, CO. All photos ©2008 photos by Stephanie Cabral
I got the pleasure of going to see one of the best Metal shows in a long time. Joey Belladonna, the x-lead singer of Anthrax for 13 years, played at the 3 Kings Tavern down the street from my house last week. The first 2 bands on the bill were local Denver acts, the Nicaraguan Death Squad and 4th Year Freshman. I am a fan of NDS, but not so much of the other one. Nicaraguan, a death metal/grind band, has been a staple in the Denver metal community for years now- definitely check them out!
photo ©2008 photos by Stephanie Cabral
I arrived at 9:45pm to a somewhat empty venue. I figured there would be more of a crowd to see one of the best metal singers on the planet?? Over the next 30 minutes, the bar started slowly filling up, people were getting their buzz on, everything was going good, then…blam…total black out!!! 5 minutes after Nicaraguan played the power on the left side of Broadway went down for what felt like an eternity (but in reality was only a little over an hour). For the first 20 minutes people remained in high spirits and amped up to see Belladonna, but as the hour mark hit we began wondering…will the rest of the show be canceled? Last year Anthrax had to cancel their reunion tour in Boulder because Charlie Benante’s wife went into labor, so Denver metal heads haven’t had much luck seeing Joey play recently. As my friends and I hung out in the dark, drinking by candlelight with our fingers crossed, Belladonna sat at the merch table signing autographs and talking to fans. (He is a down to earth guy if you ever get the chance to talk to him by the way).
photo ©2008 photos by Stephanie Cabral
By the time the lights came back on much of the crowd had left- mainly the girls and hipsters who claim they like metal….you know the ones I am talking about…anyways, who cares about them, the show was on!! Fourth Year came on immediately and motored thru their set. Around 12am, Belladonna took the stage with his new band. On guitar was, Jack Frost (ex Savatage & Seven Witches), RC Ciejek on bass and Paul Marciano on drums. The set started off with a couple of Joey’s solo tunes which then lead into a barrage of old school Anthrax songs. Joey’s new band did a good job playing them, but not having that extra guitar took away from the sound a little. Joey’s voice was impeccable. It felt like 1987 all over again! The crowd was kinda mellow at first, but got rowdy as soon as the first note to Caught in the Mosh was struck. Other hits followed such as: NFL, Got the Time, Metal Thrashing Mad, Indians and Medussa. It was great to hear the all classics and watch the older guys thrash it up in the pit. The floor was pretty much controlled chaos, until some meathead jumped in and started fighting with everyone . He got kicked out and was reprimanded by local authorities. I later found out he was an off duty police officer—(sorry about your shirt! ha ha).
photo ©2008 photos by Stephanie Cabral
The show ended around 1am and I peaced out. Woke up the next day with a smile on my face and feeling like I got hit by a Mack truck. If you are wondering if Anthrax will ever get back together…I would guess…NOT. Joey made a couple comments throughout the show regarding his x-band mates and I found this quote from Anthrax directed towards Joey: “It has come to our attention that shows featuring Joey Belladonna are being advertised and promoted as ANTHRAX shows. Although we wish Joey the best, we want to make it clear that ANTHRAX is not in any way affiliated with these shows.” In my mind if it sounds like Anthrax it is Anthrax. Who knows, maybe they will kiss and make up, but in the meantime if you need an Anthrax fix this is the next best thing.
nick
photo ©2008 photos by Stephanie Cabral
Tour Dates:
April 09 – Kings Tavern Denver, CO
April 11 – Roadhouse Apple Valley, CA
April 12 – Tremors Riverside, CA
April 13 – The Museum Club Flagstaff, AZ
April 14 – Club Congress Tucson, AZ
April 16 – Fat Cat Modesto, CA
April 18 – Studio Seven Seattle, WA
April 23 – Big City Night Club Farmington, NM
April 25 – Acadia Bar Houston, TX
April 26 – Rosedale San Antonio, TX
April 29 – The Otherside Event Center Tulsa, OK
April 30 – The Muse Nashville, TN (New)
May 01 – Jaxx Springfield, VA
May 02 – Soundgarden, Myrtle Beach, NC
May 03 – Championship Sports Bar And Grill Trenton, NJ
May 05 – Triple Rock Social Club – Minneapolis, MN
May 08 – Vnuks Milwaukee, WI
May 09 – Reggie’s Rock Club Chicago, IL
May 10 – Jigsaw Saloon Parma, OH
May 11 – Cardo’s Chillicothe, OH
May 13 – Europa Night Club Brooklyn, NY
May 16 – Mark’s Showplace Manchester, NH
May 17 – The Haunt Yonkers, NY
May 18 – The Big Bop Concert Hall Toronto, Ontario, Canada
May 19 – The Big Bop Concert Hall Toronto, CA
May 20 – TBA Ottawa, Canada
May 21 – Foufounes Electriques Montreal, CA
May 22 – Time To Laugh Kingston, On
May 25 – TBA Halifax, Nova Scotia
May 26 – TBA Moncton, NB
June 05 – Hard Rock Live Mexico City, Mexico
