Anthrax was formed in mid-1981 by guitarists Scott Ian and Danny Lilker. They found the band's name in a biology textbook and claimed it because it sounded sufficiently evil to them. John Connelly (Nuclear Assault) jammed with them a few times while trying out for the band, but never actually joined. John Connelly ended up being a roadie for the band for many of their early shows. Drummer Dave Weiss and a bassist named Kenny Kushner were other original members. Kenny Kushner was replaced very early on by Paul Kahn, who was found to be insufficient as well, so Lilker chose to take over on bass and Greg Walls joined as lead guitarist and vocalist Neil Turbin, who the band found after going through a series of temporary vocalists (including Ian's 14-year-old brother Jason). Weiss left and was replaced by Greg D'Angelo (White Lion) on drums, who left the band in spring of 1983 while recording the second demo.
Anthrax is a New York City-based heavy metal band that released its first full-length album in 1984. The band was one of the most popular of the 1980s thrash metal scene and is notable for being the first to combine heavy metal with rap music. The band is classified as one of the "big four" of thrash metal alongside Metallica, Megadeth, and Slayer.
Anthrax has made several appearances on television, including the programs Married... with Children, WWE Raw, NewsRadio, Cheers, and Ask Dr. Ruth among others. The band has also appeared in films such as Run Ronnie Run (performing as the fictional band Titannica) and Calendar Girls. Their song "Madhouse" was used in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City in-game radio station V-Rock and in Guitar Hero II. The song "Now It's Dark" was also converted into simlish on the metal radio station for The Sims PC game. Their song "Caught in a Mosh" was featured in Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s. In 2006, guitarist Scott Ian was a cast member of VH1's reality show SuperGroup and is also featured on many other VH1 shows such as I Love the 80s and I Love the 90s.
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Background information

Origin : New York City, New York, United States
Genre(s) : Heavy metal, thrash metal, Speed metal
Years active : 1981–present
Label(s) : Megaforce, Island, Elektra, Ignition, Beyond, Sanctuary, Universal
Associated acts : Stormtroopers of Death, Public Enemy, Nuclear Assault, Armored Saint, Damnocracy
Website : www.anthrax.com



Band members
Current
• Dan Nelson – lead vocals (2007–present)
• Rob Caggiano – lead guitars (2001–2005, 2007–present)
• Scott Ian – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1981–present)
• Frank Bello – bass, backing vocals (1984–2004, 2005–present)
• Charlie Benante – drums, percussion (1983–present)

Former
Lead vocals
• John Connelly (1981)
• Dirk Kennedy (1981)
• Jason Rosenfeld (1981–1982)
• Neil Turbin (1982–1984)
• Matt Fallon (1984)
• John Bush (1992–2005)
• Joey Belladonna (1984–1992, 2005–2007)
Lead guitars
• Danny Lilker (1981)
• Greg Walls (1981–1983)
• Dan Spitz (1983–1995, 2005–2007)
• Bob Berry (1983)
Bass
• Kenny Kushner – bass (1981)
• Paul Kahn – bass (1981)
• Danny Lilker (1981–1984)
• Joey Vera (2004–2005)
Drums
• Dave Weiss (1981)
• Greg D'Angelo (1981–1983)

Discography

• Fistful of Metal (1984)
• Spreading the Disease (1985)
• Among the Living (1987)
• State of Euphoria (1988)
• Persistence of Time (1990)
• Sound of White Noise (1993)
• Stomp 442 (1995)
• Volume 8: The Threat Is Real (1998)
• We've Come for You All (2003)
• Worship Music (2009)