''Volume 8: The Threat Is Real'' is the eighth studio album by American

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...

band

Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The s ...

. The album was released on July 21, 1998, by Ignition Records and debuted at number 118 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. The record was produced by the band and

Paul Crook Paul Crook (born February 12, 1966) is an American guitarist known for his work recording and performing with Meat Loaf. He has also recorded and toured with Anthrax, Sebastian Bach and Marya Roxx. Biography Growing up in Green Brook Town ...

. It features the song "Crush", which appeared in the video game ''

ATV Offroad Fury ''ATV Offroad Fury'' is a 2001 racing video game developed by Rainbow Studios and published by Sony Computer Entertainment exclusively for the PlayStation 2 in North America and Europe. A sequel, '' ATV Offroad Fury 2'', was released in 2002. ...

'' for PlayStation 2 and in the game's soundtrack. Other released singles from the album were "Inside Out", "Piss N Vinegar" and "Born Again Idiot". "Pieces", the

hidden track In the field of recorded music, a hidden track (sometimes called a ghost track, secret track or unlisted track) is a song or a piece of audio that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, LP record, or other recorded medium, in such a way as to ...

at the end of the album, was written by bassist

Frank Bello Frank Bello (born July 9, 1965) is an American musician who plays bass for the thrash metal band Anthrax. Early life Bello is the nephew of Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante. He had a younger brother Anthony, who was murdered in the Bronx, New Yo ...

as a tribute to his brother Anthony who was murdered outside his girlfriend's home in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New ...

on March 25, 1996, by an unidentified assailant. The track features Bello on vocals.

Reception

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, oc ...

, in a mixed review for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

, wrote that the album is a continuation of the band's "writing slump" which started with 1993's '' Sound of White Noise''. He said that there aren't many "memorable songs" on the record, and went to call it "transitional album" leading the band to "new, uncharted territory". Stephen Thompson of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cr ...

'' found the album to be "aggressive to the point of being exhausting".

Martin Popoff Martin Popoff (born April 28, 1963) is a Canadian music journalist, critic and author. He is mainly known for writing about the genre of heavy metal music. The senior editor and co-founder of ''Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles'', he has additionall ...

in his ''Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal'' remarks how the band put a bit of everything in the songs, including multiple speeds, "humor scattered here and there", "big grungy guitars", "meat and potatoes riffing and roaring vocals from Bush", while "experimenting with some different textures and dynamics". The result is not just "an accessible thrash metal record", as is typical with Anthrax. In his 2014 autobiography ''I'm the Man: The Story of that Guy from Anthrax'',

Scott Ian Scott Ian (born Scott Ian Rosenfeld, December 31, 1963) is an American musician, best known as the rhythm guitarist and co-founder of the thrash metal band Anthrax. Ian is the guitarist and a founding member of the crossover thrash band Stormtroo ...

said "I'm still proud of the songs we wrote for ''Volume 8: The Threat is Real''. They were really diverse and heavy, modern sounding with a crushing metal groove. 1998 is the year

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, sometimes called aggro-metal) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, alternative rock, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu m ...

took over but we were definitely not a part of that scene. If anything we were old metal, so getting anyone to support us was proving difficult."

Track listing

All lyrics written by John Bush and

; all music by

Charlie Benante Charles Lee Benante (born November 27, 1962) is an American musician best known as the drummer for thrash metal band Anthrax, and crossover thrash band Stormtroopers of Death. Alongside rhythm guitarist and band leader Scott Ian, Benante has ...

, except where noted.

Credits

;Anthrax * John Bush - vocals *

- guitars, vocals on "Cupajoe" *

- bass, vocals on "Pieces" *

- drums, lead guitars on some tracks ;Guests *

Phil Anselmo Philip Hansen Anselmo (born June 30, 1968) is an American heavy metal vocalist best known as the lead singer for Pantera, Down, and Superjoint, amongst other musical projects. He is the owner of Housecore Records. Anselmo is regarded as one ...

- backing vocals on "Killing Box" *

Dimebag Darrell Darrell Lance Abbott (August 20, 1966 – December 8, 2004), best known by his stage name Dimebag Darrell, was an American musician. He was the guitarist of the heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan, both of which he co-founded alongside hi ...

- guitar solos on "Inside Out" and "Born Again Idiot" *

- guitar solos on "Killing Box", "Hog Tied", "Big Fat", "Stealing from a Thief" ;Production *Produced by Anthrax *Co-produced and engineered by

*Mixed by Chris Sheldon

Charts

References

External links

*
Review
in ''The Fulford and Tang Hall Curmudgeon'' #11 {{Authority control Anthrax (American band) albums 1998 albums