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Over the course of the last few years, many groups have decided to rerecord classic material with the intention of giving the songs an updated injection of new life. The improvements in studio technology have increased exponentially in the last decade, enabling artists to make their music sound better than ever before. Having said that, if you are an Anthrax follower, every bit of the material on this disc is most likely near and dear to your heart. The title of this record is a bit misleading however, in that it proclaims this version as being 'greater'. Unfortunately, it cannot be said that it is. Nevertheless, these versions are substantial recordings in their own right that are quality re-visitations of some truly classic Anthrax tunes, which have been re-recorded and feature the capable singing of John Bush. His take on this older material is actually quite admirable and is given weight by the fact that he has performed many of these songs countless times live in concert during his lengthy tenure with the band.
The record's first two tracks, 'Deathrider' and 'Metal Thrashing Mad' stem from the group's very early days with lead howler Neil Turbin, during which the group was, for the most part, largely unknown. It is these two songs that receive the most benefit from the re-recording upgrade, and the vocals of Bush are certainly superior to the originals. The tracks come off as much beefier and tight than their previous versions. As the album moves into the Joey Belladonna era material with the classic thrash anthem 'Caught In A Mosh'. This song has been a staple of the band's live set and is portrayed here with aggression and intensity. On the fourth track 'A.I.R.', the most notable difference musically is the precise picking of Scott Ian. With years of experience at playing the track, his picking attack has been refined into a flurry of rhythm. 'Among The Living' is well represented here, being one of the most outright heavy songs the band has ever written, it gains an even crunchier tone, highlighting the trademark sound of Ian. The 'get the crowd going 'yeahs'' of Bush would have been better left off as they detract from the introductions dramatic impact. That aside, this song based of the Stephen King classic 'The Stand' just rips your head off with its pure unadulterated power.
'Indians', the song which made the band famous on MTV's Headbangers Ball is fueled by Ian's high-octane riffery and 'Madhouse' also benefits from a much heavier guitar tone and the hard hitting performance of Charlie Benante. Bush's vocals suit this song well and this is probably the Joey Belladonna track where he puts forth the best effort. On 'I Am The Law', the band's ode to comic book hero Judge Dredd, the guitar sound is wet as hell and comes off ultimately as mosh inciting fun. Fortunately the guys didn't drokk this classic track up. 'Belly Of The Beast' sounds a lot different than the original from 'Persistence Of Time'. Bush's baritone voice makes the track sound a little bit more middle of the road than the original and the chorus seems a bit rushed. The original was much more enjoyable, here it becomes average, especially in regard to the half spirited backing vox.
'Nice Fucking Life' features some really cool double kick work at its onset and Benante really sets the pace here. Scott Ian's chanting here sounds as cool as it did the day the original was released and Frank Bello keeps his punchy bass lines tight to Charlie's bass drums. The half time solo by Rob Caggiano adds something different to the song and the black metal style blasts before the track's final chorus is also an extremely cool touch. 'State Of Euphoria' is represented well with the slower paced 'Be All, End All'. You can just imagine Ian doing his exaggerated stomping antics around the stage as this songs introduction winds out. John Bush does a good job with the track, which is notable for its positive lyrical content. The album closes with the sonic barrage of 'Gung Ho'. The frantic riffing of this song epitomizes the spirit of thrash metal and this revamped version is a lightening paced neck breaker of a track that completely smokes. Lastly you'll find some goofy backward masking, that must have some meaning known to the band members before lapsing into what is one of the best all time Anthrax tracks, 'Lone Justice' which is not listed as a track for some reason. 'Justice' is done justice here as the band slam through a resounding rendition of the track that gives the original a run for its money. This hidden gem is one of the best renditions of the older material on the record and closes it in fine fashion!
There used to be a time when Anthrax did not have to rely upon satanic imagery upon its album covers. All of their Belladonna era album covers were damn cool and it is hard to understand why they have chosen to resort to this type of a marketing trick. It looks cool and all, but it's really quite unnecessary to continue on with this theme. Apparently, they went this route in order to tie in with the album's title and the freemasonic logo that has accompanied their last two releases ('We've Come For You All' and 'Music Of Mass Destruction'). At the end of the day, however, this album is not greater than the classic recordings. It is something new and different, it's interesting and it certainly belongs in any metal head's Anthrax collection. These versions jam pretty hard, now here's looking forward to a new effort from the band that can live up to the quality of the tracks contained on this disc.
Review by: Erin Fox
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