ANTHRAX – Anthrology: No Hit Wonders (1985-1991) The Videos

After Anthrax’s reunion tour, everyone got to realize how big of an impact this band has and has had to the Metal scene. Everyone was more than happy to welcome back the fivesome from New York. In order to celebrate the return of the original lineup, Island Records put out three interesting releases: The first is a double CD, Anthrology: No Hit Wonders, containing the best of the best moments during the Belladonna years (read the review here), while the second Anthrology: No Hit Wonders (1985 – 1991) The Videos, is a DVD video collection, and the last, but not least, Alive 2, is a complete live performance.

The first video, “Metal Thrashing Mad,” that comes from Anthrax’s debut album Fistful of Metal, was recorded live in Germany during the band’s first European tour. This classic video represents the mid ’80s crazy atmosphere in a Heavy Metal gig with relentless headbanging, stage diving, and moshing… and shows the fans close to the stage. The original footage was in film, so the audio and visual recordings are a bit rough. Next, there is Anthrax’s first ever video clip that was filmed for the legendary Headbangers Ball on MTV. “Madhouse” is just hilarious, showing the band playing in an abandoned psychiatric clinic, while some friends of theirs dancing around them justify the title of the song. Due to this footage, the band was accused that they were making fun of the mentally ill.

The band’s reputation was growing by the time Among the Living was released, so they made, with a bigger budget, the video clip for “Indians,” inviting some of the fans to reproduce a live performance. There is an energy flow in every Anthrax live performance, and you can feel it by just watching this clip. The next three videos come from the Oidevnikufesin-N.F.V. longform video, originally released by Island Records back in 1988. The songs are “Armed and Dangerous,” “Among the Living,” and “Caught in the Mosh.” Moving on to “I Am The Law,” which is also a live recording from the tour as a support band for Ozzy in 1986. The light on this footage is dim, and the sound recording is rather noisy… possibly due to the fact that Anthrax was the opening act for this tour. Next, there is the visual evidence of the first ever Rap-Metal collaboration, giving as the outcome “I Am The Man.” The video clip consists of some live footage, showing the band performing after having changed positions with Belladonna as a drummer, and Bello, Benante, and Ian as singers, however, Spitz remained loyal to his guitar.

“Who Cares Wins” gets the nomination for one of the best video clips. The song is about social apathy faced by the homeless who are left aside, living in cardboard and eating from garbage. “Belly of the Beast” is next on the list, showing the band doing some sightseeing while they were on the tour with Iron Maiden. “Got the Time” comes from Persistence of Time, and is well-directed and filmed with some pretty good visual effects. One step before the end is another visualized song from the aforementioned album and is entitled “In My World.” The direction is simple — imitating a live performance with nothing special to add. The effort to combine Rap and Metal is topped off with “Bring tha Noize,” a song that was performed with Public Enemy, the original composers.

The DVD bonus list consists of the MTV version of “Madhouse,” where all the politically incorrect images were edited, and the joyful live montage of “I Am The Man” coming with rough sound and visuals. Next on the bonus list is the band’s video commentary, where the Anthrax boys are sitting on a couch discussing the video clips, giving information about everything with disarming honesty.

Well, the answer to question if this DVD is worth buying is for certainly “yes” — there are all of the band’s videos during the Island Records era, plus some information given directly from the band that more than just only the fans will find at least interesting. A minor complaint comes from the fact the band’s biography and discography are missing.