SCOTT IAN - "There's Never Going To Be Another IRON MAIDEN... There's Never Going To Be Another BLACK SABBATH Or METALLICA Or ANTHRAX"
January 25, 2018, 6 years ago
In a new interview with Tampabay.com, Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian talks about shredding in his 50s, the decline of the heavy metal headliner, and more. Read an excerpt below:
Q: We just passed another year where Priest and Maiden didn't get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer have all been eligible for years. Clearly there's a side of music history that's not being told there. You have any thoughts on that?
Scott Ian: "I don't care. It doesn't mean anything to me. There's a segment of the fans that are very passionate about this kind of stuff, and it would probably mean a lot to my parents. (laughs) I feel the same way about that as I feel about Grammys or any type of awards for making music. It's something that has nothing to do at all with anything of me being in the band or playing guitar or writing songs or touring. It couldn't be farther away from why I do this. What does it mean? That 20 dudes sitting around a room decided not to acknowledge the fact that Judas Priest are one of the most influential heavy metal bands of all time? So what? That doesn't change the way I listen to their records. It doesn't change the way I'm going to react when I go see them on tour this year. So no, I don't give a s—. It means nothing to me."
Q: Obviously, everybody looks up to Priest and Maiden, and then your class of musicians has gotten a huge amount of recognition. But then the generation below you - Killswitch Engage is a good example, or arena bands like Avenged Sevenfold or Five Finger Death Punch, or even a critically acclaimed band like Mastodon. These are bands that probably will never have that kind of recognition on any level, no matter how big they are now or how much people love them now. There stands to be no canonization of these bands. Do you think that's the case? Or will people eventually appreciate these bands long-term?
Scott Ian: "I just think it's changed. People ask all the time, "Who's the next Maiden? Who's the next Metallica? Who's going to carry the torch?" F— if I know that. But in a different way, I can answer it: There's never going to be another Iron Maiden. There's never going to be another Sabbath or Metallica or Anthrax. To be able to create headliner in music these days is a hard, hard thing. You hope that people are still buying tickets, and they are – it's just not the same as it was. So there aren't going to be headliners like we used to have. All the bands you mentioned, none of them are ever going to be at that level of Maiden or Metallica or Priest or AC/DC. In my lifetime, in the next 20 years or so, you're not going to have a whole slew of bona fide arena or stadium headlining acts from bands either from the last 10 years or in the next 10 years. It's just not going to happen. The industry doesn't allow for it anymore."
Read the full interview at Tampabay.com.
Anthrax are set to join Slayer on their final tour, launching in May.
After making some of the most brutal, breathtakingly aggressive, all-hell's-a-breaking-loose music ever created, being one of the four bands that defined an entire musical genre and being the band that other heavy acts are measured against and aspire to... after nearly 37 years, releasing 12 studio albums, multiple live recordings, compilations, live video and two box sets, playing nearly 3,000 concerts in all corners of the world, receiving countless awards including five Grammy nominations and two Grammy awards, Gold records and other accolades... having its own exhibit in the Smithsonian Institute, gracing hundreds of magazine covers, experiencing the devastating loss of a founding brother, and even appearing on The Tonight Show, the age of Slayer, one of the greatest thrash/metal/punk bands of this or any age, is coming to an end.
Slayer announces that it will do one last concert tour around the globe to thank their fans for all of their support over the years, for making the last three-and-a-half decades so packed with good times and unforgettable experiences, and will then move on.
Lamb Of God, Anthrax, Behemoth and Testament will support Slayer on the first leg, North America, of its final world tour. Tickets go on sale to the public this Friday, January 26th at 10 AM, local time. Very limited Slayer onstage + meet & greet+ exclusive merchandise packages will be available. Log on to slayer.net for this and all ticket purchasing info.
Tour dates:
May
10 - Valley View Casino Center - San Diego, CA
11 - FivePoint Amphitheatre - Irvine, CA
13 - Papa Murphy's Park at Cal Expo - Sacramento, CA
16 - PNE forum - Vancouver, BC
17 - South Okanagan Events Centre - Penticton, BC
19 - Big Four - Calgary, AL
20 - Shaw Centre - Edmonton, AB
22 - Bell MTS Place - Winnipeg, MB
24 - The Armory - Minneapolis, MN
25 - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre - Chicago, IL
27 - Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre @ Freedom Hill - Detroit, MI
29 - Budweiser Stage - Toronto, ON
30 - Place Bell - Montreal, PQ
June
1 - Mohegan Sun - Uncasville, CT
2 - PNC Banks Arts Center - Holmdel, NJ
4 - Santander Arena - Reading, PA
6 - Riverbend Music Center - Cincinnati, OH
7 - Blossom Music Center - Cleveland, OH
9 - KeyBank Pavilion - Pittsburgh, PA
10 - Jiffy Lube Live - Bristow, VA
12 - VUHL Amphitheatre - Virginia Beach, VA
14 - PNC Music Pavilion - Charlotte, NC
15 - Orlando Amphitheatre - Orlando, FL
17 - Smart Financial Center - Houston, TX
19 - The Bomb Factory - Dallas, TX
20 - Austin 360 Amphitheatre - Austin, TX
