Charlie Benante: Anthrax deserve Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame recognition

Anthrax
Anthrax (Image credit: Paul Natkin - Getty)

Earlier this month, the nominees for 2020’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame were announced.

The rock world was well represented with Motorhead, Judas PriestThin LizzySoundgardenT-RexMC5Nine Inch NailsPat Benatar and Todd Rundgren all in with a shot of making it in next year. They were joined on the list by Dave Matthews Band, The Doobie BrothersKraftwerk, Whitney Houston, The Notorious B.I.G. and Rufus featuring Chaka Khan

And in a recent interview with Anthrax’s Charlie Benante on Sirius XM’s Trunk Nation, the topic of the Rock Hall was brought up – with the drummer saying his band deserve to be recognised for the work they’ve done in bringing metal to the masses.

He says (via Blabbermouth): “The reason why I think we should be nominated for The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is because of the stamp that we made on rock and heavy metal music.

“If it wasn't for us, there would be a lot of bands that wouldn't be around today. I don't mean to sound, 'Oh, this guy's got a huge ego,' but we introduced a lot of people to rap music and to that whole style that became nu metal.

“We never really talk about it too much, but since you brought it up, yeah. I think that's more important to The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, because of what genre it created and that genre created another genre.”

Anthrax formed in 1981 and have released 11 studio albums, with their most recent being 2016’s For All Kings.

The band will play at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville on November 15 and will join Slipknot at Knotfest Japan in Chiba on March 20, 2020.

Anthrax: For All Kings

Anthrax: For All Kings
Anthrax's 11th studio album For All Kings arrived in 2016 and features instant classics including Evil Twin and the anthemic title track

Anthrax: Kings Among Scotland

Anthrax: Kings Among Scotland
Anthrax documented their 2017 tour with this live package recorded in Glasgow in the April of that year. The set celebrated For All Kings and their classic 1987 album Among The Living.

Scott Munro
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Scott has spent 35 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott keeps Louder’s buyer’s guides up to date, writes about the best deals for music fans, keeps on top of the latest tech releases and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more for Louder. Over the last 10 years, Scott has written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, The Tragically Hip, Marillion and Rush.