702 (band)

The group has sold over 5 million albums and singles worldwide and is currently signed to the Motown label. Amid what could have become a PR nightmare for the band, they issued a press release (http://www.anthrax.com/html/ANTHRAX_PressRelease.htm) on October 10, 2001 that jokingly mentioned that they were going to change the name of the band to "something more friendly, like 'Basket Full of Puppies.'". No Doubt won a Lady Of Soul Soul Train Award for "Best R&B/Soul or Rap Album Of The Year by A Group Band Or Duo". During the terrorist-related anthrax outbreak in the United States in 2001, the band altered their Website to provide information about the disease because many people had come there simply by entering anthrax.com in their Web browsers. Ellliott crafted two more songs for 702, their second album, the Top 5 hit "Where My Girls At" and "You Don't Know". The band has yet to release an official statement about Bello's departure and have recruited Joey Vera (Armored Saint, Fates Warning) as a touring bassist. The remix of "Steelo" was the first major solo production credit for Elliott's main collaborator Timbaland. In March 2004, long-time bassist (and nephew of drummer Benante) Frank Bello left the band amid much speculation.

Missy Elliott wrote and co-produced four songs from their first album, No Doubt, including "Steelo". Scott Ian is currently engaged to Meat Loaf's daughter Pearl Aday. 702 was discovered by Michael Bivins of New Edition, and made their recorded debut on Subway's hit single "This Lil' Game We Play". Several members have launched affiliated side-projects, such as Scott Ian's Stormtroopers of Death. 702, named after the area code of their hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada, is an American platinum-selling female hip-hop and R&B trio, made up of three young African-American women: lead singer Kameelah Williams, Irish Grinstead, and LeMisha Grinstead. In early 2004 the band returned to the studio to record Greater of Two Evils, a rerecording of the band's early work with the current lineup. 2003: Star. In 2002 new guitarist Rob Caggiano joined the band and the following year the band released We've Come For You All, an album hailed by the metal press as a long awaited return to form.

1999: 702. Despite these hardships and various legal entanglements regarding who had the rights to certain albums, Anthrax managed to soldier on. 1997: No Doubt. During this time period a two vocalist tour featuring both Joey Belladonna and John Bush was proposed and set to go, until Belladonna decided to pull out at the last minute. 2003: "I Still Love You". Regrouping the band signed with another label and released a greatest hits album although that label soon went out of business as well. 2003: "Star" (featuring Clipse). Unfortunately, almost immediately after Volume 8's release, the independant label they were signed to went bankrupt and disappeared, making the album extremely difficult to find.

2003: "Let Your Hair Down". Anthrax signed with a small independant label, and in 1998 managed to release Vol.-8 The Threat Is Real, a punishing album which had the potential to return Anthrax to the top of the metal heap. 2000: "Gotta Leave". During the hiatus long time guitarist Dan Spitz left the band, leaving Anthrax reeling. 1999: "You Don't Know". Obviously upset at what they felt was an attempt by the label to kill the album, Anthrax attempted to sever ties with Electra. 1999: "Where My Girls At" (US #4). In 1995 the band released Stomp 442 an album which Electra refused to provide real promotion for, and it quickly disappeared without a trace.

1997: "All I Want" (US #35). Unfortunately the musical landscape of the early '90s was changing drastically; Alternative Rock was the rage, and metal was no longer being pushed by the music industry. 1997: "Get It Together" (US #10). Bush was a more "serious" sounding vocalist and Sound of White Noise was well received by most of the band's audience. 1996: "Steelo" (US #32). The band jumped ship from Island Records to Electra Records and released Sound of White Noise on the label in 1993. Kameelah "Meelah" Williams. In 1992 Anthrax parted ways with vocalist Joey Belladonna and replaced him with ex-Armored Saint vocalist John Bush.

LeMisha "Misha" Grinstead. Within a few years bands such as Rage Against The Machine, Korn, Limp Bizkit and a host of others had picked up the Rap/Rock or Rap/Metal mantle and gone on to various degrees of success. Irish Grinstead. Bring The Noise was a hit and the band had a successful joint tour with Public Enemy. Anthrax was always a band prone to experimentation, and in 1991 they collaborated with pioneering rap artists Public Enemy on a joint version of PE's Bring The Noise. While Run-DMC had worked with Aerosmith back in 1986, Bring The Noise is widely regarded as the very first Rap Rock hybrid as this was the first time a Rock band had fully incorporated Rap into a song. Because of this Anthrax appealed to a more general audience even if they were never quite as popular as their contemporaries.

While the other major thrash bands, Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer, were deadly serious, Anthrax wrote songs about comic books and Stephen King novels. Almost immediately Anthrax morphed from a stereo-typical Judas Priest knock-off to the thrash metal style that would garner them so much fame. Mixing equal doses of punk and speed metal along with a generous dose of humor quickly shot them to the fore front of the burgeoning thrash movement. The additions of vocalist Joey Belladonna, and bassist Frank Bello brought a much improved sound to band. By 1985 when Anthrax released their first classic album, Spreading the Disease, their lineup had solidified into cohesive unit.

It was an inauspicuous debut for a band that would soon rise to the forefront of the thrash metal scene. After signing with Megaforce Records, they released their first full-length album, Fistful of Metal in 1984. Anthrax was formed by guitarist Scott Ian, drummer Charlie Benante, bassist Dan Lilker and vocalist Neil Turbin in the early '80s. They have made several appearances on television shows such as Married with Children and NewsRadio and have appeared in movies such as Run Ronnie Ron (performing as the fictional band Titannica) and Calendar Girls.

The "big-four" of thrash metal invariably includes Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax. Anthrax was one of the most popular bands from the thrash metal scene in the '80s, and possibly the biggest band to come out of the East Coast thrash scene. Anthrax is a New York City-based heavy metal rock group, who released their first full-length album in 1984. For the British band of the same name see: Anthrax (Anarcho-punk band).

This article deals with the American band called Anthrax. Neil Turbin, lead vocals. Dan Spitz, lead guitar. Dan Lilker, bass.