ANTHRAX's SCOTT IAN Offers Update On Reunion Tour

ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian has posted the following message on the band's official blog:

"Hello from Brisbane, how ya goin'?

"I figured I'd drop in and give another update now that we're a huge six shows deep into the reunion tour.

"I've been trying to write a full-blown Alpha Mail but the magic just isn't happening. I used to write so well on planes but now, it's been my only place to catch up on sleep. We just did a 40-something-hour trek from a village called Raalte in Holland (10 clicks from the Dynamo site),to Amsterdam, to London, to L.A. to my house for a four-hour layover, back to LAX to Brisbane. That's entertainment!

"So far the Airborne is working. Last year when we got to Australia after flying from Japan I was sick all week. Not this time. Take Airborne.

"Here's my ADD recap of the last two and a half weeks:

"Rehearsals were easy. The song 'Time' kicks ass and I can't wait to play it. For sure in NJ. Schaumburg, IL is boring. Next time I will stay in the city.

"Detroit was a well-needed real rehearsal. The crowd was great and Harpo's was fun. They took very good care of us. We'll be back.

"Chicago was its usual fantastic self. I actually thought the crowd was better the second night. I saw a lot of you loyal NFMB's. Thank you for coming. I saw Sean in the front. I said 'Thanks for coming' when I handed you the pick. Saw Bud E, Pink, Thraxx, Justin, and of course our Major Domo Brent. If I forgot anyone I apologize. You guys rule and the swag came out great. [Keanu] Reeves and [Brian] Posehn were in the pit Saturday night. Reeves was on fire afterwards at the Chophouse. He loves metal!

"The LAMB OF GOD guys came Sunday night. Great to see them and their guitar tech saved our ass. I thought by Sunday night we sounded great. It got tight very quickly.

"Thank you all so much for coming out and having fun with us. To start with three sold-out gigs was uplifting to say the least. We'll be back for the L.A. and Vegas and NJ shows. The real U.S. tour will happen October/November. We will try and hit everywhere. NJ will be sick. We're filming that show for the main concert portion of the DVD. We'll bust'em all out that night.

"Dublin is always great. The city, the people, the Guinness, it's all good. we always drink at the Bruxelles which has a great Metal bar downstairs. To drink Guinness in Dublin while THIN LIZZY is blasting is all I need.

"Andy Buchanan and I had a Guinness fight. 10 pints each. And they were Imperial pints, 20 oz's. It was a draw although he was hungover.

"We went straight from Glasgow airport to Where The Monkey Sleeps for the legendary Manfosh. It's the breakfast sandwich that dreams are made of.
The Barrowlands rocked from start to finish and it's one of those gigs that makes me feel absolutely privileged to ever be allowed to be in a band. We've had a great relationship with the fans in Glasgow for years and it keeps getting stronger. I can't wait to come back. Donald McLeod is the man.

'My Southern Cross kicks ass. Thanks Dime. Thanks Eric.

"It was around forty degrees (Fahrenheit) on stage at Dynamo. My fingers were numb. The crowd wasn't and we did our best to keep everyone warm by pushing even harder. They tried to stop us after 'Metal Thrashing Mad' but we wouldn't leave the stage and we did 'I Am The Law'. Why should Dynamo be cheated just because it's cold? Fuck that. There's no cold in metal!

"And that brings me to Brisbane. The flights weren't too bad. I slept most of it and watched '24' (it rules) and saw 'The Life Aquatic' (where once again Bill Murray is amazing).

"First Australia show tomorrow night. If it's anything like last year, we're in for a great week. And Perth this time too!!

"See you soon."