Last week, it was revealed that Sepultura guitarist Andreas Kisser would be filling in for Scott Ian during a bunch of Anthrax’s European dates while the goatee’d guitarist tackled his new role as father. It’s understandable that Ian would want to be present at the birth of his and wife Pearl Aday’s first child. Yet Ian still felt the need to clarify a few things, such as exactly which shows he’ll be missing.
Ian released the following statement to further explain his decision:
“I know there’s been a lot of rhetoric out there regarding upcoming Anthrax shows, ‘Big Four’ and otherwise. I’ve been debating on whether or not to make a public statement about this as it really pertains to my personal life and I generally like to keep that personal. Because this is affecting my band life, I feel like you, my friends, deserve to hear from me personally.
I will be playing the ‘Big Four’ show April 23 in Indio, California as well as the shows in Manila, Bangkok, and Japan that will follow the Indio show. I won’t be playing the shows scheduled from July 2-16 in Europe and the U.K. My wife Pearl and I are expecting our first child and she is due literally the day of the ‘Big Four’ Sonisphere show in France.
This decision to miss these shows was a deeply personal one. I co-founded this band July 18, 1981 and for almost thirty years, I have been there for everything we’ve ever done. I have never been faced with anything that would make me even question being there for anything Anthrax-related. Becoming a father is the biggest, best thing that’s ever happened to me and it made the decision relatively easy. My priority is with my wife and the birth of our first child. As soon as I was faced with this decision, I knew, as Freddie Mercury so eloquently said, ‘The show must go on.’
I started thinking about guitar players I knew, guys that I am a fan of, guys that I respect, guys that headbang like Angus was watching them, guys that I listen to and who I thought had the spirit to enable the show to go on. This wasn’t a hard decision at all. I asked the rest of the band what they thought, and we were on the same page. We chose Andreas [Kisser] because we feel he can do the gig better than anyone. He has the fire, the attitude, and the crushing right hand to do the gig. I’ve played with Andreas at the Roadrunner 25th-anniversary show, and I’ve gotten up and played with Sepultura and we are kindred spirits. We both play every show like we’re going to jail the next day, like it’s the last show we’ll ever play. He has what it takes and he has the experience and history to fucking bring it and make these Anthrax shows something special. I can’t wait to see and hear it for myself!!
This year will bring our tenth Anthrax studio record featuring the return of the one and only Joey Belladonna. We’re hard at work finishing it and I can say that from the tracks I have heard, it is going to tear your fucking heads off. I’m looking forward to getting back on the road with the band that is now better than we’ve ever been, and seeing all your sick faces and banging heads.”
You can take a look and see which shows Ian will be playing with Anthrax and which shows Kisser will be filling in for after the jump. It’s too bad that the guitarist/soon to be father will be missing more shows than originally thought, including the “The Big Four” shows in Europe. But at the same time, it’s great (for both the band and fans) that Kisser is able to help the band out and that Ian can take the needed time off to spend with his new family.
Here are the Anthrax shows that Scott Ian will be playing at:
4/23 – Empire Polo Club, Indio, CA (“Big Four” show)
4/30 – Pulp Summer Slam Festival, Manilla, Philippines
5/2 – AP Parking, Esplanade, Ratchada, Bangkok, Thailand
5/5 – O-East, Tokyo, Japan
5/6 – O-East, Tokyo, Japan
5/7 – Diamond Hall, Nagoya, Japan
5/9 – Big Cat, Osaka, Japan
Here are the Anthrax shows with Andreas Kisser filling in on guitar:
7/2 – Veltins Arena, Gelsenkirchen, Germany (“Big Four” show)
7/3 – Ullevi, Gothenburg, Sweden (“Big Four” show)
7/5 – Komplex AG, Zurich, Switzerland
7/6 – Fiera Open Air Arena, Milan, Italy (“Big Four” show)
7/8 – Sonisphere Festival, Knebworth, UK
7/9 – Sonisphere Festival, Amneville, France
7/11 – Garage, Saarbrucken, Germany
7/12 – Vega Musikkenshus, Copenhagen, Denmark
7/14 – Slottsfjell Festival, Tonsberg, Norway
7/15 – Dour Festival, Dour, Belgium
7/16 – Zwarte Cross Festival, Lichtenvoorde, Netherlands
