TRUE – Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante is bassist Frank Bello’s uncle
One of Anthrax’s songs is called “Keep it in the Family,” which is something the band have taken to heart. Anthrax bassist Frank Bello’s mother is Charlie Benante’s older sister, which makes Benante Bello’s uncle. Confused yet? We are.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP1RtxgIV0w[/youtube]
TRUE – Overkill frontman Bobby Blitz Owns a Chocolate Shop
When he’s not thrashing with Overkill, frontman Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth is a sweet guy. No, really sweet. He co-owns a chocolate shop with his wife in Nyack, NY, which isn’t all that far from Newark, NJ’s Ironbound district. Although when you actually visit Chocolaterie, you’d have no clue that the shop had any affiliation with the thrash frontman.
TRUE – Tony Iommi was briefly in Jethro Tull
In 1968, Iommi briefly left Black Sabbath (still known as Earth) to join Jethro Tull. However, his time with the flute rockers was extremely brief, only lasting for one performance before rejoining Earth. Luckily for fans, though, that one performance was at The Rolling Stones Rock & Roll Circus appearance, thus giving us proof in the form of footage.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8nsUGtdWNQ[/youtube]
TRUE – Lamb Of God’s Randy Blythe and Testament’s Alex Skolnick are working on a ballet together
Hands down, Lamb of God are one of the heaviest bands around. Thrash standard-bearers Testament are led by the dexterity of guitarist Alex Skolnick. So why wouldn’t the two collaborate on a ballet together? Stranger things have happened, like Dave Mustaine playing with a symphony, for example.
TRUE – John 5 co-wrote a song for a Rod Stewart album
The Rob Zombie guitarist has collaborated with everyone from Rob Halford to even KD Lang. But a song he helped co-wrote called “It’s Over” appeared on Rod Stewart’s 2013 album Time. “It was a massive hit, and it’s so weird to think that I was a part of it,” recalled John 5 when we spoke to him last year.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAE35c5WRXY[/youtube]
TRUE – Before forming Weezer, Rivers Cuomo was in a progressive metal band in the late 80’s
Under the name Peter Kitts, Cuomo formed Avant Garde (which later became Zoom) at the age of 17. The group (which Cuomo played lead guitar and sang backing vocals in) played the Sunset Strip circuit and recorded a handful of demos in the late eighties before splitting up in 1990.
[youtube]http://youtu.be/pQ1hmEOC8Dw[/youtube]
TRUE – John Bush was the voice of Burger King
Armored Saint and former Anthrax singer John Bush turned down returning to Anthrax. And with good reason. If you think he’s got killer pipes in Anthrax and Armored Saint, he also got to use them as a voice actor for some Burger King commercials.
TRUE – Killswitch Engage’s Jesse Leach appeared in a film with Alec Baldwin
Why should Andrew W.K. get all the child acting parts? Before he was in Killswitch Engage, or even before he was in Killswitch Engage the first time, Leach appeared in Outside Providence, a film starring Alec Baldwin.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFk4S8JlapQ[/youtube]
TRUE – Kerry King, Dimebag Darrell and Jeff Loomis are some of the guitarists who declined Dave Mustaine’s offer to join Megadeth
All three at one point were offered to join Megadeth as its second guitarist. Dimebag considered taking the gig under the condition his brother Vinnie Paul could join as well, but Megadeth already hired Nick Menza to play drums. Jeff Loomis had actually auditioned during the So Far, So Good…So What! era, but got turned down because he was only 16. However, Megadeth reached out to the then Nevermore guitarist around 2006/2007 to potentially join the group, but he turned down the offer to focus on his solo album Zero Order Phase. Out of the three, though, Kerry King actually played with Megadeth during their first couple of shows in 1984 while he was contemplating Slayer’s future. While King considered joining full time, he had a change of heart after seeing fans reactions and went back to Slayer full time. “During those first few shows, we did an in-store [appearance] at the Record Vault in San Francisco,” recalled bassist David Ellefson. “All these fans were going up to Kerry going, ‘Dude, Slayer! Slayer!’ And I think Kerry kind of had a second thought, like, Wait a minute, maybe I shouldn’t be joining Megadeth, maybe I should go back home and kick my bandmates’ asses and get everything in gear.”
[youtube]http://youtu.be/hzvAwgXmzU8[/youtube]
TRUE – Lamb of God’s Chris Adler completed the Saltine Cracker Challenge
Can you eat six saltine crackers in one minute without water? Chances are, you’ll wind up choking on saltine dust. Most mortals would. However, Chris Adler has beyond average eating skills, as he’d completed it before.
[youtube]http://youtu.be/Vv7FCwlYAVs[/youtube]
TRUE – Arch Enemy’s Michael Amott and Angela Gossow are married
Gossow and Amott first met in 2000 when she interviewed him for a German webzine. Not only did she give him a demo of her singing (which led to her getting the gig as Arch Enemy’s singer), but the two started a low-profile relationship. While the two would tie the knot a few years later, that wasn’t enough to keep Angela in the band (though she still has a role behind the scenes).
So as you probably guessed by now, all of these “rumors” are true… Happy April Fool’s Day everyone!
