Anthrax: Spreading The Disease (Remaster)

Anthrax’s Spreading the Disease is one of the essential records of American thrash metal. Originally released in 1985, the band’s second album introduced Joey Belladonna on vocals and Frank Bello on bass, completing the classic Anthrax lineup alongside Scott Ian, Dan Spitz and Charlie Benante.

The difference from the debut is immediate. Anthrax sound tighter, faster and considerably more confident, combining the aggression of thrash with the melodic vocal approach that helped distinguish them from their contemporaries. Belladonna’s soaring voice gave the band a completely different character from Metallica, Slayer and Megadeth, while Scott Ian and Dan Spitz delivered some of the sharpest riffs of the era.

Opening track “A.I.R.” remains an absolute monster, followed by the frantic “Lone Justice” and the enduring “Madhouse.” The latter became one of Anthrax’s signature songs and remains a permanent fixture of their classic catalogue.

“S.S.C./Stand or Fall” and “The Enemy” keep the intensity high before “Aftershock” delivers another barrage of classic thrash riffing. “Armed and Dangerous” revisits material from the band’s earlier EP with the classic lineup firmly in place, while “Medusa” demonstrates the heavier, more traditional metal side of Anthrax.

Closing with “Gung-Ho,” Spreading the Disease finishes exactly as it should: fast, loud and completely out of control.

Nearly four decades later, the album remains a cornerstone of thrash metal and arguably one of the most important releases Anthrax ever made. It established the sound that would lead directly into Among the Living and helped secure the band’s place alongside Metallica, Slayer and Megadeth as one of thrash metal’s legendary Big Four.