A Conversation with The New Singer of Anthrax Dan Nelson

So, this will be the first of many interviews of different artists I will have here. The interviews will be more of an inside look at them a different side. Some of the stuff will be about the bands they are in but more of the things will be personal stuff, funny stories and what they like to do besides the band. So what better way than my bud Dan Nelson the new singer of Anthrax. Dan and I met at NAMM but after talking with him there we realized we definitely crossed paths a lot of the past 10 years or so. Dan's vocals remind me of a cross between both John Bush and Joey Belladonna with some Phil Anselmo thrown in for good measure. Now Dan and I started talking at NAMM about doing this interview which turned into just us talking so its more a conversation. I had no set questions we just talked like buds telling stories and he also asked me stuff too. Dan isn't only a singer he is originally a bass player and plays drums and guitar also. He lives in Long Island with his wife, Kimberly, mother-in-law Pat and a dog named Samantha. Dan's been married for 4 years but been with his wife for 14 years! Dan has 3 brothers and a sister. Growing up Dan got into Anthrax by stealing his cousins copy of Among the Living. His other metal favs growing up were Metallica and Megadeth and his first concert was Metallica and The Cult on the And Justice For All tour and Nassau Coliseum. Some of Dan's passions include the New York Rangers, the New York Yankees, playing hockey and he absolutely loves movies! Dan is a personal trainer so he also loves to work out. Growing up he used to and still collects comic books and G.I. Joe action figures. He likes video games too and loves to play his Xbox 360, some of his favorite games are Gears of War, Oblivion and he really loves Zombie type of games. He loves warm climate areas but doesn't like the beach... just like Charlie Jaws ruined the ocean for him. Even though he trains people his favorite food is pizza and fast food, he also likes popcorn, coffee ice cream and dark chocolate. Ok now that you have had a short history lesson on Dan I did ask him some questions about what's going on with Anthrax. I asked him how the album was coming along and he told me that they only jammed together as a 5 piece 2 weekends ago but they have been writing stuff from day 1. The music was already written but he along with Scott are writing most of the lyrics and Scott, Frankie and himself are writing the melodies with a little help from Charlie. He told me that they totally embraced him as the new singer and gave him lots of room and listen to his input. He doesn't feel like a hired gun he feels like a full fledge member of Anthrax. The first song they played together live was Inside Out and then Room For One More. After the first song Scott said "This is gonna be awesome!" and he told me the rest of the band felt the same way. He hasn't met either John or Joey but has been told that John wishes him all the best and thanked him for all the good things he has said about him in the press. Another singer who was in a similar position was Tim "Ripper" Owens. Dan met Ripper at NAMM and was told to just go with the flow and that he has a really cool voice and also gave some advice on things. Vinnie Paul is another person that Dan met at NAMM that gave him a pat on the back and told him good luck. Dan said sometimes he thinks back on the times when he used to drive around singing Anthrax tunes in his car and now he has the tunes on his board at his studio to sing too except no vocals on the tracks. The way the band found Dan was through Rob and Rob said "What rock have you been hiding under?" Dan can't wait to get out on the road to show the people that Anthrax is alive an well. I will be following Dan over the next few months until the first show with Anthrax so check out my blog every week for some more Anthrax info from the new guy!
Check out the link below for more Anthrax info.
Peace Out! Bagel
Anthrax.com