Anyone who caught Anthrax during their recent UK tour with Slayer will know that the New York thrash veterans are on superb form. Following up 2011’s career-saving Worship Music was never going to be straightforward, not least because the band have a tendency to do things the hard way, but For All Kings, their 11th studio album, is full of the anthemic choruses and hulking riffs that have always driven their sound, and it’s hard to imagine diehard fans being anything but satisfied. In some ways a more focused effort than its predecessor, it does make occasional detours away from flat-out aggression and into radio-friendly hard rock, most notably on Breathing Lightning’s melodic peaks. It’s a blend that suits the band – and vocalist Joey Belladonna in particular – to a tee. Nevertheless, it’s the faster moments that hit the hardest, with unlikely single Evil Twin and the furious Suzerain pointing to a renewed love of metal’s dark, destructive side, and the closer, Zero Tolerance, taking Anthrax back to their full-tilt speed-metal roots.
