Scott Ian has admitted that he used to play online poker during Anthrax sets.
The guitarist, whose love affair with the game began after he competed in VH1's Classic Rock'n'Roll Celebrity Poker Tournament in 2006 alongside Godsmack frontman Sully Erna, Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul and former Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley, made the revelation in a new interview with Poker News.
"There were times where I'd be in a Sunday tournament," says Ian. "I'd be going deep in the tournament, and then it's time for the band to go on stage and I'm like, 'What am I going to do?'
"So I would literally bring my laptop on stage. I'd be up there playing. My laptop would be right over there on the side where my guitar tech is set up. And so I'd be out there playing and songs are an average four minutes to six minutes, and then I would run back [and ask] 'What happened?'
"My tech knew enough about [Texas] Hold'Em, and I would just give him instructions like 'just fold anything except for nines or better at this point'
"There were actually a few times where he would get in the hands and actually win a pot for me, and so if I cashed, I'd cash him out at the end of the game, too."
In 2008, Ian signed a professional sponsorship deal with the internet gaming site Ultimate Bet, and would spend the following four years playing up to 90 hours a week.
Back in the present day, Anthrax have begun their support tour with Iron Maiden without drummer Charlie Benante.
For the first show of the tour, at the Olympic Stadium in Athens, Greece, on Saturday, Benante – who played on Sunday in Germany with Pantera – was replaced behind the kit by Darby Todd, who has previously plied his trade with The Darkness, Gary Moore, Joe Lynn Turner, Robert Plant, Paul Gilbert and others.
Benante is expected to rejoin Anthrax at their next show, which is at the Vasil Levski Stadium in Sofia, Bulgaria, tomorrow night.
