{"id":106240,"date":"2026-09-18T00:00:33","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T23:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=106240"},"modified":"2026-10-14T11:13:24","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T10:13:24","slug":"album-review-anthrax-cursom-perficio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-anthrax-cursom-perficio\/","title":{"rendered":"ANTHRAX – Cursom Perficio (2026) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

ANTHRAX
\nCursom Perficio<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nNuclear Blast \/ Megaforce (2026)<\/span>
\nRating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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Chugging and moshing since the halcyon days of the 80s, metal heavyweights Anthrax embark on another chapter after a decade long absence in recorded material. Previous full-length pair, Worship Music<\/em><\/a> (2011) and For All Kings<\/em> (2016), were, in my opinion, solid records, particularly the former, although some fans were lukewarm in their responses to both lengthy slabs. For me, there was always going to be excitement when the band re-employed legendary frontman Joey Belladonna, the man whose pipes serenaded us teens for four albums through the golden age of thrash.<\/p>\n

For anyone who has been awake over the last few months would no doubt have been buoyed by lead single \u2018It\u2019s For the Kids\u2019, a classic slice of Anthrax with its juggernaut segments and killer yet playful melody on the chorus. It was certainly a song to get the blood running warm as the combo once again fused melodic heavy metal, bulldozer breakdowns and a jovial half-hinted crossover ethos. Maybe it\u2019s the colourful energy that has, at times in the past, caused critics to raise their eyebrows?<\/p>\n

The whole \u201cBig Four\u201d thing, with Metallica, Slayer<\/a> and Megadeth<\/a>, was somewhat unkind to Anthrax, because their sound, unlike the others, was never a full on serious and dark thrash assault, but that\u2019s why I\u2019ve always held the combo in such high regard. While Metallica became U2, Megadeth slowed down and Slayer succumbed to Kerry King\u2019s macho lyrical cheese, Anthrax became darker, especially without Belladonna at the helm. Anthrax fans in the present will be pleasantly surprised then by the moody, almost downbeat vibe of opening slab \u2018The Long Goodbye\u2019, an emotive, sprawling monolith whose topic is dementia.<\/p>\n

I can literally hear the Spreading The Disease<\/em> (1985) and Among The Living<\/em> (1987) fans huffing in frustration, but that\u2019s always been the joy of Anthrax. Whether it was the gaudy vomit-inducing cover art of State Of Euphoria<\/em><\/a> (1988), or the despicably hip renditions of Public Enemy\u2019s \u2018Bring The Noise\u2019 and Joe Jackson\u2019s \u2018Got The Time\u2019, Anthrax brought variety in droves, even via the grungier John Bush years. And so, Cursum Perficio<\/em> somewhat channels all eras of the band as they merrily strut through tough urbancore (\u2018Everybody\u2019s Got A Plan\u2019) and blackish tinged oddness (\u2018The Edge Of Perfection\u2019).<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve no major quibbles at the variety displayed here, the band have never sounded so fresh, weight is never sacrificed and there\u2019s still enough gang chants and punky riffs to transport the older listeners back to the late 80s and early 90s. Another vibrant time capsule is \u2018NYC 93\u2019 with its Overkill vibe, while \u2018Infectious\u2019 boasts more of a mid-to-late 90s rock groove. After numerous listens there\u2019s still a lot of meat to pick at and admittedly some songs, such as the catchy six minute title number, could have had some fat trimmed off.<\/p>\n

Rumour has it that Cursum Perficio<\/em> is the last studio outing from the band, and if that\u2019s true then it\u2019s a worthy farewell, and certainly more rewarding than Megadeth\u2019s self-titled<\/a> finale. Cursum Perficio<\/em> is also better than the last Metallica opus (72 Seasons<\/em><\/a>), so, in spite of all the unwarranted criticism, Anthrax has faced over the years, the band remains the dark horse of the pack, a combo whose journey has been fluid and unforced through decades of trend.<\/p>\n

Anthrax is Anthrax, but those expecting Among The Living<\/em> Part 2 have no respect or understanding of the band and its evolution. Guitarists Scott Ian and Jonathan Donais construct great riff walls, impenetrable thrash fortresses that grind and chug to the burly backbone of Charlie Benante\u2019s percussion and Frank Bello\u2019s bass. After four decades of spreading the disease, Anthrax has still got the power. Cherish it before it\u2019s gone.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ANTHRAX Cursom Perficio Nuclear Blast \/ Megaforce (2026) Rating: 8\/10 Chugging and moshing since the halcyon days of the 80s, metal heavyweights Anthrax embark on another chapter after a decade long absence in recorded material. Previous full-length pair, Worship Music (2011) and For All Kings (2016), were, in my opinion, solid records, particularly the former, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,52],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-106240","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-album-ep-reviews","category-anthrax"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=106240"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106240\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":106241,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/106240\/revisions\/106241"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=106240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=106240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=106240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}