ANTHRAX's CHARLIE BENANTE On 'State Of Euphoria' Album: 'All Of Us In The Band Felt That It Was Not Finished'

On October 5, Island Records/Ume/Universal Music will release the 30th-anniversary, 2CD deluxe edition of ANTHRAX‘s fourth studio album, “State Of Euphoria”. The package will consist of two discs: Disc One is the fully remastered album, all of the B-sides originally released in conjunction with the album, and “Antisocial” recorded live in London at the Hammersmith Odeon in March, 1989. Disc Two, “Charlie’s Archives”, is a real treasure trove for ANTHRAX fans as it puts you right in the room with the band as the album’s songs evolved. The package also includes a 20-page booklet that will take you right back to the time of the album’s release.

“State Of Euphoria” will also be issued as a 2-LP set on standard black vinyl and limited edition red and yellow colored vinyl. Both versions are available for pre-order here.

The anniversary package was helmed by the band’s drummer and longtime archivist Charlie Benante, who dove into his ANTHRAX vault to come up with the tapes that show the evolution of the album’s songs. Disc Two takes you through the writing, development and recording process of the album’s songs. The listener is taken into the band’s writing and rehearsal sessions hearing the band members construct the song, deciding what stays and what doesn’t, and then into the studio for the recording of basic tracks.

“I took myself back to that time and going through all the motions and moods and pressure we all felt back then,” Benante explained to Billboard. “You have to understand, we were only that band for maybe four years at that point. So believe me, man, it was a whirlwind trying to maintain a certain level of continuity between our first three records that we did and ‘State Of Euphoria’. If you compare our arc to what METALLICA, SLAYER and MEGADETH were doing as well back then, our records were all on the same wavelength. ‘Among The Living’ was our ‘Reign In Blood’, our ‘Master Of Puppets’, and those were all, I felt, our signature records. The ones that came out after that weren’t as strong, in my opinion. I don’t think ‘…And Justice For All’ is nearly as strong as ‘Puppets’, though I still love that record, and I don’t think ‘State Of Euphoria’ was as strong as ‘Among’.

“The momentum behind ‘Among The Living’ almost made you have to like our next record,” he said. “And I’m not saying that ‘State Of Euphoria’ was bad; all of us in the band felt that it was not finished. We could have used a little more time with it.”

In addition to the original album’s artwork that includes the Mort Drucker-drawn (Mad magazine) back cover, the anniversary package includes never before seen personal snapshots of the band members, tour admats/posters, plus two ANTHRAX magazine covers, all culled from that 1988-1989 period. For the booklet, the band enlisted British journalist Alexander Milas, former editor-in-chief of Metal Hammer, to write the sleeve notes, Shawn Franklin handled editing tracks and Paul Logus mastered the set. Benante also took to social media, inviting fans to tell him what “State Of Euphoria” had meant to them. He was overwhelmed with responses, and many of them are included in the booklet.

“State Of Euphoria” was produced by ANTHRAX and Mark Dodson, includes fan favorites “Antisocial” and “Be All, End All”, and was certified gold a few months after release.

Track listing:

Disc One – State Of Euphoria (Remaster With Bonus Tracks)

01. Be All, End All
02. Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind
03. Make Me Laugh
04. Antisocial
05. Who Cares Wins
06. Now It’s Dark
07. Schism
08. Misery Loves Company
09. 13
10. Finale
11. Antisocial (French) *
12. Friggin In The Riggin *
13. Parasite *
14. Le Sects *
15. Pipeline *
16. Antisocial (Live At Hammersmith Odeon) *