DAN LILKER Says "It Was Definitely A Surprise" To Be Asked To Rejoin ANTHRAX For 2024 Tour - "But It Ended Up Being A Pleasant Surprise"

Last March, Anthrax announced that, due to personal reasons, bassist Frank Bello would not be able to join the band on its South American tour, which kicked off on April 13 at MXMF The Metal Fest in Mexico City, Mexico.

Filling in on those dates, as well as two US festival shows in May, was Anthrax founding member / original bassist Dan Lilker, marking his first appearance with the band in 40 years. Lilker co-wrote and played on Fistful Of Metal, the debut album from Anthrax, released in 1984. He was also a member of Stormtroopers Of Death, alongside Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante and guitarist Scott Ian.

In a new interview with Big Music Geek, Lilker was asked if he was surprised to get ‘the call’ to re-join Anthrax as a tour replacement for Bello?

Says Dan, “It was definitely a surprise, but it ended up being a pleasant surprise. Scott had texted me in late February and said, ‘Frank can’t do these shows we’re doing in Latin America and a couple of US festivals in May. Can you do them?’ That was only five weeks out from the first show, but I said, ‘Sure. What’s the set list?’, and I practiced. Every day, I’d come home from work and run through the set list, driving my wife crazy. But I like to make sure I know stuff and I want to know it with full confidence. I want to play it and still be able to rock out and have it be natural like second nature. It was fun. I went to some cool places I’d never been to El Salvador or fucking Costa Rica or Ecuador and Uruguay. I went to Uruguay, dude. Those guys are all real great musicians. [Vocalist] Joey [Belladonna] is an amazing singer. I never shared a stage with him. It was lots of fun, but I was surprised.”

Read the full interview at Big Music Geek.

Some fan-filmed video from Dan Lilker's appearance with Anthrax at MXMF The Metal Fest in Mexico City, Mexico can be viewed below: