This just in, Jacksonians—for the first time in nearly 20 years, the original U.S. “Clash of the Titans” lineup—Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax—will tour the United States together this fall. The Titan-ic trio is reuniting for the second leg of the “American Carnage” tour, which kicks off Sept. 24 in Dallas and concludes 20 dates later in Los Angeles on Oct. 21.
At each show, Megadeth will tear through 1990 thrash landmark Rust in Peace in its entirety while Slayer will lay waste in kind to their own 1990 magnum opus, Seasons in the Abyss. Anthrax, meanwhile, has thrown a high horns-up to its late-’80s/early ’90s heyday by welcoming singer Joey Belladonna back into the fold, reuniting the band’s classic lineup.
The three bands originally toured in the United States under the “Clash of the Titans” banner in summer 1991, with little-known-at-the-time Seattle quartet Alice in Chains opening. This year, they’re hitting the road on the heels of the metallically historic “Big Four” shows with Metallica at summer Sonisphere Festival dates in Europe, marking the first time that thrash’s four most influential bands have ever shared a stage.
“The American Carnage dates with Slayer and Megadeth—a.k.a. Clash of the Titans reunited—are going to be insane,” Jackson-abusing Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian told us this morning. “The three of us just finished the Big Four shows with Metallica in Europe and now we get to spend another month together hanging out and tearing peoples’ heads off! It’s going to be a headbanging fall.”
Recently returned Megadeth bassist Dave Ellefson was equally enthusiastic, telling Jackson that “As if things couldn’t get any better, 2010 continues to be the year for thrash metal. These new American Carnage dates this fall with Slayer and Anthrax will give our longtime fans a trip down memory lane and give the new fans a chance to experience the show with all three of us that they might not have had a chance to see back in 1991. Happily, the fans will get to hear and see the power of Jackson basses at work. Those instruments did and still do create the sound of thrash metal bass.”
Ticket pre-sales start Wednesday, July 14; fans should visit each band’s website to get the special pre-sale code needed on the Ticketmaster website (www.knoxvilletickets.com for the Knoxville, Tenn., date) and to see what other cool things are up for grabs. There will be pre-sale discounts on all tickets in most markets, and a limited number of $10 tickets will be available in many cities too. Once again, check out each band’s website or the Ticketmaster site for details. The public on-sale ticket date is July 23 in most areas.
American Carnage tour (second leg) dates, cities and venues:
SEPTEMBER
24 Dallas Verizon Wireless Theatre*
25 San Antonio, Texas AT&T Center*
26 Houston Verizon Wireless Theatre*
28 New Orleans Lakefront Arena*
30 Knoxville, Tenn. Civic Coliseum
OCTOBER
1 Atlanta Arena at Gwinnett Center*
2 Orlando, Fla. Hard Rock Live
3 Miami Bayfront Park Amphitheatre*
5 Hampton, Va. Hampton Coliseum
6 Baltimore 1st Mariner Arena*
8 Uniondale, N.Y. Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum*
9 Scranton, Pa. Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain*
10 Columbus, Ohio LC Pavilion†
12 Louisville, Ky. Freedom Hall
14 Fort Wayne, Ind. War Memorial Coliseum*
15 Grand Rapids, Mich. DeltaPlex*
16 Milwaukee Eagles Ballroom†
19 Salt Lake City E Center
20 Las Vegas The Pearl
21 Los Angeles Gibson Amphitheatre*
* $10 discount on tickets purchased during pre-sale (excluding special $10 tickets).
† $5 discount on tickets purchased during pre-sale.