A Conversation with Frank Bello of Anthrax: Unveiling the Secrets of Thrash Metal Bass

Dive into the world of thrash metal with this exclusive interview with Frank Bello, the legendary bass player of Anthrax. Discover the secrets behind his unique bass tone, the gear that shapes his sound, and his distinctive approach to performance.
Experience the journey of growing up in one of the most famous thrash metal bands and learn how it influenced Bello’s musical style. This is a must-watch for all Anthrax fans and aspiring bassists looking to understand the intricacies of thrash metal bass playing.
#FrankBello #Anthrax #BassPlayer #ThrashMetal #BassTone #MusicGear #Performance #Interview
00:00 Intro
01:40 Anthrax Update
06:52 Rush Tribute - Bubba Bash show
08:05 Playing covers vs originals live
13:40 The birth of extreme metal and the player's mentality
17:50 Remaining a fan of the music
20:31 Frank's first bass and inspirations
23:52 The importance of learning by ear
27:26 Formal training and lessons
34:17 Meeting your heroes
37:40 Live performance vs perfection
43:39 Beginning bass and pickup choices
46:23 Bad technique and first studio session
49:20 The consistency of Frank's Bass preferences
1:01:23 Embracing struggle in practice leads to your best moments
1:06:00 EMG pickups
1:13:00 The Among the Living Recording gear
1:17:45 The Among the Living Live gear
1:20:33 Switching to Hartke
1:22:01 Using Sansamp / Tech21
1:25:37 The New Bello Bass Pickups and Change in Tone
1:35:30 Frank's String choice
1:38:03 How your instrument specs affect yout playing
1:46:33 Getting Agressive Fingerstyle Tone
1:52:35 Frank's New Signature Sansamp Pedal
1:59:56 Frank's Book
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[@garysanders3193]

I had a similar situation on starting bass. A friend of mine told me one day, "You should play bass. No one wants to play bass." So I did, back in 1992. Thanks Brian!

[@federicovidal1156]

rodney rodney you bastard !! you did it again !! what a honor to have frank bello , what an exelent interview !!!!! you look great also , i hope your health its getting better and better . all the best for you !!!

[@RodneyMcG]

Thank you! I appreciate the kind words, and yeah, Frank was a truly special interview.

[@carlosmoralescreative]

I really like how you can hear the Bass and how much of a protagonist is in Anthrax's music. Those Bass riffs are iconic.

[@Emann-yc7cv]

Great hat! The influence of Mercyful Fate is almost lost on the younger metal generation!

[@RodneyMcG]

True!

[@montonibass5013]

I'm really amazed by that interview and how much you could bring from Frankie. Only a person that knows Anthrax and Frankie in detail can do something like this and believe me, I have watched and read tons of Frankie's interviews since I'm a kid and this is the most detailed and fun to watch. Awesome job!! I took a lot to watch because I wanted to pay attention carefully at all the details. And props for you to get that amazing information from Frankie on his ATL sound. I always knew that something was missing from his tone equation. Great job!!!!!!!!

[@RodneyMcG]

Thanks a lot! I appreciate it, and I'm Raju glad you got subverting from the interview. Frank will likely be around again before too long

[@H0LT-85]

Love Frank, could listen to him talk bass all day. Not an Anthrax fan at all, but there’s just something about Frank and him talking bass and gear.

[@RodneyMcG]

He's a solid guy and a truly thoughtful player. We get to talking and all other plans come to a halt!

[@chuckhagen1612]

Probably the best Frank Bello interview I ever heard. Great work Sir.

[@RodneyMcG]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@PieCompanyGuitarsdotcom]

Aw yeah... great to see you back, Mr McG. Hope all is well

[@RodneyMcG]

Hanging in there, my friend! Thank you!

[@abouc]

Frank, Charlie, and Scott are the best rhythm section in metal

[@RodneyMcG]

They are a machine for sure

[@garysanders3193]

I have a 5 string Ibanez RG 35, that has 5 string versions of Frank's EMG set. Love them!

[@TimStarace]

Rodney and Frank.......two of my favorite people just shootin the shit. Priceless!!!!

[@RodneyMcG]

I seem to remember a certain Tim that gets mentioned quite a bit 😉

[@iamgribs]

He is the man I'm such a fan of Anthrax thank you so much for this interview this made my day

[@iamgribs]

I grew up listening to Anthrax I was I was always a huge fan of this playing in particular that still has not changed every time Frank Bella was an interview I'm going to do my best to listen to him and what he has to say

[@RodneyMcG]

There's some great info and advice in there. Glad you enjoyed it.

[@jameslangford9347]

I’ll be upfront and say I’ve not listened to Anthrax. This was a great conversation between 2 musicians who play bass and love the whole music making process. The passion comes through. I’m going to have to listen again to get the names of songs and people to give a listen. It’s good to see you doing well so you can perform and put this video together.

[@RodneyMcG]

Glad we could turn you on to something new, and I appreciate the kind words. Cheers.

[@blurplebear8573]

You're starting to look healthier my dude. Hope the fight is going good.

[@RodneyMcG]

Thank you! Doing all I can!

[@crowdrums]

Great conversation, really amazing to see players still excited to just play. Good to see you back. Thanks for the amazing interview.

[@RodneyMcG]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@kimfaucher007]

Wow! Thank you soooo very much for this interview! I love Frank so much, his playing, his humour, his humanity!

[@RodneyMcG]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@beer_bass]

Awesome interview @Rodney as always. Be cool if you were to chat with Dan Lilker about gear, tone, distortion, and filling in recently with Anthrax. And Craig Setari from Sick Of It All would be great as well.☮️

[@RodneyMcG]

Thanks, I'll see what I can do

[@deathroll9923]

That man is my biggest inspiration for playing bass. I wanna go to Anthrax show one of these days and to NAMM in hopes of meeting him. Thank you for this interview! I love your content and hope you’re well! 🤘

[@RodneyMcG]

Thanks so much, glad you enjoyed it! 🤘

[@AlexofKtulu]

Hope you’re doing well Rodney! I just started watching your videos and just immediately subscribed! Being a bass player myself I greatly appreciate your content, your input and the information you provide. And sorry to hear about your health issue. I hope you get better 🤘🏻 💪🏻 stay strong brother! 🤘🏻

[@RodneyMcG]

Truly appreciated!

[@marchlowe]

Starting the full episode. Thanks for the teaser. It worked !

[@vitodigiovanni4020]

I'm a drummer learning bass and I've been watching you for years! Recently I've been taking bass more serious and I've been watching your videos everyday 🤘🤘

[@RodneyMcG]

I appreciate that!

[@cavetroll666]

Franks new pedal looks really interesting i just got the bass fly rig but might need to get the street driver :).

[@GillRigged]

Terrific chat, Rodney and glad to see that you're looking well. 🥂

[@RodneyMcG]

Thank you!

[@andywitch666]

Great interv...ahem, conversation !..! !..!

[@brentheathersimons7042]

Great video as usual Rodney! Frank is such a character and so down to earth. I hope you're still feeling well. Stay healthy- Brent, VT

[@RodneyMcG]

Thanks, Brent. Good to see you

[@FullPowerMasteryWithRa]

This interview is so cool. Your videos have introduced me to bands I always knew by name and didn't listen to. Now I'm finding an appreciation for all this old music I overlooked. :)

[@RodneyMcG]

Love to hear that! The best thing is these guys are still going and more coming!

[@FullPowerMasteryWithRa]

Hey Rodney, hope you're doing well man! Popping in to say I've learned more from your channel over the past couple years than any other source on KZbin. It's because of your video that I don't use tabs anymore. Now I learn almost always by ear. I can now read sheet music and am slowly learning to sight read. I couldn't do that a year ago. One of the most important lessons about musicianship I've learned from you throughout your videos is to be self-reliant. To take the time to cultivate the skills to be self-reliant; as aposed to looking for a quick fix or a special gadget that will create that special sound. What I learned from you is to train my ear and learn to create what I want with what I currently have. Thank you for the excellent videos Rodney! You've been a great teacher to me. Cheers! :)

[@RodneyMcG]

Wow! I'm blown away. Comments like yours keep me motivated to do these videos, and i'm so glad it's had such value for you. All the best for you and your playing. Proud of ya!

[@garysanders3193]

I have basses that I have customized, modified, whatever you want to call it, that I love more than my Modulus.( don't tell it I said that) For me it is the fact that I help create these basses that make this sound. And out of all the basses I have, the 3 I customized, are the ones I get the most praise on the sound they make.

[@RodneyMcG]

Gotta make 'em your own 🤘

[@shawnfranklin9581]

Frankie rules.

[@jackshittle]

Both of you guys rule, thanks for the content.

[@RodneyMcG]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@garysanders3193]

It is so nice to know that even the well known musicians still geek out the same way we all do. Love Frank!

[@RodneyMcG]

He's really grounded and great guy for sure.

[@josephsalinas5272]

Excellent video been watching you for around 5 years your videos motivate me to try different tones and practice more! I appreciate you.

[@RodneyMcG]

I really appreciate the kind words, and I'm really glad you've gotten some value out of the channel.

[@TheDelzShow]

I can’t wait !!!

[@TheSonsofHorusx]

Hell ya great shout out to Goldilox bass tone with the little buzz

[@RodneyMcG]

The buzz of joy!

[@frankcavanaugh2564]

Saw you both at Bubba Bash 24. Thank you for lending your talents to such a worthy cause. You guys rocked it! Us fans had a lot of fun.

[@RodneyMcG]

Thank you! Really appreciate you coming out for a great cause and hanging with us.

[@bassimprovjams3772]

This was so awesome to watch Rodney! You asked great questions! So much of this was relatable. Frank seems like such a great humble dude. It was like watching two great friends just chilling and talking. I definitely missed your videos while you were away

[@RodneyMcG]

Really glad you enjoyed it!

[@bassimprovjams3772]

@@RodneyMcG definitely!! Thanks Rodney!

[@Bigscott4130]

#timstaraceismyspiritanimal Great to hear two of my favorite players chit chat and even showing Timmy some love and respect.

[@RodneyMcG]

Tim deserves nothing but both!

[@levonatwood2279]

Is the Japanese term that you're looking for Wabi-Sabi? I remember listening to a David Lee Roth interview where he defined that term as "something that is perfect because it's a little fucked up", Comparing it to that old pair of jeans or the comfortable pair of shoes. PS, great interview.

[@user-ix2ml5wk5b]

Hi Rodney. Not really about this video, but you have motivated me, beginner bassist , to start learing songs by ear. So how would you approach a song that has no official bass playthrough, no isolated track and bass isnt really audible? Your content is really helpfull to me, thank you

[@RodneyMcG]

Glad I could help. And yeah, that's a tough situation. You have to go with best guess to a certain degree. What i would do is eq the song to take out a lot of treble and listen to where i hear bass really emphasized in the sound. Then go with what sounds like the most likely choice in that case - following the guitar, a steady single note groove, etc. Bad mixes and unhearable parts have been a curse on bassists for ages. Best of luck.

[@jeffreyswing730]

At 1:00:02 are you thinking about Kintsugi? Wikipedia: “As a philosophy, it treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise.”

[@RodneyMcG]

Exactly! I remembered later and added it in text. Sometimes you get interview brain!

[@adamrushka8096]

First !

[@RodneyMcG]

Indeed you are, sir!

[@rorke47]

hey dude do you do random zoom calls with viewers if they pay you $1 a minute just to hang out and talk about music? I'd do it if you were up for that.

[@RodneyMcG]

If it were just to talk music I don't know that I would charge like that. Maybe something like a livestream would be a place where a lot of questions on various topics and bands could be answered. Otherwise I would feel better about wrapping the conversation into some kind of structured lesson about composition, etc, so I could feel like you got something of value that you could apply to your pursuits.

[@rorke47]

@@RodneyMcG ok man i got you i was just curious cuz there's this other youtuber who's a reptile keeper and he does weekly zoom calls with his pateons who have a cam (which im not one). From what ive heard it pretty chill but once a week seems like too much. I just wanted to throw out some ideas it would be cool to hang out with you and some of the patreons like stephan becker in a zoom call but yeah i get it if its not informative and constructive then its a waste.

[@RodneyMcG]

I think that's actually a great idea. I'm gonna put it down in my book to look at doing after I get a number of projects that I'm trying to push through right now completed. There are a number of videos I've thought about doing but just didn't seem like they would be click worthy since it's just me talking a bit about music, favorite band's, and ideas about metal and its different genre's. A live get together where everybody could interact seems like the right place for it. Thanks for the input, great idea.

[@jbrewerize]

One Man Stands made me pick up the Bass!

[@RodneyMcG]

That's a killer track!

[@Infectedbyevil]

Huge respect for you !!! And zero respect for that fake band ( named the band ANTHRAX) after terrorists attack in Japan they said : no no no nothing between ours name and the ANTHRAX attack in Japan!!! I call my band skull but afraid of dead bodies 😂😂😂😂

[@saranshsd1299]

What the fuck are you taking about?

[@Infectedbyevil]

@saranshsd1299 wach their interview after terrorists attack with ANTHRAX in Japan 90s . You will be surprised 😮