Scott Ian is not a fan of the Internet age. The Anthrax guitarist was a star in the early 1990s, when CDs reigned supreme and Al Gore was still a Tennessee U.S. senator. Like most old-school rockers, Ian is dismayed by the post-millennium Web culture that has shuttered several labels, studios and radio stations. Overall, he wishes the Internet didn't exist.
"If a genie came out of the bottle and gave me the option of abolishing the Internet and it would disappear like it never existed and nobody even remembered we ever had it and things went back to the way they were, I would prefer the old way, for sure," he told Blabbermouth, via Ultimate-Guitar. "I definitely prefer the way when we used to make records and people would buy them. I definitely prefer that way rather than people stealing them or just listening for free on a f**king streaming service!"
Ian is not a dummy, though. He understands that the Internet provides plenty of benefits for bands, despite the many negatives.
"Now we can go on Facebook or whatever and tell people what's happening," he said. "You get instant response and you're able to respond back. That's something I find really cool. The idea that someone can write me something on Twitter and I can respond directly back to them and start a conversation, which we couldn't do before. I think of that from a fan's point of view, because I'm a music fan, too."
Anthrax is dropping a new studio album -- their 11th -- this year. It has been four years since Worship Music, which was their highest-charting album -- No. 12 -- since 1993. The group posted a 45-second teaser clip of the new material last week:
Readers: What do you think of Ian's views? Is the Internet good or bad for music? Let us know down in the comments section.
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