John Bush Reveals Charlie Benante’s Reaction to His Solo Shows Celebrating His Anthrax Era

  • byJasmin
  • December 22, 2025
  • 2 minute read
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Photo Credit: Gigview. be – Miikka Skaffari/Getty Images

John Bush recently shared a moment from his solo show, ‘John Bush Celebrating the Songs of Anthrax 1993-2003,’ highlighting the support he received from Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante. Bush shared this update on his Instagram.

The post featured a photo of Bush with Benante. In the caption, Bush reflected on the experience of performing in front of his former bandmate.

“When you play in front of Charlie Benante, you better play it right!! Not too fast,” Bush wrote.

Fans of Anthrax were quick to comment on the post. One fan remarked, “Great to see you and Charlie together! You guys made some great music together!” Another added, “It must be such a trip seeing a member of Anthrax in the crowd!”

John Bush performed his first-ever solo concert on December 13 at The Whisky a Go Go, celebrating his era as vocalist for Anthrax. The set featured songs from his four Anthrax albums, spanning Sound Of White Noise through We’ve Come For You All.

Fans responded enthusiastically, praising Bush’s vocals and calling for more shows. According to Blabbermouth, the performance launched a three-date run, with upcoming shows set for December 18 in St. Charles, Illinois, and December 20 in New York City.

Brave Words noted that fan-filmed video from the Los Angeles show is already online, with professional audio forthcoming. Bush has previously indicated openness to additional performances in 2026 following the strong response.

John Bush previously told Dr. Music that he did not seek formal approval from Anthrax members before performing songs from his time with the group. He explained, “I talked about doing this for a while. So I didn’t really necessarily because I had talked about it for so much for so long. I didn’t really feel like it was necessary for me to go ask people’s approval at this point,” Bush said. “It was something that I was saying I’m going to do this and of course I wanted everybody to be happy about it, you know, the Saint guys included. But it was not something that I said, ‘Hey, can I do this?’ Cuz I kind of felt like I had already talked about doing this for a long time and it was already out there. I think most people were supportive of it.”

Bush fronted Anthrax from 1992 to 2005, recording four studio albums including Sound Of White Noise, the band’s highest-charting U.S. release. According to Louder Sound, the 1993 album reached No. 7 on the Billboard 200 and helped define a more alternative metal direction during his tenure.

Bush’s solo show celebrates his era with Anthrax. It revisits songs from 1993 to 2003. The support from Benante adds a meaningful layer to the performances, resonating with fans of the band.

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