“Stomp stomp stomp, the idiot convention”

The iconic title of this classic Anthrax track was inspired by an incident where one of the band’s guitar techs almost came a cropper in the midst of a slamming audience and lamented getting “caught in a mosh”. The obvious lyrical approach would be to pen an ode to thrash fans and their boisterous antics but Anthrax’s guitarist/lyricist Scott Ian took a different tack. Caught In A Mosh refers to being stuck in a shit situation at home, work or wherever. It’s an idea that results in some memorable, off-the-wall lyrics (“Your mother made a monster, now get the hell out of my house”).

Musically, the New Yorkers are at their frenetic, violent best with exuberant bass guitar, hurtling drums, crushingly tight rhythm guitars and a positively humongous middle-eight riff. But even in the midst of one of their most mayhem-inducing tracks, Anthrax still make room for a song. The chorus, where Joey Belladonna’s golden melodic vocals alternate with the band’s gang-shouts of the song’s title, is an absolute joy. Caught In A Mosh is a brilliant, exciting, all-time thrash classic. Which one of those words don’t you understand?