Anthrax have partnered with Dark Matter Coffee on a limited-edition blend named after Cursum Perficio, the band’s twelfth album, which arrives on September 18.
The coffee is built on two Central American components. The roaster describes the base as “a washed process Catuai from Nicaragua that has been roasted with a little more heat to caramelize the sugars and bring out more toastiness, maintaining a sweet, nutty cup.”
That is paired with beans from the Pacas family in El Salvador. “We paired the Catuai with coffee from the Pacas Family in El Salvador, a blend of Bourbon and Pacas beans that come from several farms in the Santa Ana region, which go through a washed process at the Cafe Tuxpal mill,” Dark Matter said. “This coffee has a lot of chocolatey notes in the cup, with a hint of citrus that comes through as it cools!”
It is sold in 12oz bags as whole bean or ground for drip, espresso, press pot or pour over, and as an eight-pack of Coffee Cold.
Drummer Charlie Benante has worked with the Chicago roaster before, and placed the new one alongside his existing releases.
He said: With Cursum Perficio, we have a blend of Central American washed coffees from Nicaragua and El Salvador that produce a piping hot mug of chocolatey and nutty notes balanced by a sweet citrus finish. This blend sits nicely next to my ‘Schism‘ and the ‘Devil You Know‘ blends from Dark Matter.”
Cursum Perficio is out on September 18 through Megaforce in the United States and Nuclear Blast in Europe. It is Anthrax‘s first album in ten years, following 2016’s For All Kings, which entered the Billboard 200 inside the top ten.
The band recorded at Dave Grohl‘s Studio 606 in Northridge, Los Angeles, with sessions beginning in 2022 and the album completed last November. Jay Ruston produced it with the band.
Three singles have preceded it: “It’s For The Kids” in May, “The Edge Of Perfection” in July and “Everybody’s Got A Plan” in August.
The lineup is Scott Ian on guitar, Charlie Benante on drums, Frank Bello on bass, Joey Belladonna on vocals and Jonathan Donais on guitar.
“Cursum Perficio” is Latin, and translates as “my journey has come to an end”, “my journey is over” or “I complete my journey”. Benante found it while watching television.
“There was an awful lot of growth between Worship Music in 2011 and Cursum Perficio. This album is a culmination of everything we’ve learned,” he said at the time. “I was watching a Marilyn Monroe documentary, and I saw Cursum Perficio written on a tile in her last home. When I found out what the phrase meant, it immediately clicked with me. We aren’t saying this is our last record, but our journey has come to an end. I believe we’ve completed the task.”
The phrase was set into tiles at the entrance of Monroe‘s house in Brentwood, the last place she lived.
Benante has also explained why the idea appealed at that moment, and has been clear that it is not a retirement announcement.
“There was a whole idea going around about, all the four bands, [the Big 4] bands, kind of getting to the point where, ‘Wow, this may be the time that this could be the last record’. And I was watching this [Marilyn Monroe] documentary. She has this plaque in her house, which said, Cursum Perficio which means ‘My journey has come to an end’ or ‘My journey is over’. And we were talking, and ‘What about this?’. We don’t really have to say that this is the end.”
Anthrax will mark the release with an in-store appearance at Guestroom Records, 1330A Bardstown Rd in Louisville, Kentucky, starting at 12:01 a.m. on September 18. It follows the band’s performance at Louder Than Life on September 17.
Attendance is restricted. Fans must pre-order the album directly from Guestroom Records to be eligible, and only copies bought through that route will be signed. Capacity is limited.
