When Dave Ellefson (Megadeth) and Frank Bello (Anthrax) formed Altitudes & Attitude, it wasn’t supposed to be anything more than an experiment—two bassists from two legendary bands seeing what might happen when they weren’t tethered to walls of amps and decades of thrash expectations. The surprise, even to them, is that the result—Get It Out—turned out to be one of the catchiest records either of them has ever made.
“You don’t have to put on your angry face,” Ellefson says of shedding the Megadeth armor. Bello jumps in, “It feels good on the soul. Someone told me that this week—like we’re right where we need to be on this album. That’s probably the biggest compliment you can get.”
These two have built careers on precision, speed, and riffs sharp enough to shave with, so hearing them relax into a muscular, melodic rock album feels almost illicit. But both insist it wasn’t calculated. “We just let the songs take it where they needed to go,” Ellefson says. Bello nods: “It helps you breathe a little differently.”
The irony is that a record this tuneful came from deeply heavy places—particularly for Bello, whose lyrics dig into long-carried grief, trauma, and therapy. “I carry this stuff every day,” he says plainly. “I can’t lie. This is all straight, honest stuff. And yeah—this record is therapy. Cathartic. It helps. Believe it or not, it helps.”
The magic trick of Get It Out is that Bello’s purging becomes the listener’s release. “People are connecting with it in their own way,” he says. “If I write something that makes someone feel better about their life? That’s the cherry on top.”
It doesn’t hurt that the duo recruited some equally storied guests, including Ace Frehley. And they have their childhood KISS stories ready to go—especially Bello, who spent his Bronx adolescence stalking the band’s management office just to catch a glimpse of Gene Simmons without makeup.
“We waited in the freezing cold,” he laughs. “Gene finally came out, and my friend Tom wouldn’t stop pestering him with questions. At some point Gene just turned around—this huge guy towering over these little kids—and boomed, ‘I have a show to do tonight! I can’t answer questions all day!’ It felt like thunder hit us.”
Even Simmons remembers those days. Bello shakes his head. “He’s got the best memory. And he still says, ‘I’m a powerful and attractive man.’ He’s right.”
Ellefson, not to be outdone, is already plotting the dream cameo for the next record. “Rick Nielsen would be perfect,” he says. “I’m putting that on the list.”
Touring the project is its own puzzle. Do they bring their metal histories along for the ride? “We dip back into some influences,” Ellefson says. “It’s a good homage. And it’s fun.” They’re also juggling big commitments: Megadeth is deep in a new album, Anthrax is gearing up for another cycle, and the pair somehow squeezed A&A shows, ShipRocked, and a Slash-supported European run into the early-year calendar.
For two players whose day jobs involve moving tectonic plates with volume alone, the breeziness of Get It Out feels almost transgressive. But that’s the whole point. These aren’t detours—they’re pressure valves.
“It’s a cool little moment in time,” Ellefson says. Bello agrees: “We’re just having fun, man. And that’s the whole thing—you’ve gotta get it out.”
Listen to the full interview above and then check out the video below!
