Anthrax’s Rob Caggiano Leaves Band

“I’m extremely proud of my time in Anthrax,” Caggiano said in a statement posted on ABC News Radio’s website. “It’s been a wild ride (to say the least) from Day One and I wouldn’t change one single thing about the last 12 years. This is an extremely difficult and emotional decision for me to make but my heart is just steering me in a different direction right now.”

He added, “I can’t wait to get back in the recording studio again. Over the years, I’ve been blessed with the privilege of working with a wide range of great bands/artists from Anthrax and Cradle Of Filth all the way to Bruce Springsteen, and I look forward to a hopeful continuation of that side of my career while I figure out my next move as an artist.”

The guitarist added some additional thoughts on his Twitter page.

“I wanna thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for all the positive tweets and support on here. This was a really hard day for me……

“I wish those guys nothing but luck/love/success moving forward and I’m really excited to see what the future has in store for me as well….”

Anthrax put out its own statement Jan. 4 in response to Caggiano’s departure.

“Rob has been an integral part of Anthrax for so many years, as our lead guitarist, in a production capacity, but most of all, as our close friend. His contributions to the band have been enormous. While we are sad that he is leaving, we wish him nothing but great success going forward, and hope to share the stage with him again sometime down the road.

“With the Metal Alliance Tour on the horizon, we have been considering several lead guitarist options, and will be making an announcement on that shortly.”

Featuring Anthrax, Exodus, High On Fire, Municipal Waste and Holy Grail, the Metal Alliance Tour kicks off in March.