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Oprah should have Dave Mustaine on her show sometime. Many would probably like to know his anti-aging secret. 17 years after his expiration date (Countdown to Extinction), he’s somehow still making records, and people somehow still care. He’s still relevant, though the relevance of Megadeth and its Big Four of Thrash peers (Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax) now stems from their longevity, not their music.
Such is the case with Endgame, Megadeth’s best record in over a decade. That isn’t saying much, as Megadeth has put out some real dogs (Risk, United Abominations) in that time. Thanks to Mustaine’s ego, Megadeth will always be measured against Metallica. In its ’80s prime, Megadeth’s mission was to out-metal Metallica. This was quixotic. Megadeth’s music was often more interesting than Metallica’s, but in terms of iconic albums and world domination, Megadeth didn’t stand a chance. The band was too busy shooting up and shooting itself in the foot. Megadeth exited the ’80s with one big anthem (“Peace Sells”) and an overachieving technical thrashterpiece (Rust in Peace). Metallica exited the ’80s on top of the world.
Now the tables have turned, though some would argue that the bands are in a race to the bottom. Metallica are rediscovering that democracy is bad for them. Megadeth, on the other hand, explicitly became The Dave Mustaine Band with 2004’s The System Has Failed, and have flourished with the help of their annual showcase, Gigantour. Almost by default, Megadeth are out-metalling Metallica. The problem is, Mustaine probably got jealous of Metallica’s mainstream success in the ’90s. Megadeth records since then have been a mix of expensive-sounding metal and repulsive attempts at radio hits. Thankfully, Mustaine seems to have changed his mind. Endgame is mostly metal, though it does have syrupy moments. Unlike Metallica, though, he’s making the records he wants to make. He’s no longer the wild-eyed, drunk guitar terrorist of the ’80s. He’s a father, he’s born-again, and he wears oxford shirts onstage. In car terms, he’s traded up from a Camaro to a Porsche.
Head Crusher vs. Washington Is Next!
Drivers of fine cars often ascribe animate characteristics to them. I don’t know what a Porsche’s “soul” feels like, and perhaps I’ll never know. But if Megadeth is a Porsche now, its Camaro was much more exciting. Sure, it didn’t go as fast, and it broke down much more often. But old Megadeth was gloriously imperfect: alternately underachieving and overachieving players with fierce chops and even fiercer drug habits. The band kicked up dirt and left needles in its wake. The modern version of Megadeth leaves instrument endorsements in its wake. Mustaine’s hired hands play too well. He’s recruited a long line of lead guitarists, each seemingly more fluent than the last. The result is a whole lot of notes that don’t say much. “Head Crusher” is impressively busy, but its intro is just that of “Washington Is Next!” (from United Abominations) sped up. “Bodies” is basically a rehash of “Symphony of Destruction.” “1,320″ is one of the few modern Megadeth songs that fans might request, but thematically, it, too, recalls the past glory of “High Speed Dirt.” There’s having a style, and then there’s repeating oneself.
Even with repetition, though, Megadeth’s elements are at least entertaining. “Entertaining” seems to be the standard applied to stylistic fossils AC/DC and Motörhead, so perhaps it’s appropriate here also. Dart-like palm-muted runs, chromatic movement in chord progressions, vaguely political snarled lyrics — details like these constitute the Megadeth sound, in which songs are almost an afterthought. With hard candy-like production (clear, sweet), Megadeth albums are now surgical, bloodless operations. This aesthetic has a certain OCD appeal. Kids who are into Necrophagist and so-called “Sumeriancore” would dig it. But when they buy Megadeth shirts now, the shirts stand for something much different than before. Helping pay Dave Mustaine’s mortgage isn’t as fun as funding a war, however illusory, against Metallica.
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But, man, the riffs… The riffs!
If Megadeth aren't musically relevant anymore, why write about them?
B – I think you have to write about Megadeth because they are a central part to the development/history of metal. Metal is relatively not that old of a genre, so I think classic bands have to be discussed somewhere. Megadeth is irrelevant from the standpoint that their newer release have zero impact on the genre's current landscape. Mustaine really isn't on the cutting edge of anything.
As for Endgame, meh. I haven't been able to get into it yet. I have given it 2 solid listens. I know I am in the minority here, but I actually liked United Abominations more than any other Megadeth release since Countdown/ I think it is comparable to Youth. I saw them live on Gigantour 07 and thought they had a killer set.
Love this line:
"The modern version of Megadeth leaves instrument endorsements in its wake."
New Megadeth is enjoyable, but "Hardest Part of Letting Go….Sealed with a Kiss" is pretty embarrassing.
For my money, Testament has released the best Thrash: Old Timers Division album of the past few years. High hopes for new Slayer, though.
"summeriancore"?
Perhaps I don't really want to know.
Helm – A style of super-technical deathcore typical of bands on Sumerian Records. Knowing you, yes, you probably don't want to know.
Yeah, I've heard Very Good Things about the upcoming Slayer. (Might have even been here?)
When the band's saying that the Reign to Seasons era albums had some magic to them and they're going back to that, there's reason to hope.
i never really liked mega.mainly the production of the first 3-4 albums was just bad and turned me off to them.being a musician that's my opinion.i like a few songs off of each album,but countdown was just different from the rest.once they got nick menza in,they just sounded better.then fast forward to rude awakinging dvd…man,THAT was a kick ass band(that's right,i said kick ass…) if that ine up recorded all the earlier albums,things would be different.
Having been a Megadeth fan since Peace Sells I can honestly say that Endgame is the best thrash release from an original thrash band since 1990. That includes their own releases which were designed to compete commercially. Plus-what was wrong with The System Has Failed and United Abominations? Both great thrash albums-just not on par with Endgame or The Formation of Damnation by Testament
Divorce isn't a good topic for neither a metal song nor a ballad.
"A style of super-technical deathcore"
a question I have whenever I find myself listening at some song by such a band is: do listeners really believe all that unison super-shredding/stopstarting on a dime/hyperblas stuff is doable by every one of these bands live? There's so many of them and they sound exactly the same! If it's not studio magic then the threshold for technicality in starting out metal bands has really gone up 400% over the last 10 years.
I think it's a bit of both.
I find it very amusing (emphasis on amused) that "paid" critics attempt to get their views across on the most labyrinthine platitudes; you're writing for metal heads…..wtf? I am a fan of both Megadeth and Metallica. Any true fan that knows the history would simply point out what the album Kill Em All stood for and and hammering "we'll never sell out"..lmfao, since when did doing Bob Seger covers become pioneering or heavy metal country music, again wtf. Your inference to not knowing what a Porsche's "soul" feels like speaks volumes of your blatant inability to be unbiased, and more importantly to be cerebral when assessing one's opinion. Dave Mustaine is one of the greatest guitarist(s) period. The fact that he has been to hell and back personally and is STILL crushing gives him integrity and validation; something you should work on in your anti-Mustaine dramaturgy you call a review. By the way, High Speed Dirt is about one of his friends that died in a skydiving accident and 1320 is about Dave's passion for speed, I can see how you made the quantum leap to connect the two, good grief. My suggestion Cosmo is that you find someone that actually knows the history of the thrash-metal movement in the eighties and let them explain the obvious. My personal view of your opinion is you have a sophmoric understanding about actual music and non-existant grasp on Megadeth, let alone metal.