Roadruner/Warner
So MEGADETH has reached thirteen. Band leader Dave Mustaine still remains, almost always accompanied by Dave Ellefson on bass, who has returned to the fold in 2010 for the “Rust in Peace 20th Anniversary Tour” and stays on. The rest of the band is drummer Shawn Drover and guitarist Chris Broderick. 22 musicians have been involved officially over the years, not bad. But anyway, with the current nostalgia of the Big 4 tour and general thrash resurgence, how well does MEGADETH fit in almost 30 years after their humble beginnings…and do they finally push off METALLICA at the top?
Welcome to as always. “Sudden Death” may not be the most interesting of their 13 openers, but it contains the same old vocals, the same build-up and the same old thrash antics that are trademarks of MEGADETH. It all seems and sounds pressured…without the band breaking strain. I must say I enjoy “Public Enemy No 1” more, the faster pace has always been somewhat oppressed in the band´s history, but always welcome when it occurs. The messy side of intricate guitar work and general arrangements show up in “Whose Life (Is It Anyway)”. The parts that feel somewhat new are almost KING DIAMOND-esqu touches to a song like “We the People”. The song is faster, snappier and with an unusual drive, rendering it highly enjoyable. The boring side shows in songs like “Guns, Drugs & Money”and “Millennium of the Blind”. In the first case the seemingly endless repetition of the title really stretches my patience. The second bore probably has a slight voice distortion (come on… does Dave need that?) and a general boredom worthy of the “Boooring Episode” of the Brit comedy The Young Ones. The album really takes off towards the second half, or the side two for those who were around when the LP lived. “New World Order” may be a classic, the fast eighties trip “Fast Lane” too, and the oddly straightforward “Black Swan” will probably join them. The title track is somewhat unexpectedly hidden at the back -probably because it is soft piece. Still it builds that effortless pressure of MEGADETH, but maybe because it may scare off some Vic Rattlehead devotees. As a whole MEGADETH builds well on their past and present, recapturing their trade mark sound and adding a little something not to stagnate. And vs. METALLICA? Well that competition is off, the latter party being crammed together with LOU REED smoking and drinking altogether forgetting their roots and letting their egos shine. I know who gets my vote… 1-0 in the 2010´s!
Track List
Sudden Death
Public Enemy No 1
Whose Life (Is It Anyway)
We the People
Guns, Drugs & Money
Never Dead
New World Order
Fast Lane
Black Swan
Wrecker
Milennium of the Blind
Deadly Nightshade
13
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