Megadeth - Classic or Dud

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By far my favorite metal band of all time. Mustaine doesn't have the best metal voice ever, but he was a great lyricist and in my opinion they had better riffs than either Anthrax or Metallica, and a better hit-or-miss ratio.

They also had some of the greatest album titles ever.

― My name is Kenny (My name is Kenny), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:12 (9 years ago) Permalink

They also had some of the greatest album titles ever.

A streak that ended after the first three albums, of course.

― Paul Cox (paul cox), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:13 (9 years ago) Permalink

his voice is grating and his lyrics are totally stupid. didnt something happen to his hand? anyway classic up until peace sells. after that they became pretty laughable.

― chaki (chaki), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:17 (9 years ago) Permalink

...classic up until peace sells.

So, you're essentially saying that Killing is My Business... is the only one worth hearing.

― Paul Cox (paul cox), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:18 (9 years ago) Permalink

i thought that was the 3rd one
i like killing is.., so far so good so what and peace sells. holy wars and hanger 18 are ok. countdown is horrid. "hello me meet the real me!"

― chaki (chaki), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:24 (9 years ago) Permalink

Yeah, by the time Rust in Peace was released (with "Hangar 18"), the band had already become formulaic and boring. This could have something to do with all the personnel changes, though. After hearing Countdown to Extinction, I lost interest forever.

Some years later, I saw a video for the song "Crush 'Em" which (if I remember correctly) was commissioned by the National Hockey League. I thought, "Great, Mustaine! You've gone from writing appallingly great thrash metal to pushing NHL-sponsored jock jams on beer swilling sports fans." A lateral move at best.

― Paul Cox (paul cox), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:36 (9 years ago) Permalink

what happened to his hand?!

― chaki (chaki), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:43 (9 years ago) Permalink

Radial neuropathy.

― Paul Cox (paul cox), Saturday, 14 June 2003 23:46 (9 years ago) Permalink

Needless to say Megadeth had humouress album titles as well.

"Peace Sells...But Who's Buying?"
and
"Killing is my Business...and business is good"

― Andrzej B. (Andrzej B.), Sunday, 15 June 2003 02:31 (9 years ago) Permalink

taking sides: megadeth vs stevie wonder

― Josh (Josh), Sunday, 15 June 2003 06:07 (9 years ago) Permalink

oh Megadeth are classic, this is like a basic fact of the universe.

― jel -- (jel), Sunday, 15 June 2003 07:50 (9 years ago) Permalink

'doesn't have the best metal voice ever'

to put it mildly. Megadeth invented indie, in fact

― dave q, Sunday, 15 June 2003 08:13 (9 years ago) Permalink

Dave Mustaine (tries to) sound like Alice Cooper. I think Alice Cooper invented Indie, "teenage lament '74" is a song that most indie bands would kill for.

― jel -- (jel), Sunday, 15 June 2003 08:19 (9 years ago) Permalink

Megadeth "Tornado of Souls" vs AC "How You Gonna See Me Now"

― dave q, Sunday, 15 June 2003 12:20 (9 years ago) Permalink

better riffs than metallica? uh... the conjuring and holy wars are the shit though.

― Johnny Badlees (crispssssss), Sunday, 15 June 2003 21:52 (9 years ago) Permalink

they had better riffs than either Anthrax or Metallica

What about Slayer? In any event, no they didn't.

Megadeth managed a couple of classic tracks, notably "Peace Sells," "Wake Up Dead" and "Symphony of Destruction," but Mustaine's crappy voice and self-importance (to say nothing of his fringe jacket and bad hair circa "Decline of Western Civilizatin II: The Metal Years") do subtract major points.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Sunday, 15 June 2003 22:34 (9 years ago) Permalink

I can't handle Mustaine's whole smug-ass vocal thing. Always makes me wanna hear Heftield (Hetfield is the MAN!). dud.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Sunday, 15 June 2003 22:52 (9 years ago) Permalink

1 year passes...

Jel, will be pleased: Megadeth on the front cover of the new issue of:

Terrorizer
http://www.terrorizer.com/

― DJ Martian (djmartian), Wednesday, 25 August 2004 10:24 (8 years ago) Permalink

The remastered CDs sound great. I bought Peace Sells..., Rust and Countdown. Never liked So Far, So Good....

― pdf (Phil Freeman), Wednesday, 25 August 2004 10:30 (8 years ago) Permalink

They broke up, right?

― Jordan (Jordan), Wednesday, 25 August 2004 13:27 (8 years ago) Permalink

5 months pass...

Holy Wars fuckin rules.

― Anyone Who Can Pick Up A Frying Pan Pwns Death (AaronHz), Thursday, 24 February 2005 07:55 (8 years ago) Permalink

When I was in grade seven, my class went skiing. On the bus to the ski hill, my friends asked me what I was listening to on my walkman. I was listening to Megadeth's Countdown to Extinction, but I lied and told them I was listening to the radio. I miss that album.

― fields of salmon (fieldsofsalmon), Thursday, 24 February 2005 08:06 (8 years ago) Permalink

"Peace Sells" and "Rust in Peace" are totally classic albums. I kinda like the first song on "The System Has Failed", but I've not listened to that album very often.

― jel -- (jel), Thursday, 24 February 2005 09:36 (8 years ago) Permalink

totally clud

― latebloomer: HE WHOM DUELS THE DRAFGON IN ENDLESS DANCE (latebloomer), Thursday, 24 February 2005 11:45 (8 years ago) Permalink

Holy Wars does rule! That and The Conjuring kick the largest amounts of ass.

― Johnny Badlees (crispssssss), Thursday, 24 February 2005 12:29 (8 years ago) Permalink

I like the lying about listening to Megadeth story too.

I went through that. Countdown To Extinction gave me this problem more than most albums too. But I thought it was pretty damn good for being the "sell-out album".

― Johnny Badlees (crispssssss), Thursday, 24 February 2005 12:32 (8 years ago) Permalink

I heard Rust in Peace/Polaris on college radio a few weeks ago and I stayed in my car to hear the whole thing!

― Jordan (Jordan), Thursday, 24 February 2005 13:42 (8 years ago) Permalink

I just read in The Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal that Mustaine has been in and out of rehab 15 times.

Does the radial neuropathy prevent him from playing guitar? That's what this article said.

― 57 7th (calstars), Thursday, 24 February 2005 14:02 (8 years ago) Permalink

7 months pass...

Listening to "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?" at the moment and am thinking it is worthy of an "In Praise of..." thread.

There's so much musically on this album I didn't quite grasp as a youngun. Back then, for a while, Megadeth was neck and neck with Metallica in my opinion and then drastically they fell below Slayer, then Anthrax and finally I considered them somewhat ridiculous.

Listening to Peace Sells now, I'm inclined to believe this one album is better than anything Metallica ever did. Sure, the immediate reaction is that I must be crazy. But why do I say this? It is more emotional and realer than anything Metallica ever did, the guitar sounding like a demon-possessed Buddy Guy rather than the one-dimensional soloing Kirk Hammett had "perfected," which was either sombre classical or soulless speed-taps up until that point. When Metallica made the big announcement they were going for a bluesier feel on the Black Album later on, they just ended up sounding typical. Megadeth, on the other hand, managed to sound genuinely creepy and Satanic, completely halloween and exorcist, with all the fiery rage of hell you would imagine appropriate. The phased-out vocals give a rippling "burnt offering" effect that pushes the atmosphere over the top, claustrophobic and smokey. The mix is bleeding and blownout, unlike the pristine chugga-chugga crunch everyone else seemed to be after to showcase "speed metal tightness." Awesome choral screams of "OBEY" in The Conjuring and the final note of the album: "YOU...DIE!!!" But those flaming blues accents of Mustaine's B.C. Rich between vocal lines works amazingly well to add more wicked emotion and depth where other bands opted for straight-ahead blazing speed up until the designated guitar soloing spot in the song. The dramatic and quirky turns of tempo, guitars which seem to delight in slamming you from wall to wall, truly remind me of a possessed body being thrashed about by a malevolent puppetmaster, especially at the break in "Wake Up Dead." Unfortunately, this is one of the three songs on the album that have nothing to do with supernatural forces, but no matter, as the only other subject matter on the album is murder. "Wake Up Dead," is probably more figurative than literal, but it certainly sounds like a surprise attack is being carried out, especially with the chants "YOU DIE", "AND BURIED" between the tortured screams of "Wake Up Dead." Great album: starts with "Wake Up Dead" and ends with "My Last Words," which just happen to be: "YOU DIE!"

― Guitarzan, Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:11 (7 years ago) Permalink

Could've used a few more paragraphs there. I thought I had. Oh well.

― Guitarzan, Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:14 (7 years ago) Permalink

meh, i never could get into megadeth! peace sells is classic though.

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:16 (7 years ago) Permalink

Just fired up "Peace Sells" on ye olde iTunes right now. For all of Mustaine's boorish, Bible-bangin' bluster (he's born again now, i gather....funny, some of us managed to get it right the first time), this track does kick a man-sized plate of ass.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:16 (7 years ago) Permalink

countdown is horrid. "hello me meet the real me!"

"hello me, it's me again!"

― amon (eman), Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:21 (7 years ago) Permalink

(he's born again now, i gather...

is he? god what a 12-step pussy

― amon (eman), Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:22 (7 years ago) Permalink

hahaha

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:28 (7 years ago) Permalink

Is he really a Born Again? That's funny. He was raised a Jehovah's Witness, though, so y'know... brainwashing. The James Gang (Metallica) turned out similarly, so they're about even in that department. Why is the antidote to anger and drugs so often religion? Can't people just mellow out?

― Guitarzan, Sunday, 23 October 2005 19:55 (7 years ago) Permalink

Yes, a quick search shows Dave is cancelling tours with Satanic bands because he has to "stand for his beliefs or what good are his beliefs?"

If he was really serious about it, don't you think he should take all of his most popular albums out of print? They aren't very Christian, that's for sure.

― Guitarzan, Sunday, 23 October 2005 20:04 (7 years ago) Permalink

Ugh. iTunes version of Peace Sells sucks!

Mustaine remastered the hell out of this. He also ruined So Far, So Good... So What?!

Bad, bad remastering choices. I hate that.

― Guitarzan, Sunday, 23 October 2005 22:40 (7 years ago) Permalink

I got a bowling ball in my stomach,
I've got a desert in my mouth...

Oh, wait.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Monday, 24 October 2005 04:49 (7 years ago) Permalink

On their first three LPs, the 'deth had more going for them than just clever album titles; namely, imaginative cover-material choices. "Anarchy In The UK", "I Ain't Superstitious" and "These Boots Are Made For Walkin" were all great selections, even tho Mustaine tended to (intentionally?) mess up the lyrics. (That's "Brand new box of matches", not "...box spring mattress" Dave!) And "Peace Sells" was a pretty good song. But on the whole, they always bored the hell out of me.

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Monday, 24 October 2005 09:01 (7 years ago) Permalink

RUST SO PWNZ.

― ddb (ddb), Monday, 24 October 2005 16:01 (7 years ago) Permalink

The only two albums I really liked are Peace Sells and So Far, So Good. As soon as they came out with the "hello me, it's me again" video, I knew they were over. That whole Hangar 18 business was just lame. Aliens? Oh the horror! Then, with their next album they blatantly ripped off the old man imagery Metallica had just barely finished with.

I still love these impossible-to-sing lyrics from Liar (off So Far, So Good):

Start trouble, spread pain
Piss and venom, in your veins
Talk nasty, breathe fire
Smell rotten, you’re a liar
Sweat liquor, breathe snot
Eat garbage, spit blood
Diseased, health hazard
Scum bag, filthy bastard
Greasy face, teeth decay
Hair matted, drunk all day
Abscessed, sunken veins
Rot gut, scrambled brain
Steal money, crash cars
Rob jewelry, hock guitars
Rot in hell, it’s time you know
To your master, off you go

There's no way he sang that live without taking a breath.

I sampled some of Cryptic Writings and I kind of liked it. The System Has Failed is supposed to be the mighty return of Megadeth, but I'm thinking it's just a return to the RIP/CTE days, which is like radio metal. Whoever said he was trying to sound like Alice Cooper nailed it, but he didn't sound anything like that before RIP. Are either of these worth grabbing used (Cryptic Writings and System Has Failed)?

― Guitarzan, Monday, 24 October 2005 16:29 (7 years ago) Permalink

In my first semester of college, I made a tape of Countdown to Extinction on one side and Sugar's Copper Blue on the other.

Only a nineteen year old college freshman in 1992 could get away with that.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Monday, 24 October 2005 18:07 (7 years ago) Permalink

I just downloaded Megadeth guitar lessons. That spider crawl he invented is not easy to do.

― Guitarzan, Tuesday, 25 October 2005 01:09 (7 years ago) Permalink

2 years pass...

Classic--Killing Is My Business, Peace Sells...But Who's Buyin'?, So Far, So Good, So What, Rust In Peace, Countdown to Extinction, Youthanasia, Cryptic Writings (yea fuck you I like some of the songs, altho this is NOT a metal album by any means and I probably won't like it as much now as I did in high school)...

Destroy--Risk (don't even bring this one up for debate), The World Needs a Hero (zzzzzzzzzz)

Meh--The System Has Failed. seriously, this wasn't some big comeback album, it was heavier for sure, it was better than the two albums before it, but it was STILL WATERED DOWN.

I heard some of United Abominations live and it was boring, by the numbers Megadeth. But they still rock live. "Wake Up Dead" is a trip live.

― Bo Jackson Overdrive, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 03:34 (5 years ago) Permalink

Youthanasia's pretty lame as I remember. haven't heard anything beyond that.

― chap, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 12:35 (5 years ago) Permalink

Pure classic: Rust in Peace, particularly Holy Wars and Tornado of Souls (which is basically a pop song with kick-arse metal guitars ie amazing).

― chap, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 13:23 (5 years ago) Permalink

jesus, RIP as radio metal????? come on guitarzan, it's faster and more unrelenting than 'peace sells...' in parts.

yep, RIP is the band's defining moment as far as i can see, and my favourite thrash record ever. 'peace sells...' is arguably the second best - megadeth arriving unexpectedly fully formed on only their second outing. this one seems to feature very heavily in current live sets and with good reason. i just wish i got to hear 'good mourning/black friday' live - what an exhilerating, relentless centrepiece.

'countdown to extinction' is excellent. consistently good all the way through with some absolute scorchers. 'this was my life' is pulverising melodic riff after riff and 'ashes in your mouth' has air-guitar inducing trade-off solos to rival 'hangar 18'.

'killing is my business...' sounds pretty brash and is a bit casio-esque in sound quality. the re-mastering did a lot to amend this however, and shed light on the good material here. the hallmark of an extremely hungry, young band at the very least.

'so far...' by contrast sounds just plain fucking weird. elements of good songwriting comes across in some of the tunes ('hook in mouth', 'in my darkest hour', 'mary jane'), but the whole thing, production-wise, sounds like it's stuck in a 1988 time capsule, forever rendering it dated and frustrating to listen to. and oh yeah, wasn't chuck behler a waste of space?

'youthanasia' has 'addicted to chaos', 'a tout le monde', and 'elysian fields', which are all quality songs, but there's a sense of over-earnestness and a snail-pace metronome setting pervading the whole thing. almost decent.

hated 'cryptic writings'. i mean they're trying hard to slap something together at this point, but the creative fuse has lost its spark, and we're left with a hard-rock album with average songs.

'risk' is atrocious as anyone will tell you. and 'the world needs a hero' is also totally forgettable.

the last two outings were pretty solid, but certainly not a return to anything. just a band more comfortable in its own skin than it had been in a long time

― Charlie Howard, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 13:37 (5 years ago) Permalink

jesus, RIP as radio metal????? come on guitarzan, it's faster and more unrelenting than 'peace sells...' in parts.

I agree, I was specifically talking about Tornado of Souls. You can't argue that there are tons of great catchy hooks littered all over the album as well.

― chap, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 13:43 (5 years ago) Permalink

i agree with your assertion too, chap :) i was responding to guitarzan, and his strange observation that 'the system has failed' recalls 'rust in peace'.

plenty of catchy moments on RIP, totally! even on faster tunes such as 'five magics' and 'poison was the cure'.

― Charlie Howard, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 13:51 (5 years ago) Permalink

RIP is awesome, love the debut too (Chosen Ones esp.). After RIP it's over

― Bill Magill, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 15:04 (5 years ago) Permalink

they were classic of course, and like most people i regard 'rust in peace' and 'peace sells' to be their finest moments. weirdly though, it took me quite some time to warm up to 'peace sells'. i used to think of it as too patchy, i think in light of its short duration (what, 35 minutes?) and the version of 'i ain't superstitious'.

glad to hear others go on about 'tornado of souls' btw. god how i love that one.

― saxomophone, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 15:37 (5 years ago) Permalink

I just read in The Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal that Mustaine has been in and out of rehab 15 times.

yeah i think vh1's 'behind the music' said 16 times. it's probably on youtube, and worth watching.

― saxomophone, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 15:51 (5 years ago) Permalink

I saw Megadeth open for Dio Sabbath at Holmdel, NJ last spring and they were totally on their game. Totally smoking set.

― Bill Magill, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 17:19 (5 years ago) Permalink

Do they still play plenty of 80s stuff?

― chap, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 17:30 (5 years ago) Permalink

A shitload. Vast majority of the show, plus the usual suspects from RIP.

― Bill Magill, Wednesday, 9 January 2008 17:31 (5 years ago) Permalink

Yea, I was very surprised at how varied the setlist was.

Granted I learned from the Rude Awakening live album that they don't have tunnel vision with their set list, but pretty much no Risk songs, only one Cryptic Writings tune, and the rest PURE UNBRIDLED METAL

His stage banter was D- though.

― Bo Jackson Overdrive, Thursday, 10 January 2008 02:10 (5 years ago) Permalink

I saw Megadeth open for Dio Sabbath at Holmdel, NJ last spring and they were totally on their game. Totally smoking set.

-- Bill Magill, Wednesday, January 9, 2008 5:19 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Link

yeah i went to that tour as well and both me and my friend (neither one the biggest megadeth fans or anything) were kinda blown away...esp. suprised that mustaine barely talked at all..they tore through the set like the ramones...really blazing actually....it was nice to see, esp. in contrast to what metallica has become.

― M@tt He1ges0n, Thursday, 10 January 2008 02:12 (5 years ago) Permalink

Metallica's shows would probably barely hit 2 hours if you cut out all of the excess banter and soloing.

― Bo Jackson Overdrive, Thursday, 10 January 2008 02:19 (5 years ago) Permalink

3 years pass...

is it true that the 'i want to watch the news' dad in the Peace Sells video is jello biafra???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Wednesday, 30 March 2011 17:13 (2 years ago) Permalink

1 year passes...

http://www.megadeth.com/popups/christmascard2012winners.html

― mookieproof, Saturday, 22 December 2012 03:31 (5 months ago) Permalink

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