| Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good | 1985 |
| Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? | 1986 |
| So Far, So Good... So What! | 1988 |
| Rust In Peace | review #2 | review #3 | review #4 | 1990 |
| Countdown To Extinction | review #2 | review #3 | 1992 |
| Youthanasia | review #2 | review #3 | 1994 |
| Hidden Treasures | review #2 | 1995 |
| Cryptic Writings | 1997 |
| Risk | 1999 |
| Capitol Punishment: The Megadeth Years (compilation) | 2000 |
| The World Needs A Hero | review #2 | 2001 |
| Rude Awakening (live) | 2002 |
| Still, Alive... And Well? (compilation) | 2002 |
Dave Mustaine, former member of Metallica, and he of piercing, annoying voice decided to get back at the band that sacked him by forming a more technically advanced group which he called Megadeth. And play more complicated stuff they did, but without the stellar songwriting and decent singing needed to propell them past Metallica. Dave really was bad at vocals. He's gotten better recently. Youthanasia is the first album with enjoyable vocals, and he continues the trend on Cryptic Writings. Musicians? Well, I forget the names of the original group, but as of Rust In Peace, the lineup is Dave Mustaine (Rhythm Guitar, Some Lead, Vocals), Marty Friedman (truly a great lead guitarist. Sounds almost too good to be playing Metal), Dave Ellefson (Bass Guitar), and Nick Menza (Drums).
--Pat D.
Post your comments about Megadeth
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
HIGH POINTS: Mechanix. LOW POINTS: Rattle Head.
Ah, so Dave Mustaine gets his first chance to prove that his ex-Metallica bandmates were wrong in their decision to kick him out early on. I'm not so sure he made that good of an argument with this, though. Sure, the album itself is okay (in the songwriting aspect of things, anyway), but it kinda suffers from some of the same things as Kill 'Em All does. The musical arrangements here, with some exceptions, are mostly just straightforward thrash, the approach to lyric writing is somewhat immature (though easy to overlook for those who don't read into lyrics), and there's not really much all that memorable to grab on to in terms of riffs or vocal melodies. Plus, there's that notorious problem of production, but everyone in metal circles knows how horribly the album is mixed, and sound specialist Pat D. could go into this in much greater detail than me. On the plus side, there's definitely potential scattered around these songs, and there's rarely anything all that bad, so the album is decent overall.
It certainly starts out like it's gonna be something really neat, too, with the epic 50 second piano, organ and guitar-led instrumental buildup starting "Last Rites/Loved To Death" on a tremendous note. It kinda lets you down in terms of the actual song, though, as the fast shifting thrash riff is really the only thing that's really interesting here. It's kind of a similar situation with the title track, too - again, a really neat groovy opening riff, but I find the vocals pretty ear-splitting, amelodic and unconvincing here, which basically kills this song for me, and that's before it moves into generic speed territory in the second half. Dave would eventually make those 'pipes' of his very interesting, but here he just didn't have it. It doesn't help that stuff like "Rattle Head" is somewhat subpar Kill 'Em All type crap, with juvenile lyrics and chanting, ugly-sounding Eastern riffing and pretty much non-existent melody. Argh.
A lot of the rest of the stuff I don't even remember, though. There's some interesting dynamics here and there (the eerie intro to "Looking Down The Cross", a song which boasts the exact same chorus melody as the otherwise equally unmemorable "Skull Beneath The Skin"), but the only two other tracks I end up remembering as anything noteworthy are the last two. Granted, "Mechanix" runs with the Metallica connection yet again, this time to the extreme in pretty much just making the riff to "The Four Horsemen" much faster and adding new lyrics/melody to it, but it's still the highlight of the album, due to the intensity, and plus it boasts much better production than the other tracks. Then there's the closing "These Boots", a cover of the Nancy Sinatra hit not even available on the original album due to a lawsuit over changed lyrics or something. Sure, it succeeds mostly due to the fact that it was a catchy song in the first place, but the opening bass groove to thrash transition is pretty cool (as are the angrier lyrics), even if the soloing is kinda generic. All in all, Killing Is My Business is a half decent start, though due to its' unspectacular sound, lack of memorability and umm.... production quality, it's not exactly what you'd call essential.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
COMMENTS
this album doesn't recieve the credit it's due. they were playing strait thrash becuase that's what they were at the time. now you make it sound bad, thrash is the most intense andbrutal of the genres outthere that ain't just mindless shit like the refuse of today's new-metal or "nu-metal" or what ever the fuck you wanna call it. thrash is dirty, shredding, and un-approachable, which is the way it should damn well be! there is nothing clean cut about it becuase that's been done to fucking death and back! if it weren't for thrash, the only metal that would have been around are shit bands like motley-crue and poison. Fucking love ballads! megadeth was writing about moshing, assassins, and whatever the hell else was on dave's mind because that's the best fucking sorce. the soloing is fine!have they done better?yes, but is it fucking horrid? no way! perfect for the feeling of the songs they were commited to, and lastly,corse the recording quality wasn't the fucking best, THEY WERE POOR AND IT WAS THE MIDDLE OF THE FUCKING 80'S, SHIT HEAD! there's a lot more important stuff than that to discuss about this album. get off you'r fucking high horse and just listening to the fucking music,nose-bleed. it's what it's there for.and if you'r not a big fan of thrash to begin with, then what the hell are you even doing on this site?
i give this album a fucking 10 outa' 10...
and if any of you haven't heard the actual song killing is my business, DO IT! it's the greatest song out there, man. you won't regret it...
(reviewed by Pat D.)
As much as it pains me to write this, occasionally I make an oversight when reviewing things. And this is one such album. Before this humble writing, I had unceremoniously bahed this early Megadeth release twice. Recently, however, I have grown bored of my other CDs, so lo and behold, this CD found its way into my CD player. I think the thing that turns me off to a particular CD immediately is one of two things: (1) The lyrics suck (which the certainly do on here) and (2) The production sucks. This is a very odd album. It sounds like shit on my GOOD stereo, and great on my cheap KMart Special in the car. Very strange.
So, anyway, I have grown quite fond of this album of late. Make no mistake: it has some REALLY painful lyrics that DO sound like they were penned by a poser teenager, but the rhythm guitar is pretty damn slashin' on the later tracks. Plus, I have found a few more treats. Everything on Side One is good listenin', and the only really bad track on side B is the horrible cover of some guys song "I Ain't Superstitious". For future reference, I'd put that song up with Countdown to Extinction's "Sweating Bullets" as two of the dumbest songs ever made/covered. Their is a really cool track with a GREAT ending on that second side, that being the closer "My Last Words". What a cool song. "Good Mourning/Black Friday" and "Bad Omen" are interesting, if unspectacular thrashers. Overall, my favorite track would have to be "Devil's Island" thanks to a cool crunchy riff.
However, I don't really care for Chris Poland on lead guitar. He seems to play the same notes and scales over and over in his solos, and ends up sounding like a cheap Kirk Hammett ripoff. However, he fits the sound of this album perfectly, and I really cannot picture Marty doing the scale shredding on this record. Overall, a pretty solid effort. I'd definitely give the edge to Rust In Peace, for its far superior musicianship, and because Marty plays some incredible leads on it, but if you have an open mind, pick this album up second.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
COMMENTS
This is one great album! My second favorite Megadeth album behind Countdown To Extinction. "Good Mourning/Black Friday" and the title track kick some good ole ass! The only real stinker is the cover song. But this album is still highly recommendable. 9/10.
(reviewed by Pat D.)
An album title has never been more relevant. All I could think of when I listened to this Mustaine shit-o-thon is "So Freaking What." Dave replaced Chris Poland (whom I was never a huge fan of anyway) and Gar Samuelson after Peace Sells with two very mediocre musicians. Those being Jeff Young (the lead guitarist) and Chuck Behler (drums). Like I said, I am no Chris Poland fan, but at least his soloing was somewhat relevant to the song. Mr. Young inspires nothing during his boring repetitive scale shredding. And he's certainly no Marty Friedman. Chuck Behler sounds almost EXACTLY like Lightning and Master era Lars Ulrich on the drumkit. Which, needless to say, sounds suspiciously like drumsticks on trash cans.
Ok, so the musicians suck, so what? (HA! I used the title in an unfunny pun again!) The Beatles weren't exactly virtuosos, either! But Dave Mustaine is no John Lennon in the songwriting department. And he sure proves that on this release. Peace Sells is a fun little album, cause despite the horrible lyrics and dated sound, a lot of the songs crunch and speed along delightfully. There IS NO SPEED on this record. Dave's rhythm guitar has NO bite whatsoever. It all sounds like Motley Crue. Not even GOOD Crue like Dr. Feelgood. More like "Smoking in the Boys Room" or anything off of Shout At The Devil. As of this writing, the only song I can enjoy is "502" or, to a lesser extent, "In My Darkest Hour".
But what the hell is it with songs with the name "Liar"???? Yngwie's sucks. And now that I've heard it, Dave's interpretation sucks as well. What a laughable song. The rest of the album is no treat either. I'd recommend ANY other Megadeth album over this one. Hmmmmm....its too bad that Dave and Yngwie didn't pair up for the "Absolutely Horrible and Pathetic Songs Named 'Liar' Tour '88". The only reason I like Dave more is that he was apprently on drugs when he wrote this album, so I guess I can forgive that. Yngwie is straight as an arrow (concerning drugs, but I'm not too sure about his sexual preferences! ) and writes crap. Avoid this release.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
(Pat D.'s review)
As close as Mustaine and co. have come to greatness. Dave's rhythm playing to this point, and his version of "Thrash" never really impressed me to this point. My preference is more towards the complex, progressive style of Metallica, than the slower, stripped down pre-Rust Megadeth. You know what I mean; the slow, anthemic title track off of Peace Sells. The lack of almost any kind of speed or crunch on So Far So Good. The lack of Hetfield or Ian's monster, palm muted rhythm guitar crunch. See, I think Megadeth up until Rust had only a few moments of actual thrashiness. Now, I don't have any other genre to call them, and they were certainly heavier and faster than say, Motley Crue....but..... Oh yeah, thats right, I'm supposed to be reviewing Rust In Peace now....
Anyway, for this album, Dave probably listened to Metallica's And Justice For All for a good long while and said "Y'know, I think its time I out-progressive rock my ex-band. That'll show them for kicking me out!!!". And oh man, does Dave have some impressive rhythm chops on here. Definitely on par with James' playing on Justice. New guitarist Marty Friedman sounds in no way shape or form like Kirk Hammett, playing exotic scales at insane speeds with incredible feeling and relevance to the song.
Now, this album is not perfect; nor is it really as near-perfect as the aforementioned Metallica album, despite the fact I gave it a similar rating. First of all, I think "Hangar 18" was penned just to let Marty crush every other metal guitarist in existance. The song starts out cool, but at the halfway point, there is nothing but Marty showing off his soloing skills. No vocals, no catchy riff, just rather aimless (but quite interesting and impressive) soloing. Secondly, "Take No Prisoners" has too many go-nowhere riffs and sections to it. Also, a really dumb chorus at both the beginning (got one chance, infilitrate them) and end (take no prisoners....take no shit). Other than those two tracks, Rust is a masterpiece.
The only thing REALLY wrong with the album is the less-than desirable mix. Its too CLEAN, and not enough treble. Have I raved about Dave's rhythm guitar yet? Well, "Holy Wars" hash absolutely INCREDIBLE crunchy, chunky, technical rhythm guitar pieces to it. I mean; just LISTEN to that power and speed behind the vocals when Dave is yelling "mercy killings!" at the end of that track. And how about the ambience at the bridge? Wow. Rather than type three more paragraphs descibing the marvelous inticracies of each track, lets just say they're all great in their own way. My personal favorites of the other tracks are "Tornado of Souls", "Five Magics", and "Lucretia". A technically amazing thrash album, and good songwriting throughout. Easily their most consistant release.
HIGH POINTS: Tornado Of Souls, Hangar 18, Holy Wars... The Punishment Due. LOW POINTS: Poison Was The Cure.
Before this point in Deth's history, the lineup situation (apart from the two Daves in the band, of course) was not exactly something you would call stable. But on this album, I guess you could say that shortcoming is somewhat fixed here. Not so much because of the addition of drummer Nick Menza (though he's certainly a competent metal skinsman), but because of the new guitarist. And holy crap, is Marty Friedman a great one, certainly enough that the band has caught up with their rivals Metallica, and almost undoubtedly even surpassed them, in this area. Because of this, Rust In Peace is one of the most satisfying albums in terms of metal guitar work in the 90's, I'm sure, as Friedman's riffs, soloing, and classic technique are all over this one. Don't forget about Dave Mustaine's rhythm work here, either, which definitely pushes things forward. That means the album is a masterpiece, right?
Well, it is a fine album, don't get me wrong. But unfortunately, the actual song quality of Rust doesn't always live up to the playing quality, especially since it's really difficult for me to remember that much a few of these songs after they're done playing. There are only a few quirks in the way the actual personalities of the songs are that make some of them actually stand out, but this is one of those records where I'll be listening and think, "Wow, awesome solos! How the heck does he play like that?" and then forget anything else exists in the song. In particular, I'm looking at the very middle stretch of the album -"Five Magics", the most generic, punkier and largely dull "Poison Was The Cure" (though boasting a cool bass intro) and "Lucretia" all have fine lead playing, but I'll be damned if I can remember at all how the melodies went, apart from the fun chant of the first one. I'm sure expert musicians can dissect these songs, but an expert musician I am not.
Luckily, there's enough great material here to make up for that shortcoming. "Holy Wars.... The Punishment Due" and "Rust In Peace... Polaris" both bookend the album nicely as almost proggish sort of pieces. The former in particular is pretty much quality thrash right there, as that lightning fast opening riff leads us into pure intensity (both lyrical and vocal) - it's got more than enough vintage Friendman playing, and some really nice dynamic changes (the grinding 'holier than thou...' portion). And don't forget the great 'mercy killings' closing portion. The latter track is pretty cool, too, with more power riffing and soloing, a cool shift into a thrashier ending, and apocalyptic lyrics that are supposed to come off as dangerous, but instead just sound amusing, with those almost spoken vocal growls in the verses ('tremble you weaklings, cower in fear...')
Yeah, actually, in spite of the killer guitar work here, I associate some of these songs with Mustaine's dumb goofiness. What are you gonna do about it? But in spite of something like "Take No Prisoners" sounding like something a metal band of teenagers would come up with (with those stupid, but adrenalizing, chants after each line), it still rips musically! Very, very nice punkish power here, and a perfect foil for Friedman's soloing genius. "Dawn Patrol" also sounds extremely dumb in theory - as an almost interlude style song at just under two minutes, it's basically a slow, bass driven groove with really low register spoken vocals, but it's highly entertaining cartoonish darkness - I particularly love the way the lines 'with the greenhouse in effect, our environment was... wrrrrrrrrECKED!' are sung/spoken. Funny stuff.
Make no mistake about it, though - this is not a comedy album despite the occasional lyrical stupidity/cartoonishness, and it's more than proven Marty Friedman is what lifts the album to something close to greatness within the two absolute highlights. "Hangar 18" is the most famous one, a foreboding metal song about said alien fortress with a repetitive, but pulverizing, riff and a desperate chorus of 'I believe I've seen too much...', and indeed, that passage where Friedman puts on an absolute soloing clinic in the second half makes it spectacular, if a little indulgent. I love "Tornado Of Souls" even more, though - basically, this is the closest Megadeth came to pulling off Metallica's intense thrash style of something like "Creeping Death", and it works extremely well, especially with the hilariously silly vocals and that 'whoosh!' part at the bridge putting it over the top. Awesome riff, too. Unlike some, I wouldn't say this is one of the be-all-and-end-all metal albums of the decade (the next one comes closer, in my humble opinion), but for guitar wizards, it can't be beaten! For those of you out there, go get it!
This is my personal second favorite thrash album (out of what I've heard, of course), right behind Metallica's Master Of Puppets. Megadeth always kinda dollowed in Metallica's footsteps, as Mustaine really wanted to prove that he could one up his previous band, so after Metallica released ...And Justice For All, Dave really started to think. He hired new drummer Nick Menza and, most importantly, new lead guitarist Marty Friedman, who slams this record into overdrive. If you ask me, Friedman, despite his really stupid t-shirt and hair that he displays proudly on this record, is an extremely talented lead guitar player, more talented than Kirk Hammett in my opinion.
He adds his lightining fast, melodic, and powerful leads to all these cuts, taking even the lesser melodies and making them rule. Though he punches in on all of these tunes (except the short bass jam of "Dawn Patrol"), he really shines on "Hangar 18", which starts as a normally great, eastern sounding thrash tune, but turns into a fast jam at the end to show off Marty's skill, and boy does he show it off. He throws in some awesome solos and bashes around extremely effectively, making the tune the highlight of the album. If you have a hard time respecting the guitar work of thrash metal guitarists, give that tune a whirl. It'll change your mind, guaranteed.
Don't think that Marty's the only reason that this album's good, though. The songwriting is tops, too. Killer riffs abound. Tunes like "Tornado Of Souls", "Five Magics", "Holy Wars", and "Lucretia" are awesome, fast, pummeling tunes. On top of these tunes, Dave Mustaine's shouts fit the mood perfectly. Some people hate his voice; I've always kinda liked it, personally, when he puts it to proper use. He doesn't always put it to proper use, but he always does on this album, so I've got no complaints. The only non thrash tune here is "Dawn Patrol", a less-than-two-minutes bass run with some slow drums and Mustaine chanting some apocalyptic lyrics in a deep, foreboding voice. I absolutely love that tune - it workd very well for what it does, and I've actually pulled the record out just to hear it.
I almost gave this album a ten, but it missed for a couple of reasons. First of all, a couple of tunes, while not bad at all (and actually still quite good), aren't exactly standouts. "Poison Was The Cure" and the title track fall into this category - they're both pretty good, but not really exceptional. And finally, the lyrics on this album are really, really stupid. It doesn't really bother me (in fact, it kinda makes the album fun, which is something that no Metallica album but Kill 'Em All can claim), but they're dumb, nonetheless. "Five Magics", despite its status as a song that absolutely rules, is the worst offender here. "Dethrone the evil prince's iron fists/In velvet gloves of sin/Parade the grey robed monks/The vestal virgins whell the wyverns in". Ouch. Still, this is extremely highly recommended, and is an absolute thrash classic. Buy it if you like thrash metal even a little bit.
I'm certainly not the thrash expert, nor am I extremely fond of the genre, but in any genre there are just some albums you should be familiar with just to say you have a decent knowledge in that area of music. In the thrash genre examples would be Master of Puppets, Kill 'Em All, Reign In Blood, and Rust In Peace (even though I'd take Ride The Lightning or Something Wicked This Way Comes over any of these). This album is good, and certainly for the thrash fan. Is that all there is to say? No, because there is that Marty Friedman guy playing guitar, and he is good to say the least. Not as fast as someone like Jason Becker (though he did play in the band Cacophony with Jason several years earlier) or Chris Impellitteri, or as entertaining as the Murray/Smith duo, but still something to hear. He is good, and I like him a whole lot better than someone like Malmsteen. Marty's the star of Rust In Peace, and you should know it from songs like "Hangar 18" where the whole second half is just him playing his guitar. Almost every single song has a entertaining and technically impressive solo to go along with it, and these solos are what makes this album so good.
The problem is that the quality of the songs is generally just mediocre thrash. "Holy Wars," "Poison Was The Cure," and "Tornado Of Souls" don't have a whole lot to offer rather than the solos, and I cannot stand "Take No Prisoners." I do like "Five Magics," and even "Dawn Patrol," but my personal favorites are the title track and "Lucretia." The easiest way to describe this album would be only slightly different form describing an early Queensryche album. Instead of "mini-Maiden," this sounds like "mini-Metallica." I'm not sure about how true that is for the band's entire career since the album is all I've heard from Megadeth, and it's widely considered the band's best album, so maybe that statement is true. If it isn't, then I'll call it average thrash with great solos.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
(Pat D.'s review)
I was going to give this album a 7 on the count that it has some very good songs on it, but then I remembered that once again Dave can't get his voice out of the upper register. Oh yeah, and his vocals hit absolute bottom on one track "Sweating Bullets". But more on that later.... Overall, a much more mainstreamed record than the stunning instumental-like Rust In Peace. This seems to be Dave's answer to Metallica's The Black Album, in that in trades length and blistering pace for catchy hooks and solos. There are a couple of great songs on here. Namely, "Symphony of Destruction", "Psychotron", "Ashes In Your Mouth", and "Architecture Of Aggression". I picked those because Dave's got some acceptable vocals on them. And "Symphony" has a great riff at the bridge. "Architecture" has a great chorus that's fun to try and sing along to. But "Sweating Bullets"? Ugh....What a horrible song. I've heard rumors that its meant as a joke, but I find it hard to laugh when I'm grimacing at Dave's horrendous vocals on that track. The other songs on this album are OK, so I guess its an OK buy.
HIGH POINTS: Countdown To Extinction, Symphony Of Destruction, Sweating Bullets. LOW POINTS: None.
So Dave Mustaine's parallels to Metallica continue yet again with this one. Like Metallica did with Justice, Megadeth followed their most complex and 'progressive' album with a more 'back-to-basics' almost, dare I say it, sellout effort, pretty much their equivalent of the Black Album. However, while I suppose this musical shift probably does sacrifice a little of the Rust lineup's original strengths - the arrangements and the mindblowing solos, most noticeably - it gains in enough other ways that I can't see Countdown To Extinction, sell-out or not, as anything less than this band's best overall effort. I know the hardcore might want to disagree with me on that one, but this album is simply more appealing to me because the melodies are a lot catchier, thus making it easier to appreciate the playing quality of the band. Plus, there's not one bad song on here, and a couple that rank among my all-time favorite metal classics. So go ahead and question that.
What's also interesting about the album is how neat the lyrics are. I know you're not supposed to take what Mustaine says too seriously, especially given the hilariously comic stuff of Rust, but it really surprises me how much they strike me just as much as the music does at times. Take the controversial "Sweating Bullets", which is often despised by a lot of people, but I find it to be a hilariously classic ode to dementia - the spoken 'hello me, meet the real me' type passages after a stop-start riff, as well as the rest of the similar lyrical passages, provide such a great dose of comic relief, plus the tumbling chorus has real intensity, and the vocals are so overegaggerated that I just love it. I also find a good amount of personal resonance within the somber ballad "Foreclosure Of A Dream", whose great clear-sounding guitar intro leads into somber ballad territory (in songwriter Dave Ellefson's case, a tale about the foreclosure of his father's farm). Very nice pounding chorus here to convey the intensity of emotional feelings.
The rest of the album is damn convincing as well - a fine display of the effect pop hooks can have on intense riffing. "Symphony Of Destruction" has about as simple a riff and one-note bassline as possible, but I think with that simplicity they hit upon one of the best metal grooves in the history of the universe. Catchy as hell, and the way it comes full circle at the chorus, with its' pummeling energy, is brilliant. An apocalyptic classic for the ages. Ooh, and then there's the title track - ever notice that Megadeth's track 7 songs are usually killer? Well, this one has an absolutely fantastic tense atmosphere in the main riff, bassline and vocal delivery, and the lyrics are about... endangered species, of all things. On a Megadeth album. Unexpected, eh? Great song, though, and probably the best on here. Or what about "Architecture Of Aggression" (fantastic song title) - it's got clever wordplay in it, and a nicely tongue twisting chorus! Cool!
You see, this kind of stuff tends to appeal to me even more than fantastic soloing and riffing (not that I don't love a great display of chops, of course). The melodies on here, even when you haven't heard them for awhile, are pretty much all memorable, and there's so much drive and power to the music to get you excited, like the opening "Skin O' My Teeth", a tight thrash tune. I also love the desperate sounding epic feel of "Ashes In Your Mouth" ('where do we go from here?' - deeper into sellout territory, that's where!) and the grinding, almost autobiographical sounding "This Was My Life", which finds Mr. Mustaine maturing rather nicely as a songwriter. Sure, a lot of these songs aren't much more than conventional in terms of arrangement ("Psychotron" and "High Speed Dirt" come to mind particularly), but they're just well-written, and that's what matters.
Oh yeah, I forgot about the other song besides "Sweating Bullets" that really hits the comic side of Rust well, and that's "Captive Honour", a deceptively dark song that goes into a courtroom scene that's cheesy as hell, but also incredibly entertaining. Now that's cool. I should also mention that along with Risk and maybe The World Needs A Hero To Formulaically Rehash All His Past Glories, this seems to be the one Megadeth album that can easily be found for cheap in the used bins, and unlike those other two, I would really give Countdown a high recommendation for all melodic metal fans, and I'd definitely rank it as one of the better albums in this vein in the 90's. It's not perfect (it can get a little bit too generic at times, and few of the songs are total masterpieces), but it is quite excellent.
Considered by many to be Megadeth's sell out, it isn't as good as Rust was, but it's still pretty damn good. Rather than thrash around on this record, the tunes are generally slower, shorter, and less packed with solos (is it a coincidence that this came out right after The Black Album? Hmmmm...). Much like The Black Album, though, the songwriting on this album is really good, though not quite up to the last one. Plus, the lyrics are substantially better here. No more lyrics of the "vestal virgins wheel the wyverns in" variety here.
As for the actual tunes here, the majority of them rule. My favorite is the title track, which, believe it or not, isn't apocalyptic at all, but rather rails against the canned hunting of endangered species. This seems to be a weird statement, seeing as how it's coming from a band called Megadeth, but the sentiment is nice, and the slow, creepy riff, augmented by an equally dark solo, is great. Another one of my favorites is the much maligned "Sweating Bullets", a hilarious, paranoid ode to insanity and dissasociative identity disorder and schizophrenia (which are two different things, if you don't know), with a typically hilarious Mustaine delivery. Cool riff, too. Keeps things fun (which, as I've said before, Metallica could never do). And how about the pounding riffs on "Symphony Of Destruction" and "This Was my Life"? Slow, to be sure, but very threatening, which is important to a good metal album. And as for the faster tunes here, "Skin 'O My Teeth" and "High Speed Dirt" are pretty exciting metal tunes, with your typical goofy metal lyrics that, again, keep things fun. Even the goofily titled "Architecture Of Aggression" works pretty well, with its hard riff and memorable stop-and-start chorus.
This album isn't without its faults, though. The songwriting and energy, while still good, isn't as high as it was on Rust, which hurts things a bit. Plus, a couple of the tunes here are kinda fillerish - "Psychotron" and "Captive Honor", despite starting out well enough, aren't consistently entertaining throughout. I also mourn the loss of Marty's extremely high powered, fast soloing. It wouldn't really fit on this album, but still, when you've got one of the best lead guitarists in metal, use him! Sadly, as of yet, he still hasn't been used like he was on Rust, which is a shame. This is still pretty much nothing but nitpicking, though, as this is a very good metal album, well worth picking up.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
(Pat D.'s review)
I must say, Dave surprised me with this one. Maybe thats because Metallica wouldn't be releasing anything for him to copy for two more years, but it was interesting. I actually enjoy Dave's vocals on this album. He hits the high notes better than James Hetfield, and he keeps a limit on how high he'll go on this album. The highlights? Well, I absolutely love "Reckoning Day". Dave does an excellent job singing the chorus. "Train of Consequences" has this fantastic train-inspired riff that makes the song incredibly catchy. The other songs are all good, nothing that really stands out other than "Addicted to Chaos" "Killing Road" and "Victory". Overall, a pretty decent buy, though.
HIGH POINTS: Blood Of Heroes, Train Of Consequences. LOW POINTS: Addicted To Chaos.
Okay, maybe I spoke too soon about Megadeth's commercializing of their sound affecting their songs for the better. Let's ignore the absolutely awful album cover depicting babies being hung from a clothesline here for a minute (I'm really surprised this hasn't caused a huge amount of controversy), and concentrate on the music here. The material certainly isn't a disaster and is still good rather than weak (it's also supported by much more effective production than the last two, where every instrument comes through perfectly), but there are just too many generic, unsatisfying attempts at pop-metal type of songwriting for this to be nearly as great as Countdown. Some riffs and songs shine through, of course, but I don't even remember half these songs after they're over, and stuff like this is supposed to be memorable. Oh, and the guitar work doesn't really catch my ears as anything stellar, either, and that's a problem.
For instance, even with its' intense riff pounding into your brains as it changes key all the time and neat-sounding atmospheric bridge, I really have to strain to remember how the opening "Reckoning Day" even goes, though a lot of people call it the classic from here, so don't take my word for it. It's still quite good, though - I've really got more of a problem with the 'tour ode' "The Killing Road" and "Black Curtains", which particularly fail to register in my head at all after they're over, with nothing noteworthy happening during their running times. In addition, we've got the boring as hell "Addicted To Chaos", which lumbers along like a generic, stale hair metal rocker that seems to go on forever, with little personality to redeem it, and "Elysian Fields" has a pretty standard Megadeth groove as well, at least until it gets to its' fun backing vocal embellished chorus, though even then it's not that special. Blergh.
Like I implied, however, the album still has several strong tunes going for it to lift up the rating somewhat. For one, I absolutely love the chugging riff of "Train Of Consequences", which does indeed sound like it's emulating a speeding train at night, and Dave's quirky 'de-rayuhl-ed' intonations are quite entertaing. Nice, tight hard rock there. In addition, the tribute to war veterans (I guess) "Blood Of Heroes" is the only song on here to really come close to living up to Countdown's approach, with an absolutely exquisite full-sounding intro and a clear tense feeling in the melody that really works (despite stupid lyrics), and the more personal "Family Tree" has the in-your-face guitar work of old and a great bassline driving it. The introspectivity of "I Thought I Knew It All" and the title track are also pretty decent - the latter actually sounds almost like a lost Black Sabbath outtake, with a slow but convincing groove.
There are also a few other tracks that have the comical vibe the last couple albums had. I'm not sure whether the closing "Victory", which references a ton of Megadeth song titles, is a clever example of lyrical sarcasm in conveying Dave's emotional state, or just a cheap, corny gimmick that shows he's a little short on ideas. Whatever it is, at least it's catchy and energetic, though, which is more than you can say for some other stuff on here. "A Tout Le Monde" is also goofy in that it has part of the lyrics sung in French in a (possibly unintentionally) humorous way, and to top that off, there's some really neat haunting, ambient guitar work in the mix there. In all, this is still basically a good record - its' highs don't ever match up to the best of the last two, and there's some underwhelming, standard filler, but there's enough worthwhile here to allow me to give this a low 7. I actually like the next 'stop-gap release' more, though.
Even less thrash than on the previous release, and unfortunately, lacking the consistantly great songwriting of the previous albums as well. Megadeth mainstreamed their sound quite a bit here, adding in some slow ballads, more political lyrics, and more generic versions of the tunes from the last album to round it out. The album isn't without its strengths, though - not at all. The opening tune, "Reckoning Day", has a great riff, and Dave's gruff voice fits really well. The follow up tune, "Train Of Consequences", has one of the most distinct riffs I've ever heard, as it's a chugging little muted riff that really sounds like a train. Catchy number, overall. "Blood Of Heroes" sounds like the best stuff on Countdown, with its dark lyrics and creepy chorus. The lyrics are a bit dumb ("Ladies and gents/We're still alive/By the skin of our teeth/Now it's killing time!"), but the tune is still pretty powerful. The closing name check of "Victory", despite dumb lyrics that try to name as many Megadeth songs as possible, is fast and exciting, and is a worthwhile addition to the album. Not classics, but very good tunes regardless.
A lot of the rest of this stuff is pretty mediocre, though. None of it is bad, or really even close to bad (except for "Family Tree", which sounds like the band struggling pretty hard to move into poppier territory), but it's the kind of stuff you never really need to hear again. You get the uneventful rockers of "Addicted To Chaos" and "I Thought I Knew It All", which the band seems to think rock harder than they actually do. "Elysian Fields", despite a catchy chorus, is still only kinda OK melodically. Ditto for the title track, despite some cool verse and chorus melodies. It turns into a boring jam in the middle, though. Too bad. There are pretty good riffs on "The Killing Road" and "Black Curtains", but the vocal (anti)melodies kinda hurt 'em, and they just kinda pass me by unmemorably, aside from those killer opening riffs and the profoundly stupid lyrics to the former ("This behavior's quite insane/But we do it for the fame"; "Lost my mind/Lost all my money/I lost my life to the killing road"). Not bad, like I said, but who needs 'em? Not me.
And allow me to add this intentionally misspelled album title to the "All time stupidest album titles" gallery, right next to J-Tull Dot Com and Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavoured Water (by Limp Bizkit, a band I really want to go away). The album cover, featuring a woman hanging babies on a clothesline (hence the "Youth" in the title - har har har), doesn't help this at all. It almost seems self parodic. Get this album if you must, but the next one's better.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
HIGH POINTS: Diadems, Angry Again. LOW POINTS: None.
Yeah, I realize this album is little more than a 'stop-gap EP' to kill time in between regular efforts, but if you're gonna go that direction, you might as well make it useful for casual fans. And Hidden Treasures is actually a really great idea for a compilation of sorts Megadeth had here. Basically, what it does is collect all of their songs thus far featured on various soundtracks from such 'timeless classic' releases as Super Mario Brothers, Tales From The Crypt and Shocker, as well as tribute albums, that the average fan wouldn't want to buy just for the one or two songs by the band contained within. Then they generously put them all in one 29 minute collection, plus they added a new cover of the Sex Pistols' "Problems", which is decent but really not that special, mostly because it's faithful to a song that wasn't spectacular in the first place, but really, other than that 'previously unreleased' song, there are truly some 'hidden treasures' here.
Of course, not all the songs are that great (besides "Problems", the faster take on Alice Cooper's "No More Mr. Nice Guy" sounds way too thin for me, and the catchy but generic "Go To Hell" has a dumb chanting chorus and hits their old 'juvenile' approach a little too hard in the lyrics, even though I must say, inserting a 'blah blah blah' into the Lord's Prayer is a hilarious touch), and the album shouldn't be rated that highly because it's an EP, but damn it, I still think it's actually slightly superior to Youthanasia overall. "Angry Again" is one of the most brutal, yet melodic, things the band has ever written, and actually exceeds anything on that previous effort, as does the epic ballad "Diadems", with a brilliantly atmospheric dark opening and a condensed epic structure that leaves you on the edge of your seat. I think it definitely stands as one of the band's best songs, so of course, they placed it in the immortal track 7 spot! Yay!
The remaining two tracks on here are actually quite good as well. I'm surprised that their take on Black Sabbath's "Paranoid" turned out as well as it did, since that isn't exactly a unique cover choice, but like "No More Mr. Nice Guy", it's sped up, and the intensity of the playing and vocals are even higher than in the original. Plus, the typically menacing "99 Ways To Die" has quintessential Megadeth aggression in the verses contrasting acoustic guitars and neat vocal effects in the chorus, so call that one another success! I'm telling you, it's rare that I recommend EP's like this (especially with all non-album songs and almost half of it cover material), but despite the fact that I gave Hidden Treasures the same rating as the previous effort, I think it's an overall better value, and it's probably the sleeper release of the band's career.
HIGH POINTS: Paranoid, Breakpoint, Diadems. LOW POINTS: Go To Hell.
An EP from Megadeth, just so you don't have to buy the most likely worthless compilations and soundtracks that these songs originally came from. It's neat to hear some thrash music in a style that they had abandoned a few years before. Not that all of them are good, though. "Go To Hell" has some catchy music, but is ruined by simply awful lyrics. "Angry Again" on the other hand has a fantastic guitar solo in the middle. Besides some thrash songs from soundtracks and such are some of the band's covers from various tribute albums. Their cover Black Sabbath's classic "Paranoid" is the best of the lot, one of the few covers to equal the original song in terms of quality. "No More Mr. Nice Guy" also turns out great, but the last cover, one of "Problems" The Sex Pistols really isn't the sort of thing I think Megadeth should be covering. It isn't really bad, but just doesn't match up to others here, and just seems to be out of place. But Hidden Treasures is certainly for a Megadeth fan who wants to get some more thrash out of the band without wasting money on soundtracks and tribute albums just to hear a new Megadeth song.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
(reviewed by Nick Karn)
HIGH POINTS: Almost Honest, Trust, Use The Man. LOW POINTS: FFF.
There's something metal fans can't seem to come to terms with - eventually the members of early to mid 80's thrash outfits tend to... uhh... mellow out over time due to their increasing adulthood, and Megadeth is no exception to that rule here. This is really the first album Dave and the gang have released that can for the most part be called 'mature', and in a sense it's even more of a 'sell out' than Countdown or Youthanasia - there are more overtly pop chord progressions and song structures, the lyrics are continuing a more overt shift into relationships (this would reach its' apex on the next album) as opposed to your more generic thrash subject matter shown on Rust. However, the band's melodic skills are still pretty much as good as ever, and there are still elements of thrash and spectacular soloing, plus, there's somewhat more variety than before. This band shines in more accessible territory! Really!
And when I say 'accessible', I really mean it. This was actually the most commercially successful release of Megadeth's career in terms of smash singles and album sales, with three modern rock radio staples. The first of these, the opening "Trust", is actually the band's most well-known song and deservedly so, with its' fabulously pounding intro, personal lyrics that set the mood for most of the remainder throughout the verses, and a great acoustic climax that breaks perfectly into the solo section, all with quite catchy vocal melodies. Elsewhere, "Use The Man" is a dramatic confessional about heroin usage that even incorporates string arrangements, a neat phase-shifting effect on the guitar, and a fast, powerful breakaway ending, and "A Secret Place", while being a bit too close ripoff of Metallica's "Wherever I May Roam" (with dumb lyrics to boot) has an Eastern-based melody incorporated effectively, with more high-quality vocal hooks coming your way.
As far as the songs that didn't make the radio, there are still a couple particularly noteworthy songs here, one of which is the best of the album. "Almost Honest" doesn't really differ much from the standard Youthanasia pop metal tune at its' core, but the grind it has is quite convincing and catchy, and the gorgeous pop bridge with majestic acoustic guitars is definitely an example of this band's accessibility done well. Additionally, there's the most convincing thrash workout on here in "The Disintegrators", which admittedly does steal the main riff from Rush's "La Villa Strangiato", but easily makes up for it in sheer intensity and soloing power, and "Mastermind" is the mandatory burst of 'comic' flavorings here, with an amusing psychotic-sounding refrain and more vocal hook power. "Have Cool Will Travel" even builds off its' riff embellished structure with harmonica, and harmonica used fairly prominently in the mix at that.
Of course, Cryptic Writings ain't exactly perfect, as there are a few problems here. For one thing, it wasn't a very good idea to end the whole album with the three most generic-sounding (though at least fairly short) tracks, although only the closing "FFF" approaches bad, as it's completely lamebrained hardcore punk that sounds as if it took like 5 minutes to write. The ordinary 'galloping' thrash of "She Wolf" (with somewhat stupid fantasy lyrics) and "Vortex", despite its' really neat prog-metal styled ending, aren't much to write home about either. Plus, there are more hints of standard territory in the echoey rocker "Sin" (so much for the stretch of great track 7's) and more melody recycling in "I'll Get Even" (this one's got a great bassline and more affecting relationship lyrics, though it borrows a bit too much of its' hook from "Train Of Consequences"). Still a very good, more creatively embellished effort than usual, and probably the last really good album you'll find in the Megadeth catalog.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
COMMENTS
Does anyone else notice that "Symphony of Destruction" (Countdown) "Angry Again" (Last Action Hero) and "Trust" all sound almost exactly the same?
(reviewed by Robert Grazer)
HIGH POINTS: Insomnia. LOW POINTS: Breadline, Crush 'Em, Wanderlust, The Doctor Is Calling.
Megadeth's Load, or Reload, or whatever this would be on their Metallica following trail. Any trace of true thrash is gone, and we're left with a bunch of boring, generic, crap. I'm not terribly familiar with Megadeth, but Rust Is Peace was a very good album, and this is not. They supposedly had sold out before this, and while I certainly have nothing against selling out, I still insist that a dramatic transition in style like that MUST be done carefully and correctly. This new CD is enhanced, with a video about how the band is still the creative power they always were. They just kind of have a new 'bluesier' sound. Heh, maybe this is their Load. But Load, as bad as it turned out, was, in fact, the better release. "The Outlaw Torn" may have been slow, but it ruled. "The House That Jack Built" was nice and catchy.
But while Risk certainly is less painful to listen to than the worst sections of Load, not to mention it is shorter and thus not as boring, no song on here is as good as those. And so many of the songs on here suck. "Insomnia" is a good opener with a catchy chorus of "Insomnia-nia, insomnia-nia" that you might think would be annoying, but really isn't. "Prince Of Darkness" is kind of nice in the beginning too (though the song quickly becomes overlong and dull). But aside from those two opening tracks, it is really hard to find anything else that's good, and in some cases you will find some rather pitiful stuff. "Enter the Arena" is filler, "Crush 'Em" starts out in a dance style beat, and during the intro it isn't hard to imagine some rapper taking over the song from there. The little solos in the song are mostly generic blues riffs, though they are the most interesting thing in the whole five minutes worth of song. Then "Breadline" is the first taste of true crap here. A ballad as generic as anything Kiss, the gods of genericism, have done.
And not only does this album have a bunch of generic and boring tunes, we get some truly derivative ones as well. The intro to "The Doctor Is Calling" is stolen from Operation: Mindcrime by Queensryche. The song attempts to build a fearful, haunting atmosphere, complete with bells and an evil little kid calling for his daddy, and it fails, of course. And then the album falls into a completely boring direction, with "I'll Be There," "Wanderlust," "Ecstasy," and *YAWN* probably a few others. Though to close off the album is "Time: The Beginning" and "Time: The End," which should be complemented for at least elaborating on the most overused song title in the world. The songs themselves are okay, more effective than almost anything else on the album. The lyrics are somewhat corny, but when you find such wonderful mediocrity when searching for any sign of quality on an album, you should be happy.
And so there it is. Call it Risk, or ReReLoad or whatever you want, as long as you don't call it a comeback or artistic growth, or being back on the right track or whatever else. This is a low 4 I'm handing out to it, and without such a cool opener I wouldn't hesitate to give it a 3. From what I understand, most Megadeth fans out there feel the same way. At least I'm not alone. It seems unless you're in a unique case like Iced Earth, thrash is gone in 1999. Or was quality rock gone altogether in '99? No, wait a minute, wait was I thinking? In 1999 Stavesacre released Speakeasy, and that was sure a good album. And so was Scenes From A Memory, and... ok, I was wrong. 1999 was a fine year. So I guess Megadeth have no one to blame except themselves for this embarrassment.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
(Pat D.'s review)
Hooo boy...this one brings up a new idea for a genre - mid life crisis metal. Dave seems to have lost all ability to write a decent thrash song. Just give the horrendous "Moto Psycho" a spin - if you can stand the ridiculously lame title and chorus. Oh man, that one is almost as bad as "Sweating Bullets". The problem is, "Moto Psycho" wasn't meant as a joke.
Ok, yeah, so Rust In Peace had some bad lyrics too. Why is that album still rated so high? One, Dave played one mean rhythm guitar back then. Two, and more importantly, Marty FUCKING Friedman played on Rust. Now that he's off searching for his "pop sensibilities" (although rumor has it he's in the studio with Michael Schenker right now rather than Limp Suckit), we get another faceless 80s scale shredder in Al Pitrelli. Al has absolutely no personality at all in his playing on this record. He has the chops and the speed, as you can hear in his Savatage days (you will get a much better sampling of his work with that band, as I and almost definitely Nick can attest), but he has no feeling whatsoever in his playing on this sad 'deth release. Pitrelli also exhibits a flat, toneless sound on this record, not too much unlike Dave's solos. So one has to ask, why bother with a second guitarist whos solos sound the same? Reminds me a lot of Mr. Chris Poland, and to a worse extent, Jeff Young.
Anyways, this album pretty much blows. Tired recycling of riffs from Mustaine's glory days abound. "Return To Hangar", for example, is just embarassing. One, because Dave proves without a shadow of a doubt that he is too damned old to play like he did on the original "Hangar 18", and two, Al is no Marty. Oh yeah, Mr. Mustaine dumped Nick Menza too, but I was never a fan of him anyways, so I guess that at least is forgivable. As for the rest of Megadeth, the only thing we can hope for is that the two Daves hook up with Metallica, like every damned metal messageboard has be rumoring about for the past 10 years or so. Don't hold your breath, though. We all know what a pompous ass both Mustaine and Ulrich are. Its not gonna happen people.
To sum up, this is the sad state of the once mighty thrash giants: Metallica hasnt released an album since 1997, which was about as far from thrash as theyve ever been, despite being a decent album. Slayer have released two boring snoozefests tainted with that unholy numetal crap, Anthrax's last album had a full blown country opus on it, and finally, Megadeth puts out possibly the most boring, over-the-hill sounding record of the year. Oh well. Time to go listen to some In Flames or Opeth and put these floundering, once great, American metal bands behind us.
HIGH POINTS: Disconnect, 1000 Times Goodbye. LOW POINTS: When, Moto Psycho, Promises.
Well, after the supposed artistic disaster of Risk, the man probably most responsible for that change of direction, Marty Friedman, finally left the band on account that he was tired of metal and wanted to pursue more basic 'alternative' rock I guess. Replacing him here is Al Pitrelli formerly of Savatage fame (a solid axeman who particularly shone well on that band's The Wake Of Magellan), while drummer Nick Menza also got the boot, replaced by Jimmy DeGrasso. Meanwhile, the resulting album was somewhat predictably hyped up as a return to the 'classic Megadeth sound' with the new track on their greatest hits album "Dread And The Fugitive Mind" (also included here - what an interesting approach that was). Alas, though, you could say that attempt backfires here - it becomes obvious when listening to this that Mustaine had either lost much of the songwriting talent he once possessed, or was so intent on recapturing the old Megadeth vibe that he had no desire to progress musically at all, like the last two albums had at least attempted to do.
The songs here can mostly be divided into two categories - tales about Mustaine's own mental state and pale retreads of the 'classic' sound, or even both. In the first category, only "1000 Times Goodbye" really makes an impact, as Dave's somewhat clever and self-depriciating lyrics combine well with his ex-girlfriend's answering machine messages for a good number. But elsewhere you have the 9 minute closer "When", which boasts idiotic call and response 'lost love' lyrics with altered robotic vocals, and is extraordinarily boring over the course of its' running time, with its' slow tempo, half-baked Metallica riffs and melodyless vibe. There's also one of the most pathetically generic songs this band has ever put out in "Promises", a lame string-laced acoustic guitar ballad that doesn't accomplish a thing. I guess the title track is okay, mostly due to its' fairly memorable chorus, but the 'phone conversation' premise quickly wears thin here.
The remainder? Ehh... the opening "Disconnect" is quite good, in riding a solid, aggressive riff and melody without sounding recycled, and the middle solo is quite solid, though it would hardly be a big highlight on most other Megadeth albums like it is on here. Especially since other albums don't have such pale retreads of older classics, like the aforementioned "Dread And The Fugitive Mind" blatantly revisiting the schizophrenia of "Sweating Bullets" and "Return To Hangar" being little more than a explicit sequel to "Hangar 18" (nice job copying Metallica again, boys, and quit that solo wanking). Plus, the rather grating and obnoxious novelty tune "Moto Psycho" has to be the lamest single they've ever put out, and "Recipe For Hate... Warhorse" is symbolic of the album's direction with its' rambling build. The rest of the songs, while not really bad, are incredibly unexceptional, routine stuff. I guess it's a shame the band had to go out on an failed 'comeback' effort like this, though Mustaine's broken arm, unfortunate as it was in forcing him to break up 'Deth, probably spared us more weak albums, at least.
Post your comments / reviews for this album
COMMENTS
Dave didn't dump Nick Menza, he moved to L.A. Nick Menza was a brilliant drummer and I agree, Moto Psycho is slightly crap and the title sucks. This album is really quite crap, but I do like countdown, i think its amazing. Rust In Peace isn't as good as everyone says it is. Holy Wars is amazing as is Hangar 18 and Rust in Peace...Polaris but the rest isnt that good. The first album is brilliant as is youthanasia. Risk would be a lot better if marty had actually played guitar properly on it, and maybe if it was released under a different band.
Index | Main band/artist reviews page