Megadeth

[FunkyMonkey]

 

MEGADETH's DAVE MUSTAINE Offered 'A Rose For The Lady' On 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' (Video) - Feb. 15, 2011

Parking-lot-security-guard-turned-late-night-personality Guillermo Diaz was once again dispatched by "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" to the red carpet of the 53rd annual Grammy Awards, which was held this past Sunday night (February 13) at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.

Around the one-minute, 33-second mark in the clip below, Guillermo can be seen offering a clearly-not-amused Dave Mustaine of MEGADETH "a rose for the lady."

Video here: http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=153983

[FunkyMonkey]

From Dave Mustaine:

Yes! More Big 4 dates! meet new mgmt. client this weekend with my partner Mark Adelman. And now off to Vic's to make more Megs music!

about 2 hours ago via Twitter for BlackBerry?

I have a song to DL from the Dan Spitz project I did. MegaDave's made a site to DL the song and donate to his autistic twins. Please DL it!

about 19 hours ago via Twitter for BlackBerry?

[FunkyMonkey]

From Dave Mustaine:

We had a great anniversary. Time to finish preparing for the tour. Going to church today to pray for my fans and the tour to all be blessed.

about 1 hour ago via web

[FunkyMonkey]

Megadeth?s Dave Mustaine Reveals His Favorite Song by Slayer

 Apr 08, 2011

In honor of the hugely-anticipated Big 4 Festival in Indio, California, on April 23, Revolver has put out The Big Four special collector?s issue, chronicling the history of thrash metal?s most legendary bands. The magazine is on newsstands now, as well as available online here. While making the issue, we talked to some of the Big Four?s most heralded musicians about their favorite songs from the other bands. Today, Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine tells us about his favorite Slayer song.

?I just started recently getting into Slayer?s music because I was pretty much at odds with those guys for so long. Unfortunately, we didn?t get a chance to hang out over the years, much to my loss. I?d have to say probably my favorite Slayer song is the one that they close with, ?Angel of Death? [off 1986?s Reign in Blood]. Yeah, I love the killer double-kick part at the end of that one.?

http://www.revolvermag.com/beta/news/megadeths-dave-mustaine-on-his-favorite-song-by-slayer.html

[FunkyMonkey]

DAVE MUSTAINE: "THIS RECORD HAS HAD WEIRD THINGS HAPPEN"

May 16, 2011

Terrorizer recently spoke to the one and only Dave Mustaine on the current state of play for Megadeth's upcoming new studio album.

"This is our 13th studio record, and we've already had a bunch of weird things happen," says the legendary frontman. "Car problems, stuff disappearing, a guy who worked for me that was the most white-laced guy you could imagine falling out on drugs and disappearing...but this one's got me excited!"

On the band's upcoming Sonisphere appearance, where they'll be a part of the first UK Big 4 show in history, the guitarist notes;

"I'm excited that Diamond Head are playing! It's kinda come full-circle. Those people really influenced me - my bands were Led Zeppelin and The Beatles, but my guitar playing was Diamond Head and Mercyful Fate."

MegaDave also commented on whether still seeing people succumb to drugs affects him as an ex-addict.

"I know why some people get loaded - because it feels good," he adds. "Some people get loaded when their teams win, some get loaded when their teams lose, some get loaded when their team's starting a game, some get loaded when nothing's even happening, but that's just a recreational, emotional thing. But when you get to that place when you're strung out [on heroin], that's a bitch, because it's not very gracious. It doesn't descriminate; it will take anybody down."

Megadeth play Sonisphere on July 8

Megadeth's new album will be out later this year through Roadrunner.

http://truecultheavymetal.com/blog1.php/2011/05/16/dave-mustaine-this-record-has-had-weird-things-happen

[FunkyMonkey]

Leander Games signs brand licensing deal with heavy metal band ?Megadeth?

UK).- After the announcement that Leander Games has partnered with leading software giants Gaming Technology Solutions (GTS) and OpenBet, Leander Games has officially announced that it has signed a deal with heavy metal band: Megadeth.

This is a landmark deal for Leander Games, securing the exclusive worldwide rights to develop Megadeth branded games for both the online and landbased industry.

Ramiro Atucha, Founder and CEO of Leander Games said, ?Providing licensed games for a phenomenal brand such as Megadeth is a really exciting proposition for us.  Drawing on the bands staggering worldwide popularity and in keeping with their image, we have developed a game that will truly engage players on a global scale.  We have an in house team that specialise in providing the most thrilling mathematics and advanced graphics with most of the creative team specialising in 2D, 3D and motion art, therefore the Megadeth slot game player experience is unparalleled.?

Megadeth was founded in 1983 and during this time, has sold over 25 million albums worldwide, with five consecutive albums being certified platinum or multi-platinum in the USA.  The band is considered an early pioneer of thrash metal which fits the Leander Games ethos perfectly, as the innovative games developer continues to be a pioneer of slot games for both the online and land based casino industry.

Speaking on behalf of the band, founder of Megadeth Dave Mustaine, said, ?We have an amazing fan base that is incredibly loyal to our music and everything we stand for and we never dreamed that one day we would have a ?Megadeth? slot game for fans to play.  However with the assistance of Leander Games? vision and creativity, we have produced a fantastic game that will appeal to anyone that already appreciates the band, whilst also giving us an opportunity to continue widening our appeal to a new casino playing audience.?

http://www.leandergames.com/Megadeth.php

[FunkyMonkey]

Interview: Dave Mustaine of Megadeth

05/31/2011

Will Megadeth?s upcoming album be lucky 13? It sure could be, given the crest of good fortune the band has experienced since the release of their last universally acclaimed 2009 album, Endgame.

Frontman Dave Mustaine reunited with original bassist David Ellefson, mended fences with longtime rivals in Slayer and Metallica and played a batch of Big 4 shows (with Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax), first in Europe, then in Indio, California, on April 23. The second U.S. Big 4 show will take place Sept. 14 at New York?s Yankee Stadium.

Hoping the good times keep rolling, Megadeth are working on their still-untitled 13th album at Mustaine?s Vic?s Garage studio in San Marcos, California, with producer Johnny K (Disturbed, Machine Head). They hope to be done recording in time to play this year?s Rockstar Mayhem Festival, which launches July 9 in San Bernardino, California.

GUITAR WORLD: How do you see the new album as a development from Endgame? Will it be heavier, more technical, more melodic?

It?s gonna be heavy and not slow heavy like Black Sabbath or Trouble. It?s very, very fast heavy.

How many songs did you write for the new one?

We have 12 songs that we?re contracted for this record, and that?s all we?re doing.

You?ve been pretty busy touring. When did you have time to write?

Some of the songs are old, some are new. Some were written this morning. Some back in the early stages of my career -- songs that weren?t previously recorded. It?s just a variety of stuff.

This will be your second record with Chris Broderick. You?ve said in the past his playing reminds you of [ex-Megadeth guitarist] Marty Friedman, with whom you recorded some of your best albums.

Chris and Marty both have their strengths and weaknesses. We?ve had great guitar players over the years with Megadeth, and that?s been one constant with us. The guitar-playing ability has been consistently good to excellent. We?ve had some drummers who are average, and the bass playing has always been good. But Chris and Marty are on a level all their own.

As a guitarist, how do you work with or feed off Chris? playing?

I think the smart-ass answer would be, he does all the work and I have all the fun. But that?s kind of backwards because I?m the one carrying the brunt of the rhythm responsibilities. Chris has a lot of really great abilities as a lead guitarist. I?m more of a utility player, where I play underneath. These days, when it?s time for a solo, I hold the bottom down while Chris plays lead, especially when there?s a difficult guitar rhythm on top, because that?s my strength.

Is it satisfying to be working again with bassist David Ellefson again?

Are you kidding? The guy?s great. He doesn?t make any mistakes. He?s just a well-rounded, mature individual. There were several times during the tour where I looked at him and said, ?Who are you?? And I know he thought that was kind of funny, but truth was I really didn?t know who he was because he has turned into this amazing person and a smoking bass player. It?s the greatest thing ever and now we?re all getting along really well.

You already played on Big 4 show in the U.S. Are you looking forward to the Yankee Stadium gig?

Yes I am. The first show didn?t really go as well as it could have for me because of technical difficulties, where my amps stopped working. And I really want this one to go over well. It?s like put up or shut up. Plus, it?s kind of a dream of mine to have everyone at Yankee Stadium singing me ?Happy Birthday? because my birthday falls right around there. But that?s David Ellefson?s call. He said, ?That?d be a hell of a birthday present, wouldn?t?? And yeah, I think so.

http://www.guitarworld.com/interview-dave-mustaine-megadeth

[SpecialAgentCooper]

I like the new song/clip..anybody else heard it?


Coop

[FunkyMonkey]

New MEGADETH Song Featured In 'NeverDead' Video Game Trailer; Audio Snippet Available - June 3, 2011

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=158983

[FunkyMonkey]

Interview with Megadeth frontman and guitarist Dave Mustaine

June 07, 2011

Judging by your frequent Twitter updates it seems that the new Megadeth album is coming along quite well. What can you tell us about where you are in the recording process?
Dave: It?s going pretty good. My Twitter account got hacked. You know what I?m talking about right? Congressman Wiener?s Twitter account got hacked and there was a picture of his privates posted and he said he couldn?t tell if it was his or not. I can sure tell what mine looks like. He doesn?t look like he gets much action, poor fella.

Ok so where were we, Twitter updates? yeah it?s going pretty good. I like being able to keep the fans updated, I?ve always been really internet savvy when it comes to megadeth.com and then all the different things we?ve done like askdavemustaine.com which was really innovative, only Paul McCartney and I have ever had anything like that. And then some of the other things that we did a long time ago, I tried some things that were way ahead of their time, but things basically like full stop services and just making the fans feel like they?re apart of things. And I feel that?s what?s probably responsible for the longevity of my career, including them in things and not acting so secretive all the damn time. There?s nothing more obnoxious to me than some rich rock star going around telling people they need to donate money to starving people and stuff like that, you know, why don?t you do it? Don?t tell me to do it, you do it. If you have so much damn money you do it. You want to make a difference then start with yourself. And that?s one of the things I?ve done, I?ve really gone out of the way when we?ve met our fans and stuff to help underprivileged kids and stuff like that.

What can you tell us about the new album?s sound? How would you describe it compared to your last record Endgame?
Dave: Different, a hundred percent different, unlike anything we?ve ever done before because the guitar sounds are different, it sounds really super modern. If I was going to say it sounds like a particular band I would say it sounds like really old classic Sabbath and with a little bit of a modern edge of Queens of the Stone Age kind of thing. But then again with the twists and turns of music that Megadeth has been famous for over the years, you never know how it?ll turn out. I think it?s cool to have songs that aren?t just verse, chorus, verse, chorus, solo, chorus, out, although that?s a time warn recipe for success.

For me, like I was talking to Johnny K our co-producer here and I said to him in the beginning Megadeth isn?t just one, two one, two one, two, we take right turns every once in a while. Sometimes we?ll be driving along absolutely fine and we?ll do a u-turn, just because we want to revisit something or there?s a lick or a riff that?s really cool that we want to come back to. Sometimes a song just in the middle you have to completely chuck where you?re going and switch horses in the middle of the stream and get over to another part of the song. For example, a perfect example would be like in "Wake of Dead." At the end of "Wake of Dead" the song stops and drops in tempo and does something completely different. Or in songs like "In My Darkest Hour" where at the end it just jumps up in tempo to breakneck speed and just hold on to your hat kind of thing. So I think that this record has tons of stuff.

When we started this record I had the eleven new songs that I was going to do that?s on my contract and then the twelfth song that?s due to the Japanese audience and that was it. And then Johnny said "yeah but the record company said they?d like you to get to fifteen songs." And I said "that?s great but my contract says twelve so that?s what we?re doing." So we got all the way done with the twelfth song and we started arranging the twelfth song and halfway through it I just started writing this other thing and we?re calling it "song 13" right now. It just came out of nowhere, it?s probably the most melodic, most geared for success song out of the whole record based on what makes a song successful and stuff like that because you know it?s got really open picking and some acoustic parts and you know melodic things and stuff like that. There?s some heaviness on it too, the point I?m trying to make I guess long story boring, I did go beyond what my contract says again which I?ve always done my whole career, I?ve always tried to over-deliver. I think we?ve got probably our best offer since the Countdown to Extinction era.

Are the songs all recent creations or have some of them been hanging around now for a while?
Dave: Basically when we had started off this record we had a videogame we were doing a song for and that was Guitar Hero and when we had done that song it got nominated for a Grammy and it was a very successful track for us. Roadrunner said to us that we can include it on our next record and we thought that?s great? We have some songs that we started at various times that I had started over my career that just never got out of the blocks for lack of a better term. But it?s not like doing "A Tout Le Monde" again, the whole thing with "A Tout Le Monde" for me was I wanted that song to be a B-side for Japan and just a couple of records ago we did "A Tout Le Monde" which is one of the main breakups between me and Roadrunner.

The president took what I wanted to be a b-side and forced it to be the first lead single off of the domestic release which I thought was a terrible decision and we paid for it dearly. But as far as this record there?s nothing like that. We?ve got some songs from years and years ago that we never recorded even though we did demos for them but they just never saw the light of day. Those are songs that we?ve looked at and rearranged and made them modern and had recorded them. But you know, there?s a lot of brand new stuff, like I said one as new as just from a couple of days ago.

You?re working with Johnny K as a producer as you said there on this new record instead of Andy Sneap who took care of the last two albums. Why did you decide to go with Johnny and what?s it been like working with him?
Dave: Well you know one thing with Megadeth is we?ve always tried to keep it current with our production team you know not getting too attached to any one person although a lot of the guys we?ve worked with have been great and there was no clear reason for having broken up the time other than keeping it fresh. With not working with Andy Sneap, he just wasn?t available.

Andy had some stuff that came up right in the middle of the time that we were available to do our work. Usually when a band is ready to go in the studio they go in and they stay in, they don?t go in and come out and go back in again and I?ve found that to be really difficult for me because I lose stride and it just wasn?t going to happen for us. We weren?t going to get the record done in time because we had this Monsters of Rock Energy Drink Mayhem Tour, whatever it is, it?s the Mayhem Festival this summer and we had to get this done before we leave, you know we have more Big Four dates coming up.

When Johnny?s name came up I didn?t even know who he was and I said something to a couple of the other guys, they were like "oh Johnny K! Oh really! Wow!" And I was like "hmm, ok," kind of like you know when someone says "try this, it tastes like chicken." So he came out here and we talked a little bit. We went an entire month, the entire first month not one disagreement. There were some moments where we were trying to align our thinking and you know I think because we?re two different guys from two different sides of the country and different histories I think there was a necessity for us to get our lingo in order.

But as far as us having a desire to make this project a success, I think that we all have that first and foremost in our heads and that?s what we want to do. So right now Sean finished all of his tracks, he?s gone, we left the drum kit up there in case we decide that something needs to be fixed or changed or whatever. And I?m doing guitar today and Dave Ellefson and Chris Broderick are coming in Monday to finish up bass and the other guitar and then it?s singing, solos, ear candy and then we?re done.

Read more here: http://puregrainaudio.com/interviews/interview-with-megadeth-frontman-and-guitarist-dave-mustaine

[FunkyMonkey]

From Dave Mustaine:

D47 Started artwork yesterday with John Lorenzi. I am singing now.

[FunkyMonkey]

From an interview with Chris Broderick.

Friday, June 24th 2011

It?s been almost two years since you came out with your 12th album Endgame. Rumor has it that you?re working on a new one. What is it going to be like? Will it be the best ever for Megadeth?

CB: It?s true that we?ve been working on #13. Writing is almost all done, we are actually getting really close to finishing it. Will it be the best ever? I think so. The thing about the composing is that when you are working on it you are part of it. You almost have to ?become? music that you create. You also have to believe in what you write and that it will be the best ever. Your music also matures with you over time, so I believe that each new album becomes the best one. And I am not being biased here.

Before Megadeth you were with Jag Panzer and Nevermore ? do you miss those bands?

CB: Of course I miss those guys and try to stay in touch with them. It?s like with any good friend that you know is there, but you just cannot maintain a good, stable contact for whatever reason.

What is different about being with them and Megadeth?

CB: The difference obviously is huge. When I was with them it was more relaxed and no so much hyped. Now with Megadeth the stage and pressure are bigger. It?s a lot to be content with although being under the microscope at all times can be tiring.

You?re 41-years young and at that age you are the youngest member of the band ? do they make you do stuff because of that?

CB: Not at all! They don?t haze or harass me, don?t use me to fetch something over, nothing like that. But even though I like the way you?ve phrased it, that I am 41-years ?young? it?s not like I am leaps and bounds behind them.

http://papatomski.blogspot.com/2011/06/megadeths-chris-broderick-we-dont-party.html

[FunkyMonkey]

Interview: Dave Mustaine

July 11, 2011

What?s your most vivid memory of the Peace Sells sessions?
Well, there?s a lot of stuff that was very vivid. I mean we?re talking about us starting to make money and having four functioning heroin addicts in the band. We would roll up to the studio and one of the band members would be slouched in the doorway waiting for us to take him to the methadone clinic?or downtown, as the case may be. Listening to the songs it?s amazing, cause I listen to Chris Poland?s guitar playing and his rhythm playing and it?s so staccato, so perfectly picked and stuff like that?it almost borders on not cool, but mixed along with the sloppiness of my guitar playing, it really has a dangerous element to it. And then listening to a lot of the guitar solos, man, we were really a dangerous band back then.
 
As someone who doesn?t do drugs, I?m genuinely curious from a physical standpoint how you could do a high-level opiate/depressant and play as fast as you played. Could you explain?
Here?s the thing. Your body normally excretes endorphins called dopamine. You have it, I have it too, except that when I was introduced to it, I was introduced to it in excess, and it felt really enjoyable to me. I had complete understanding of the ramifications, of what would happen if I started doing it routinely, and I did, and that?s when I ended up becoming addicted to the stuff. Now playing fast?you can play as fast as you want to [on heroin]. It?s not something like Thorazine, where you?re gonna be chewing your tongue up and wetting your pants. It was just basically putting the same enzymes or whatever back into your body, the dopamine, the endorphins. And in this type of work, it?s a very bohemian kind of thing, when people know people who do heroin or sell it or whatever, they usually know people who have stimulants, too. So not to have this conversation go totally terrible, but usually when people have to play fast and they can?t, they?ll cheat. For me, I was always playing fast. I played fast when I was in Metallica, before I was even introduced to any of that stuff.
 
Nowadays thrash is a codified style of playing guitar, but when you were doing it in the ?80s, you were inventing it as you went along. Were you a conventional hard rock/metal guitar player when you started out, and how did you begin to put together your speed metal style?
Well, the stuff that I liked growing up was AC/DC, Led Zeppelin, but I also liked the Beatles and guys like Cat Stevens and Elton John. The music I liked was very eclectic. A lot of it was from the British Invasion. The guitar influence that affected my songwriting came from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. So I would have to say my whole style is supported around the whole blues thing, and going into making a thrash style?I guess because I had such a horrible life growing up, going from place to place not knowing what I was gonna do and ending up being homeless, there was a lot of pain and a lot of anger that was coming out through my guitar playing. I listen to other people play guitar, and when they play it, they can make it sound beautiful and write real pretty songs and stuff like that. I?m just incapable of doing that. I have this built-in governor that when the song gets a little too happy, something in the back of my head just goes, ?Crap,? and just stops it. I can?t proceed with it. I don?t know why.
 
Tell me about the version of ?I Ain?t Superstitious? that?s on the album?what were you thinking throwing a blues-rock song in amid all that ultra-precise thrash, and how do you think it turned out, overall?
That was a very interesting experiment for me, because I didn?t know very much Jeff Beck. I knew who he was, and I knew he was a great, but I was not a fan of his at all. Not because he?s not good, I just wasn?t a fan. And what happened was, a manager of ours at the time said, ?You know, dude, you gotta do this song by Jeff Beck. You need to do ?I Ain?t Superstitious.?? So I listened to it, and what I keyed into was the two drum hits at the end of the [riff]. And then what I did was my typical thing; what I like to do a lot with my arranging is, the first half of the song will be one thing and then the second half will be a completely higher gear we can drop it into. And with ?I Ain?t Superstitious,? it started off having the normal riff that the song had, kind of a bastardized blues-rock progression, and then at the end it totally steps up to a thrash progression, and to me, that?s what makes the song really exciting, how it just kicks into that whole new level. And again, that showcases Chris Poland?s guitar work. I think that he excels the most when he gets to play jazz, because his playing is more jazz-oriented. But in that song, he really shone.
 
The song ?Peace Sells? is the only really politically or socially conscious song on the record?how did it wind up becoming the title track?
I don?t really know?probably because it was the strongest title. The title actually came from me; I was homeless at the time, living in a warehouse that we were doing our rehearsals in, and there was a girl who took pity on me and every once in a while would call up and ask me to come over, and we would spend the night together and she?d feed me and I?d get cleaned up and stuff like that. And I woke up one morning and I saw a magazine on her nightstand and it said, ?Peace sells, but nobody?s buying it.? And I went oh my God, I gotta write a song about that. So I changed the words around a little bit and I started writing the song, but of course I was living at the rehearsal building like I said, so I had no paper, and I took a pen and wrote the lyrics on the wall there. To this day I still wonder if the lady who had that rehearsal building was smart enough to cut that wall out and immortalize it.
 
When you were making the record, were you already trying to get off Combat? And did you talk to other major labels before signing with Capitol?
I think we were trying to get off Combat from the moment we were on Combat. When we went there, we told them what our plan was, and they gave us money to do Killing is My Business, and the budget was such an offense to us?to make a record, you need to have a certain amount of money, and they gave us eight thousand dollars. Add to that the fact that the guy who was managing us had taken one of the band members off to score and spent half our recording budget. He bought four thousand dollars worth of drugs and food, and came back to Indigo Ranch, where we were working, and said ?Look, I got everything, here we are and here?s our food, let?s go.? I was like, are you out of your mind? So that already put us in a bad way. And when it was time to do the second record, we had already got the album cover back for the first record, and it?s got this plastic skull head on it, and I was really mad. Yeah, we wanted off that label. So when Capitol asked us to come on board, we were definitely happy. Now there was another label that was courting us at the time, and that was Elektra. But they had Metallica, and another band, Metal Church. And I thought it would be great to be there, but I just didn?t see it working out, because the guys in Metallica were there, and I?m smart enough to know that if you have two big stallions in a barn, one of ?em is gonna get all the mares. That kind of mentality, in the natural world it just doesn?t work. Somebody gets their feelings hurt, somebody gets more attention than the next person, it just doesn?t work. So we decided we didn?t want to be with that label, and when Capitol came their offer was better anyway, so we said, Good, we?re going here, thanks, nice to know you, see you later.
 
You guys already had something of a reputation as drinkers and general troublemakers in ?86, so did Capitol sign you with the album already complete, or did they give you money to make an album? How much trust did they have in you?
We?d finished Peace Sells, and we even actually had the album with the cover, and in Combat fashion, the album cover was utter trash. It was cardboard with black bullets stenciled onto it, and I looked at it and thought, you?ve gotta be kidding. I?ve seen crap before in my life, but this was the absolute lowest and most offensive thing I?ve ever seen in our career. To this day, it still stands as the worst piece of artwork that?s ever been officially presented to us. And they really, honestly thought that it was good. And I thought to myself, God, you poor guys, I can?t believe that you are that daft that you don?t know that this isn?t good. So we just kinda moved on. Now when we went into the studio, we had recorded it with a guy named Randy Burns, who had done Killing is My Business, but we?d developed a kind of funky habit that started after that first record. We started with a guy named Karat Faye, changed horses mid-stream, and finished with Randy Burns. We started Peace Sells with Randy Burns and finished it with Paul Lani. We started So Far, So Good?So What? with Paul Lani and finished it with Michael Wagener. We started Youthanasia with Mike Clink and finished it with Max Norman. So we ended up getting into a bad habit where we?d be working on records, and the guys we were working with just weren?t cutting it, and we?d have to change them. I won?t get into all the details and stuff, but when we had Peace Sells finished and Capitol bought it, they said ?We want you to have this guy named Paul Lani mix it.? I said OK, cool, and they had him mix it. Now, Paul had finished mixing our record, and it was on the shelves?imagine my horror when I asked, so what has Paul done besides Megadeth? And they said ?Oh, Rod Stewart.? You could hear my ass hit the ground. I was so mortified.

http://social.entertainment.msn.com/music/blogs/headbang-blogpost.aspx?post=e5496acc-76f1-43e7-8c48-468e0efd25bb

[FunkyMonkey]

Megadeth's David Ellefson on the new album, Big 4, corporate sponsors and the band's legacy

Jul. 15 2011

Westword: How is the recording process for the new Megadeth album coming along?

David Ellefson: It's been good! It has been a fun process in large part because we are recording the album in between tours, which is very different from the way we did it years ago. We would take as much time as we needed, record an album, set it up for the release, release it and a tour would follow. We have had so many offers coming our way from touring and great opportunities. We came home from Europe, did the first Big 4 show here in the United States, and then we went right into the studio. It's funny, because the next show we are going to do is another Big 4 show next week in Europe. We are hoping to put the final bits on the album before we get out of town. The album will be mixed next month.

Do you find it difficult to go off the road and right into the studio, or has it become an easy transition at this point?

It's gotten to be a natural thing. I think when you are younger with less experience, it's a radical shift of mindset to write a bunch of songs, and then to go record them; then the ramp up for touring is a whole other mindset, as we have become more of a veteran status band. There is actually certain energy I like when coming off the road for a few days, or, in this case, a couple of months, and then getting right back on tour. That down time that it takes to sit at home and write and record a record without any tour dates to book into your life and make a definite finish date. When the schedule is tight, you get the work done quick.

Will Megadeth's thirteenth studio album follow the same blueprint of "Sudden Death"? [Sudden Death is a Megadeth song released in the 2010 music video game Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock]

Some of it for sure, absolutely. There are definitely some tracks that are really fast and some with various stuff. We made a conscious decision with our producer, Johnny K, that there is no reason to go and get to ostentatious with big lush arrangements and try to do all this orchestration. We really want this record to sound like four guys in your living room jamming and melting your face off.

Does you have a projected release date and an album title yet?

We don't. There are a couple of album titles being kicked around that we are going to confirm. As far as a release date, I have not heard anything yet. That is up to Roadrunner Records to cement the date.

Perhaps this fall for the release?

That's what I'm hoping for, to get the record done before we go in tour. It's really out of our hands, but we have done our part, as far as recording it. Johnny K has to mix it, and I know he will do quickly. I'm certain it will sound fantastic. Hopefully, it will be released in the fall, but you don't want to rush something like this that we have taken so much time and put so much work into. We want it to be great, we don't want to trip over the starting line. It's better to make sure it's locked and loaded. So when you fire it off, it's a success.

If you had to compare the upcoming CD to any previous Megadeth release, what would that be?

Until it's mixed, it's hard to make a comparison. Anything can change in the mix. The mix is such a vital part of the final creative stamp. Even to the next degree, mastering can add an extra explanation point at the end of the sentence. I would say it kind of fits in around the Countdown to Extinction album. What's ironic to me is that we just came off the 20th anniversary of the Rust in Peace tour, going into an album that would sound like an extension to that.

How important is it to stay grounded in the music business? I always see comments about you on blabbermouth.net and megadeth.com about how genuinely nice you are. Do you think that is something many of the new bands today are lacking?

I think a lot of it for me comes back to how I was raised. I was raised on a farm in Minnesota. We went to church on Sundays, my family was of good stock, and I didn't come from a broken home. So things were very wholesome and complete in my live. To me, I see that as very important. It's weird in rock and roll, because part of what is exciting is the danger and the unstable nature of it. It can all blow up as you are watching it.

To some degree, fans like that. Fans like to see something. They can tough for a minute, then they get to go home and don't have to deal with the fallout of it. Being a musician and having to clean up the explosions can wear you out. Eventually, that become so much at the forefront for at lot of artists that it has superseded their music, and it has turned into becoming tragic celebrity. It's almost like living in the gutter of rock and roll. I was there for a short period in the late 1980s, and I never want to go back there. I would rather have my life be how it is today then to lay in the gutters of celebrity.

Continue here: http://blogs.westword.com/backbeat/2011/07/david_ellefson_of_megadeth_on.php

[FunkyMonkey]

Megadeth's Dave Mustaine says More Big 4 Shows Could Happen, If Metallica Wants

Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine says if there will be any more Big 4 shows in the U.S. beyond the ones scheduled, it'll be up to Metallica.

Speaking with the Boston Herald yesterday backstage at the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival in Boston, Mustaine hinted that more dates could be on tap.

?I'm hoping that after we do the New York trek . . . we'll come back and do some more dates in the states," he said. What about a Boston date? ?It's totally possible. Is it realistic right now? No. I think you'll have to ask the boys in Metallica about that. I think it's pretty obvious for the three of us that it's a good opportunity for us to play with Metallica."

Mustaine raved about the European shows and said he got along great on-stage with his former band, including once being asked by Kirk Hammett to play the solo during a cover of Diamond Head's "Helpless."

?The bands got along really good. Ticket sales were incredible," Mustaine said. ?We planted our flag on top of the planet. If anyone doubted the four of us were the biggest bands in the world, we removed all that doubt.?

Video interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iM6VM5j_jo0

[LongGoneDay]

As much as I love Metallica, and respect Slayer and Anthrax, I would much prefer to see Megadeth headlining their own shows.
It's one thing to have to pay for expensive tickets to see the 4 of them play in a building where you may need binoculars to know that they are truly there, but the shortened setlist is what really sucks. Just saw Megadeth at the Mayhem Festival, and really, none of the other bands on that bill belong on the same stage as Mustaine, but Megadeth ends up playing a 7 song set to make way for tragedies like Disturbed? and fucking Godsmack? I feel almost ashamed for supporting it...

On the bright side, I only had enough time to spend $75 on 6 beers..

[FunkyMonkey]

Interview with Dave Mustaine from Megadeth: Blessed And Forgiven

?by Giorgio Mustica, July 27, 2011

Megadeth has essentially done it all ever since singer/guitarist Dave Mustaine started the group following his unceremonious dismissal from Metallica. Since he formed Megadeth in 1983, Dave has become recognized throughout the world as one of the greatest musicians in all of heavy metal. A huge influence on the thrash metal genre, Megadeth has released 12 full-length albums, been nominated for nine Grammy awards and sold more than 30 million records.

But it hasn?t been an easy road for the band. Substance abuse problems plagued the group and in 2002, and after suffering a serious arm injury, Dave announced that the band would be no more. ?Every time we were poised for just crossing that imaginary line that was keeping us from becoming everything that we wanted to be, something would happen,? Mustaine said. ?Somebody would get in trouble, somebody would get fired, somebody would get hurt, somebody would OD, etc.?

Two years passed and after recovering from the injury that caused severe nerve damage to his left arm, Mustaine decided to reform the band, only with a few lineup changes. Words were exchanged back and forth in the media between Mustaine and founding bassist Dave Ellefson, resulting in Ellefson turning down an offer to rejoin the group. It wasn?t until last year that Ellefson decided to get back together with Mustaine and play again with Megadeth.

I asked Mustaine if he ever thought that those two would get back together again, to which he was responded with a terse, ?No, probably not.?

?You see, the thing is Dave [Ellefson] and I were always close and we had this terrible incident occur between us,? Mustaine said. ?And throughout the whole thing, I kept the same position in that I didn?t want him to get hurt and I didn?t want his family to get hurt.?

In July of 2004, a few months after their fallout, Ellefson sued Dave for $18.5 million, claiming that the vocalist shortchanged him from profits, including publishing and merchandise sales, in addition to making libelous statements about him. Eventually, the lawsuit was thrown out.

?Thank God the judge dismissed his lawsuit,? Mustaine quipped. ?I don?t think he did anything wrong, I think he just listened to the wrong person. When I met with him after this whole thing went down and I told him that I forgave him, he probably wasn?t expecting that. But if anybody deserves a second chance, as many as I?ve had, I shouldn?t be [stopping] from giving someone else a second chance.?

Eventually, a second chance with Megadeth was granted. Shawn Drover, drummer for Megadeth since their reshuffling in 2004, routinely asked Mustaine to let Ellefson back in the band. After some time, Mustaine asked Ellefson to come down, visit with them and play.

?It was actually even better than before because he?s gotten so much better playing his instrument,? Mustaine emphasized. ?I remember him to be a really good bass player but he became great.?

Now with Drover and the two Dave?s, Megadeth is joined by one of the finest guitarists you will ever come across in Chris Broderick. The former Nevermore and Jag Panzer standout replaced Shawn?s brother Glen Drover in 2008.

?Right now, we?re totally blessed, we?re totally covered and we?ve got great players with us,? Mustaine stated. ?Chris is amazing too. And I got to tell you that Shawn, if I would have met him in the beginning, he probably would?ve been my only drummer because we?re just cut from the same cloth. And I really wish things hadn?t changed with David and I for that, you know, eight-year timeout that he was in, but we?re closer now, I think, than we?ve ever been.?

Currently touring the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival, the gang seems pretty excited to be on the road. The tour, which started in California on July 9, will be making two stops in New Jersey. The first will be at PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel on Wednesday, July 27. Their next appearance will be at the Susquehanna Bank Center in Camden on Sunday, July 31. A few shows in already, I asked Dave for his thoughts so far during the festival.

?The Mayhem tour has been really good,? Mustaine said. ?We had a couple of small, little glitches that were happening from some people in the production areas and from some of the other projects that are involved out here. There was just some unfortunate, timely mishaps, you know, and we got it all fixed. The people who are actually running the tour here are amazing and have worked very hard to make us feel comfortable and I?m honored to be a part of this.?

As one of the headliners of the Rockstar tour, Megadeth will be playing a few songs from their new album, Th1rt3en, as well as hits from their long list of previous albums. Th1rt3en, which is slated for a November release, is something that Mustaine says is completely different than anything he?s ever done. A few tracks from their new album have been released already such as ?Sudden Death,? which was featured in the video game Guitar Hero: Warriors Of Rock, as well as ?Public Enemy No. 1,? which was in NeverDead, a third-person action/fantasy game. Produced by the famed Johnny K, the disc is the first one featuring Ellefson bass since his departure.

Also appearing on the Mayhem Fest will be headliners Disturbed and Godsmack. ?You know, I was never really a big fan of Godsmack or Disturbed [but] having been out on this tour, we got a chance to hear some of their songs, and it?s cool stuff, man,? Mustaine said. ?I?m probably a little more partial to the energy of Disturbed than Godsmack because it kind of reminds me a little bit of Alice In Chains. But Disturbed, to me, doesn?t sounds like anybody I?ve ever heard before.?

http://www.theaquarian.com/2011/07/27/interview-with-dave-mustaine-from-megadeth-blessed-and-forgiven/

[FunkyMonkey]

An interview with Dave Mustaine on WEDG -FM before the Edge Summer BBQ.  He talks about touring with the big 4 and more...

The interview starts @17.18:

He's been through everything in the musical universe; Megadeth's Dave Mustaine drops by to talk about his legacy, why he's still doing this and being humble about his influence.

http://www.wedg.com/goout.asp?u=/article.asp?id=2246535

[FunkyMonkey]

MEGADETH?S DAVID ELLEFSON DISCUSSES THE MAKING OF TH1RT3EN AND THE BIG 4?S LEGACY

Aug 4, 2011

Let?s start off by talking about Megadeth?s new album TH1RT3EN. As we all know, this is your first album with Megadeth after you returned last year. How did it feel to return to the studio with Megadeth after such a long time?

You know I think we did the whole process the right way by coming back on the 20th anniversary tour last year for Rust In Peace.  We all knew the songs, it gave us a chance to get acquainted, get to know each other. Obviously Chris [Broderick, guitar] and Shawn [Drover, drums] were new musicians for me to get integrated back in with. [With] Me and Dave [Mustaine, frontman/guitar], it was really just an instant connection that worked out really good. And so for us to get familiar again on the canvas together and then go in and make a record was definitely the right way to do it, rather than try and tackle a new creative endeavor after not playing together for a lot of years.  It would have been a much different dynamic. So going in and doing this new album was one of the most fun records I?ve made with Megadeth quite honestly. It was really pretty fun, quick process. We knew we didn?t have a lot of time. We only had ten weeks to do it in between two tours.
It had an energy about it, kinda like when we made the Peace Sells?But Who?s Buying? album. We were kind of in between tours, our record label needed an album, there was a lot of excitement around Megadeth at the time. The only difference is on Peace Sells?, we actually had all the songs written and we went and recorded. On this record, we came up the road and didn?t have any songs written and started completely from scratch and knocked out an album. And it really has an energy and a vibe about it that is just seamless with what we?re doing out here on the road.

You already began to mention this, but how you would further say the experience differed from recording with Dave Mustaine now as opposed to 25 years ago when you recorded Peace Sells??

Well a lot like Peace Sells?, Dave wrote most of the music on TH1Rt3EN and there?s a good influence from all of us around it. I think one of the reasons it worked so quick is because everybody was like ?Look, we just need to make a great record. Let?s not get caught up in your riff and my riff and your words. Let?s just throw it all into a pile and let?s just take the best stuff we got.? And that really created a great synergy between the four of us and our producer Johnny K [Disturbed, Machine Head].  So when it came for everybody to get up to bat to record their parts, every musician?s performance took the songs into a new creative direction and that really is a process as a band that needs to happen if it?s going to be a band and not just a solo project. And that?s something that really put the Megadeth stamp on it to make it a creative journey through these ten weeks that we had to make this album.

Between the anniversary tour for Rust in Peace, the reissue of Peace Sells, and the Big 4 tour, the past two years seem to have been dedicated to celebrating the band?s legacy. With the new album coming out, are you excited to be performing new material?

Man, I can?t wait to perform! In fact, in the dressing room we?ll run through some stuff because we have all the mixes. The album is now technically done and mixed, ready to be mastered and printed up and ready to be sent out to the stores. And so the hardest part for us as the band is that we?re so excited about these tunes that we sit in there and we jam and work up them.  We?re doing everything we can to not go out and play them every night.  I mean, it?s still three or two and a half months before it comes out. So we don?t want to start playing everything and give it all away.  But we can?t wait to be playing them. There?s a handful of them for sure that we?re going to be working into the new set that are just going to be great for the type of shows we?re doing now.

Continue here: http://www.metalinsider.net/interviews/megadeth%E2%80%99s-david-ellefson-discusses-the-making-of-th1rt3en-and-the-big-4%E2%80%99s-legacy

[Gunner80]

Never bought into the big 4 thing. Who in the hell here thinks Anthrax was ever any good? Slayer had one good album, only greats on that bill are Megadeth and Metallica.