Consuming the Tangible

I wonder if Dave Mustaine lay awake these past few nights, after the release of Megadeth, the band’s 17th and (supposedly) final album from Big 4 thrash legends Megadeth. I wonder if he lies there, fingers slowly unclenching from the cramps of his nightly 1,001 spider walk riff exercises and debates the merits of calling his shot. Was it the cocksure smart ass direct bravado of a man who knows he’s going out on his own terms? Or was it a shrewd marketing move, done to drum up more interest in an album trafficking in a genre few care about anymore? I wonder if he can hear me, and a thousand more balding dads, playing the new album on our stereos – turned down low, of course – and silently rocking out? I wonder if his aura reaches out, and touches ours, and a tear rolls down his gruff cheek like a chemtrail across the sky?

I mean, I doubt it. But I wonder.

The TL;DR version? It’s solid, and I think it’s exactly the kind of album Mustaine wanted to make as a send-off. Whether this is the kind of album fans wanted as the band’s goodbye is another matter. I suspect fans would’ve wanted another Peace Sells… or Rust in Peace. What they got hews closer to the band’s recent output, with a big emphasis on the Countdown to Extinction and Youthanasia eras of the band.

If that’s your wheelhouse, and you’ve adjusted your expectations accordingly, there’s fun to be had with Megadeth. “Tipping Point” is a strong opener, slotting right in with the band’s history of strong, aggressive openers. New addition Teemu Mäntysaari from Wintersun is a great fit for the band, maybe better than Kiko Loureiro; his solos blend great with Mustaine’s unique attack, and his songwriting on tracks like the aforementioned opener and “Let There Be Shred” and “Made to Kill” bring a lot of the fast, ripping attack fans clamor for.

But there’s a fair amount of the more streamlined, rock structure the band pushed beginning in the mid-’90s. “Hey God?!” feels ripped straight out of the Countdown recordings, and “I Don’t Care” continues Mustaine’s penchant for more punk-inspired riffing. Overall, I think it’s a more restrained album, missing some of the lightning fast attacks of The Sick, the Dying and the Dead‘s (reviewed in full here) more ferocious assaults like “Night Stalkers” or “Soldier On!” and it lags a bit in its second half – tracks like “Another Bad Day” and “I Am War” slide by without leaving much of an impression.

And yes: there is the bonus track of “Ride The Lightning” which hews really closely to the Metallica version. Your mileage may vary, but I dig it for what it is. The solos are what really got to me; I didn’t realize how closely (I’m assuming this was the sequence) Kirk hewed to Mustaine’s demos or whatever was recorded prior to his departure. Folks have mocked Dave’s voice over James’s, but considering the dude had cancer this is one thing I’ll put over The Sick, the Dying and the Dead. The man sounds better here than he did on the previous record.

Is this the end? Who knows, but whatever anyone else’s feelings, I’m guessing Dave Mustaine made exactly the album he wanted to make. I’ve gotten so much from these albums over 40+ years, if this is indeed the end I will tip my hat in gratitude and dive in for another listen.