Megadeth is a thrash metal band from the USA founded in 1983 by guitarist and vocalist Dave Mustaine, and along with Anthrax, Metallica and Slayer, shaped the thrash metal genre as we know it today. The band’s first three albums – ‘Killing Is My Business… And Business Is Good!’ (1985), ‘Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying?’ (1986), and ‘So Far, So Good… So What!’ (1988) – are recognised as some of the greatest thrash metal albums of all time, with 1990’s ‘Rust In Peace’ seen as Megadeth‘s finest hour. The band’s trademark sound has always been one of mostly mid-tempo pace, full of aggression and menace. The band have a very impressive back catalogue – sixteen studio albums, seven compilation albums, and five live albums, with numerous singles and music videos.
And with nearly forty years under their (bullet) belts, Megadeth return for their sixteenth studio album ‘The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!’ – and the return of the ellipsis, not seen since 1988, yet featuring prominently on each of the band’s first three albums! Released in 2022, ‘The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!’ is three minutes shy of an hour, and contains twelve songs, with the opening song (and title song) ‘The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!’ a thundering mid-tempo swagger. The kind of swagger that is synonymous with Megadeth – a mid-tempo heavy thrash metal stomp with menacing vocals from Mustaine, yet all sewn together with a melodious intent. And as ‘The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!’ (the song) progresses, not only are you head banging ’cause it’s highly head bang-able, but also in appreciation of a great opening salvo. Increasing the pace, ‘Life In Hell’ is a blistering thrash metal rampage, with the unique blend of brutality and menace that Megadeth have made their staple throughout their career.
A barnstorming opening double, becomes a treble, as ‘Night Stalker’ steams in and maintains an electrifying pace. ‘Night Stalker’ also features additional vocals by American rapper, songwriter, actor, producer and Body Count singer Ice-T. And after three fairly speedy and all-out thrash metal romps, the album assumes the more mid-tempo stomp you’d associate with Megadeth. For ‘Dogs Of Chernobyl’ is as menacing as it is brutal – recounting the 1986 disaster at The Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Megadeth does extremely well in creating an atmosphere of horror, with some listeners likely to feel sick at the raw and unadulterated lyrics by Mustaine. A heavier stomp heralds the arrival of ‘Sacrifice’ – a high-energy march of heaviness that’ll keep heads banging. Heads that have been rocking back and forth since the album began, and knowing Megadeth, the band are likely to keep heads banging ’til the album end!
Picking up the tempo and pace, ‘Junkie’ jackhammers forth, keeping one foot in the thrash metal genre while exploring the traditional metal and err, ahem hard rock genres! Megadeth has never been afraid to push the boundaries of thrash metal – not so much as to break them – but enough to covertly incorporate other styles of metal into their arsenal. And that’s what makes Megadeth‘s brand of thrash so diverse and intriguing. ‘Psychopathy’ is a one-and-a-half minute heavy hitting intro, leading into the majestic thrash metal march of ‘Killing Time’, and for the first time “old school” sounding Megadeth. Everything that has gone before has been new and fresh Megadeth, but with ‘Killing Time’ I get the fuzzy warm feeling of a sound that is so comfortable and soothing. Yea, that’s right – soothing! With any genre of metal, or indeed rock, there is just something about it that soothes the soul and allows total relaxation. Cracking the whip and upping the tempo, ‘Soldier On’ hustles and bustles into sight, shaking the ground as it thunders across the land. The melodious intent is at its highest here, with ‘Soldier On’ catering for traditional metal fans too.
Spreading their musical wings, Megadeth fly high with ‘Celebutante’ – and a clear traditional heavy metal feel. Think a high-speed Iron Maiden with feet firmly planted on the monitors and a thrash metal rumble booming from the speakers.
And Dave Mustaine at the mic! Regardless of what others may think, I like ‘Celebutante’. After all I am a traditional metaller at heart with ‘Maiden my all-time favourite band – so anything by anyone that sounds like them…
I’m in. And talking of sounding like someone else – ‘Mission To Mars’ has the feel of shock rocker Alice Cooper. Even down to the vocal performance! Mustaine tends to spit venom with every line he sings, but he really sounds a lot like Alice here. As for the music, typical Megadeth – high tempo, highly energetic, and full of thunder, fire and brimstone. Bringing the album to a close is the prophetically titled ‘We’ll Be Back’. And the re-emergence of the blistering pace was heard at the beginning of the album. This one is Megadeth at their fiercest best, combining breakneck speed with brutality and menace. A scorching end to a red hot album – and I’m sure this isn’t the last we’ll hear from Megadeth.
Overall, a thundering mix of high and mid-tempo thrash metal romps, with the occasional injection of pace and speed.
TRACKLIST
The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!
Life In Hell
Night Stalkers
Dogs Of Chernobyl
Sacrifice
Junkie
Psychopathy
Killing Time
Soldier On
Celebutante
Mission To Mars
We’ll Be Back
Megadeth: Facebook
Release Year: 2022
Label: T-Boy Records
Category: Album
Country: USA
Reviewed by Iron Mathew for Frenzy Fire, and Metal-Roos.
