Today on my first day back to school a friend of mine gave me a copy of the new Megadeth album, Endgame. Now, I've never been a huge Megadeth fan. I've appreciated what they've done for thrash, and there are a lot of their songs that are among my favorite of all time (Holy Wars anyone?). There were a number of outside factors that deterred me from them outside of their hits. There's Mustaine's grudge against my favorite band, Metallica, and the political themes present in their music. Regardless, outside factors aside, Endgame is a great album.
It's hard to believe Dave Mustaine is 47 years old. The guy can still sing pretty well and play guitar like no other. While his voice alone has been enough to drive away some fans, I've never really minded it. The album's opener, "Dialectic Chaos", is not only a great instrumental track, but also a great opener that's sure to get stuck in your head from the minute you hear it. After "Chaos" concludes, we're led right into "The Day We Fight!", which is admittedly one of the album's weaker tracks. The drum and guitar playing on it is top notch, but the lyrics came off as a bit cliched, with the recurring themes of the brutality and horrors of war present throughout the track.
"44 Minutes" is a much better track, among my favorites from the album. The song oddly enough reminded me a lot of "Symphony of Destruction", especially in its chorus. The classic Megadeth feel is here and as someone who hasn't listened to them beyond "Countdown to Extinction", it's surprising to me how they've managed to rediscover (or maintain) that sound for so long. "1,320" is another strong track that has one of the more memorable solos on the album.
"Bite the Hand" features the chugging riffs and snarling vocals that the genre has become famous for, though wile listening to the album as a whole it stood out with "The Day We Fight!" as one of the albums noticably weaker tracks. It's a servicable thrash song, and isn't "bad" by any stretch, but it fails to separate itself from other songs in the genre, and when put around the likes of other tracks on the album the difference in quality is noticable.
The album ends quite strongly, with the last six songs flowing together quite nicely, particularly the tracks "Bodies", "Endgame", and "How the Story Ends". "Headcrusher" is sure to become a staple at their live shows, and "Nothing Left to Lose" puts a bow on a short but sweet thrash album that shows the genre is still alive.....and well?
Overall rating: 4.5/5
P.S.: Please refrain from posting comments such as "Psssssshh....Megadeth. Listen to my favorite brutal underground black metal band that no one gives a fuck about instead." and other comments of that sort. It only makes you look stupid and no one gives a shit about what bands you may or may not like. This is a thread about the new Megadeth album, and whether people like it or not.
Megadeth's "Endgame" Review
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