Tag Archives: thrash metal

Features, Interviews

PiercingMetal Talks To Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine (12/7/2015)

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Logo - Megadeth

Megadeth are one of the forefathers of the Thrash Metal movement and on the eve of their announcing their latest touring adventures in support of the forthcoming “Dystopia” album, I had the pleasure of speaking to the bands founder, the great Dave Mustaine. Together we discussed the state of Heavy Metal in this day and age, the selection of new Megadeth members and what fans should expect from the new album and tour. As we didn’t have a whole lot of time to chat, I kept the line of inquiry very quick and to the general point. Here’s our entire discussion.

PiercingMetal: Let me start by saying congratulations on Megadeth surpassing the thirty-year mark. How does it feel to be in command of such a band for that long a time?

Dave Mustaine: I think that anything that you do successfully for a long period of time you have to look at it and ask yourself why is this successful and I think part of that is because we’ve always had one common goal with this band and that was to be true to ourselves and I think that this translates to the fan base. If you believe in what you do, then that starts to lay the foundation for the relationship with your fans that has integrity.

PiercingMetal: Would you think that Metal is in a better place or a worse place today?

Dave Mustaine: It depends because there are so many different genres of Heavy Metal. If you’re saying do I think that Thrash or Speed Metal or Heavy Metal in general is in a better place then it depends because there is a lot of new types of Metal out there. You have Grindcore and all kinds of Black Metal, White Metal, Death Metal just so many other different types but its opened up a lot of doors for different people that are more genre specific that play one very limited type of music and do it really well. I’ve always liked to be able to push the boundaries of what I could do and Megadeth has a lot of influences that are unique to what most Metal bands would do. We have Jazz and Classical influences which I think really helps give us that advantage over a lot of bands that don’t have those influences.
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Features, Milestones

Exodus’ “Bonded By Blood” Now Thirty Years Old (1985-2015)

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Believe it or not today marks the day that the very first album by Bay Area Thrashers Exodus had arrived on the shelves of record stores everywhere; I am speaking of the molten moshpit inciter of “Bonded By Blood” which celebrates its 30th Anniversary today. Now before I go any further I have to admit that I was not a fan of this kind of Metal back in that time period as it was still just a little “too much” for me despite my enjoying some Slayer, Metallica and lots of what was going to be referred to as Power Metal eventually. Don’t worry though my friends as I would eventually grow to better appreciate works such as this one even if it was as a latecomer.
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Features, Milestones

Slayer’s “Show No Mercy”; Still Merciless @ 30 Years (1983-2013)

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It was thirty years ago today that the Metal darkness known as Slayer released their debut album “Show No Mercy” on Metal Blade Records and while the Thrash Metal movement was still growing thanks to bands like Metallica and Raven, it was going to get a serious and more intense boot to the posterior based on this album. Slayer had been together since 1981 when Kerry King formed the group with drummer Dave Lombardo then added Jeff Hanneman and Tom Araya to the final roster and their earliest imagery paid heavy focus to Satanic iconography and the same principles applied to their music. Songs that would eventually make up the “Show No Mercy” debut. The guys in the band had to self-finance the release even though they had been signed but let’s face it, Metal Blade Records had only been around for a year at this time and Metal while popular in some circles was really quite the underground thing (especially with the kinds of bands that they were featuring back then). Now I will admit that back in 1983 I was not listening to Metal that was this intense and it would take me a few years to get into Slayer but clearly the band was onto something because their material and live presence was sheer brutality. I was often told by friends who had seen them during their formative years that you never forgot a Slayer show and that you would rarely leave unscathed after attending one. They had bruises to prove it but that never stopped them from going to another nearby show if it was possible to do so. Reception wise, according to the album’s Wiki entry “Show No Mercy” would become one of Metal Blade Records highest selling albums and that is something that Kerry King, Tom Araya and Dave Lombardo should be very proud of as musicians. Sadly the Metal world lost founding member Jeff Hanneman earlier in the year so I toast him for this accomplishment posthumously. It is however safe to say that his memory and influence still resonate loud across the genre. Today’s Metal scene also finds original drummer Dave Lombardo out of the lineup and replaced by the talented Paul Bostaph.
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