Dave Mustaine has always thought very highly of Dave Mustaine. His self-confidence is quite well documented. In a new interview, though, he seemed to imply that the “Big Four” of thrash metal would not have been as good without his influence.
For posterity’s sake, the Big Four is the collective name given to Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax. They were seen as the four biggest thrash bands of the 80s. Now, I initially blew these new comments off as “Dave being Dave”—a verbatim quote—but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that there might be some truth here. Just, not exactly in the way I was infering.
So what, exactly, did Mustaine say? Well, during an interview with São Paulo, Brazil’s 89 FM A Rádio Rock, Mustaine and the interviewer got onto the topic of Megadeth’s role in the Big Four. “I’ve been very invested in the metal community,” Mustaine said.
Dave Mustaine implied that he made Kerry King and Scott Ian better guitar players
He recalled playing alongside Slayer guitarist Kerry King back in their two bands’ early days. “I showed him how to play Megadeth songs, which was before [Slayer] started having all their pivotal records,” he offered. “Kerry and I had a really great time together.”
Mustaine also commented on his time in Metallica. “I wrote music in Metallica, and I wrote music in Megadeth,” he stated. “So, I’ve been very influential with the guitar with these three bands.”
The Megadeth frontman then said that the “same thing happened” when he met Scott Ian and the Anthrax fellas from New York. “Their first record was very different from the record they made after they met me and the guys in Metallica,” Mustaine said. “So I think that’s great. I love all those bands.”
So now that we have Mustaine’s words as he said them, let’s explore them a little.
The first thing I want to say is, Dave might legitimately just be happy about what he perceives as his inspiration on the genre he helped to forge. Like, I initially took his comments as conceit, but I now think he’s being sincere. He believes that his skill and talent pushed his peers to elevate their playing and sound.
In 1985, Mustaine and Megadeth released their first album: Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good! It’s considered to be one of the greatest thrash debuts ever. One year later, Slayer released their third album, Reign in Blood (1986). It was, as Mustaine indicated, leaps and bounds better than their first two projects. It was the start of a phenomenal new direction for the band.
Next, we have Anthrax. Like Slayer, they had two really strong albums in the early-mid 80s. Then, in 1987, two years after Killing Is My Business… dropped, they put out their third record, Among the Living, which is a f***ing masterpiece.
I think we can agree that there’s not really more conversation to be had around Mustaine’s involvement with Metallica. They were all high-quality musicians who made great music together, but were very toxic around one another. However, Master of Puppets is easily Metallica’s most acclaimed album, and it was released when? In 1986.
So, evidently, Mustaine is right. His talent and the work he put into Megadeth very likely lit a fire underneath his peers and compelled them to make some of the best music of their careers. I’ll be damned.
The post Dave Mustaine Has Questionable Opinion About the ‘Big Four,’ and I Hate to Admit It, but He Might Be Right appeared first on VICE.
