Megadeth is gearing up to release a new album, “The Sick, The Dying And The Dead,” and frontman Dave Mustaine recently did a wide-ranging interview with Loudwire. The band’s new record has been in the works for some time, and Mustaine previously said the album was assembled from riffs and music he has had archived since he was a teenager. “A lot of the riffs have been saved over time,” he said. “A brand new song can be made up of something I wrote when I was 15 or 55. If It’s a good riff, I’ll save it.”
Mustaine revealed to Loudwire that the album is likely to be released on July 8. “I’m sure it could possibly be scooted forward a little bit, but I think that would actually be worse than if it stayed where it was at,” Mustaine said. “We need every little bit of time to let people get everything all set up with all this C*VID sh*t. It’s been really difficult to ship anything, let alone records.”
Mustaine talked about the early years of Megadeth in the lead up to the band’s debut, “Killing Is My Business … and Business Is Good!” “The very first record we did, I had my whole life to write ‘Killing Is My Business,’” Mustaine said. “On my second record, I didn’t have that luxury of time anymore. It was whatever you’ve got and whatever we can learn, and how much time there is between now and when it’s time to record the next record. That’s the scariest thing for me — the time you have to make that record.”
Mustaine also discussed beating cancer and how it has invigorated his live performances. “I feel, right now, healthier than I’ve felt since I was diagnosed,” he said. “I think my singing has improved, and I think that’s gonna get way better too because I want it now. Before, I felt like I deserved it. Now, whether I deserve it or not, I f*cking want it. I want to play, I want to go out and shred on my guitar and people go, ‘I can’t believe that he’s alive and doing that.’” As for his favorite Megadeth record? “Taking this record (The Sick, the Dying… and the Dead!) off of the list, I’d have to say my favorite Megadeth record up to this one is probably ‘Rust in Peace’ or ‘Dystopia.’”
Mustaine revealed a sneak peek of the band’s new song, “Life In Hell,” in a recent Cameo video. He also talked previously about the album’s title track saying, “The Sick, The Dying And The Dead” is about the plague. “The song itself was a historical journey of how the plague started and where it went, starting with rats on ships carrying the disease, coming ashore in Sicily,” Mustaine said.
