WHEN YOU KILL A MAN YOU ARE A MURDERER,
KILL MANY AND YOU ARE A CONQUEROR
KILL 'EM ALL AND YOU ARE....GEORGE W. BUSH.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
RANDOM REVIEW:MEGADETH 'ENDGAME '
Now let's be realistic.
This is a band that's about two decades old,been through a dozen line up changes,faced a creative
dead end(RISK) and was even dissolved for a short while,any band that puts a record after that is clearly being....how shall i put it?...... optimistic? but then again when your name is 'Dave mustaine' and you 'are' the band the strangest of things can happen.
"Endgame" is a throwback at the old days when it was thrash and not the cash that mattered,but its not even close to their best work as some reviewers may have you believe,its just that no one expected Mustaine to have any fight left in him.And no i wont waste your time by talking about Heitfield and co. because talking about Death magnetic in an 'endgame' review would be giving the former too much credit,besides i think the 'dumped from Metallica' card is overplayed by the media,sometimes even by Mustaine himself. Now the songs
The album kicks off with a 2 and a half minute instrumental named Dialectic chaos which is utter chaos in total control,both Mustaine and new guy Chris broderick exchange solos like they were born to play with each other,its guitar duelling at its best,hard to believe that it doesn't even cross the 3 minute mark as it seems to go on forever,the only problem i have with the song is that the opening riff sounds too much like the start of Wolfmother's 'Joker and the thief'(maybe its just me!) Next comes This day we fight! a sonic assault of Rust in peace proportions! there's so much happening on this track that you almost can't keep up.The snarling vocals complement the theme perfectly but the melody or lack of it shows when your just spitting out the malevolent lyrics and that keeps it from being a true classic.44 minutes,a song about a doomed bank heist comes next,the song could have been so much more had it not been for the trite lyrics and awful vocals.Just when you think you know where the album is headed comes 1320,a song about drag racing and it works on every level,you end up crossing the finish line triumphant and wiping the sweat of your brow.What follows is 'Bite the hand' a tame but altogether satisfying track.Next on is 'Bodies left behind' a song that has a chorus ripped off from 'Disconnect' of the 'The world needs a hero' album,Mustaine tries to make up for this by delivering a frustratingly short but sublime outro.The title track comes on next and i think this song really reflects the general attitude of the album in that they don't try to make it easily accessible,on the contrary they make it complex and musically layered demanding your respect and definitely another listen.In fact its ominous opening and chugga chugga rhythm structure reminded me of something straight out of the pre C.T.E. era.The twisted ballad called The hardest part of letting go...sealed with a kiss is nothing major but definitely no filler.I think it was put in to enhance the 'head crushing' effect of the next track which was the lead single of the album,though it sounds like a second rate 'sleepwalker' i can envision metal heads banging their heads to the chorus.'How the story ends' is another strong effort with an infectious chorus and Lord of the rings inspired lyrics.The story actually ends with 'The right to go insane' which sounds forced and uninspired at best.
In conclusion,when one stands atop mountains like RIP and Peace sells,Endgame might seem insignificant and passable but this album proves that Megadeth is still a relevant band unlike Metallica.Its not just a few great songs that make a great band,its longevity too and in that respect Megadeth has won it fair and square.
Now let's be realistic.
This is a band that's about two decades old,been through a dozen line up changes,faced a creative
dead end(RISK) and was even dissolved for a short while,any band that puts a record after that is clearly being....how shall i put it?...... optimistic? but then again when your name is 'Dave mustaine' and you 'are' the band the strangest of things can happen."Endgame" is a throwback at the old days when it was thrash and not the cash that mattered,but its not even close to their best work as some reviewers may have you believe,its just that no one expected Mustaine to have any fight left in him.And no i wont waste your time by talking about Heitfield and co. because talking about Death magnetic in an 'endgame' review would be giving the former too much credit,besides i think the 'dumped from Metallica' card is overplayed by the media,sometimes even by Mustaine himself. Now the songs
The album kicks off with a 2 and a half minute instrumental named Dialectic chaos which is utter chaos in total control,both Mustaine and new guy Chris broderick exchange solos like they were born to play with each other,its guitar duelling at its best,hard to believe that it doesn't even cross the 3 minute mark as it seems to go on forever,the only problem i have with the song is that the opening riff sounds too much like the start of Wolfmother's 'Joker and the thief'(maybe its just me!) Next comes This day we fight! a sonic assault of Rust in peace proportions! there's so much happening on this track that you almost can't keep up.The snarling vocals complement the theme perfectly but the melody or lack of it shows when your just spitting out the malevolent lyrics and that keeps it from being a true classic.44 minutes,a song about a doomed bank heist comes next,the song could have been so much more had it not been for the trite lyrics and awful vocals.Just when you think you know where the album is headed comes 1320,a song about drag racing and it works on every level,you end up crossing the finish line triumphant and wiping the sweat of your brow.What follows is 'Bite the hand' a tame but altogether satisfying track.Next on is 'Bodies left behind' a song that has a chorus ripped off from 'Disconnect' of the 'The world needs a hero' album,Mustaine tries to make up for this by delivering a frustratingly short but sublime outro.The title track comes on next and i think this song really reflects the general attitude of the album in that they don't try to make it easily accessible,on the contrary they make it complex and musically layered demanding your respect and definitely another listen.In fact its ominous opening and chugga chugga rhythm structure reminded me of something straight out of the pre C.T.E. era.The twisted ballad called The hardest part of letting go...sealed with a kiss is nothing major but definitely no filler.I think it was put in to enhance the 'head crushing' effect of the next track which was the lead single of the album,though it sounds like a second rate 'sleepwalker' i can envision metal heads banging their heads to the chorus.'How the story ends' is another strong effort with an infectious chorus and Lord of the rings inspired lyrics.The story actually ends with 'The right to go insane' which sounds forced and uninspired at best.
In conclusion,when one stands atop mountains like RIP and Peace sells,Endgame might seem insignificant and passable but this album proves that Megadeth is still a relevant band unlike Metallica.Its not just a few great songs that make a great band,its longevity too and in that respect Megadeth has won it fair and square.
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