NME Afterprint: Megadeth at Isleta Amphitheater
There are serene August nights when the sun drops below the horizon earlier each day. The dusk hints at colder, cozy times to come. Tonight was not one of those nights. Storm clouds on the horizon and flashes of lightning kept their distance from the Isleta Amphitheater as if in respect for the Heavy Metal storm set to tear the serenity asunder at the bidding of the Metal survivor, Dave Mustaine, and his band, Megadeth.
It has been 30 years since I last saw Megadeth on the "Youthanasia" tour, and now I find myself entrenched in the "Photographer's Pit" at the front of the stage, waiting and wondering if they still had that metal magic that placed them in the pantheon of 80s Thrash. It was a packed venue with a multigenerational audience coming together with fists raised and teeth gnashing.
At 9:10 p.m., the first cries of "Bring out your dead" boomed through the night, followed by the obligatory smoke and the first strains of "The Sick, The Dying….and the Dead" from the 2022 album of the same name. Suddenly, like a Phoenix rising from the ashes, Mustaine struts onto the stage, punishing his signature Flying V guitar with all the pent-up anger that has propelled Megadeth to the heights it has achieved. The roar of thousands of frenzied Thrash Metal connoisseurs erupts as Mustaine takes the microphone and roars out the opening lines.
"Invaders came on phantom ships. Sailed the Black Sea west to Sicily, yeah, yeah. The sick, the dying, and the dead All that was left from this cursed disease, yeah, yeah."
Dave Mustaine has not lost a step, and his current lineup featuring James LoMenzo on bass and backing vocals, Dirk Verbeuren (Drums), and Teemu Mäntysaari (guitars and backing vocals) did not fail to deliver an explosive set featuring their defining songs from all eras. The highlights of the 17-song set were "Angry Again," "Sweating Bullets," "Skin O' My Teeth," and Countdown to Extinction - delivered with an intensity unmatched on recorded medium to an ecstatic crowd that remained on their feet from the first note to the fading refrain of the encore. It took me back to the "Youthanasia" tour I saw years ago and concluded that Megadeth has grown better with age. Mustaine's angry, lyrical stylings are purposeful and do not exploit anger for anger's sake. But call out society for its shortcomings. They have purpose and resonate through the generations of fans he speaks to.
Yes, Dave Mustaine is a survivor. From his ouster from that other Thrash metal band at the beginning of his career, conquering his addictions, multiple lineup changes, and a battle for his life when he was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2019 (which he beat). Dave Mustaine with Megadeth has created sales of over 50 million albums worldwide with sheer willpower and anger, which he owns alone, unafraid to share through his recorded music. Megadeth is a band that is better to experience live. The immortal words of Thomas Moore optimize Dave Mustaine's Megadeth and his penchant to rise repeatedly to deliver their unapologetic form of thrash metal.
"I am hurt, but I am not slain. I'll lay me down and bleed awhile, Then I'll rise and fight again."
Even though I was not there, upon reading this I feel as though I was there.
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