DAVE MUSTAINE
interviewsofrecordingartists.com
Megadeth founder and leader Dave Mustaine, has learned to take his personal anger and hostility and channel
those feelings into his music and the lyrics to his songs. That has always been the art of Dave Mustaine and Megadeth's music.
Since the early days of his career, as the original guitarist with Metallica, and later, when he founded his group Megadeth, now 18 years ago, few recording artists in the heavy metal genre, sang as powerfully and wrote songs with such creativity as Dave Mustaine has.
Yet, the latest Megadeth album titled," The World Needs a Hero", shows a different side of a Dave and his personality. No longer the, "angry young man",
Dave is now more of the responsible adult, singing songs about environmental and social and political problems with a newfound sense of confidence and maturity.
And, in this exclusive interview, Dave Mustaine talks about how he has discovered the way to constantly make his music grow without changing its fundamental "heavy metal" character. And how Dave himself has changed and grown into a recording artist who is comfortable with his personal life.
.(Q)- Is Dave Mustaine one of the most understood musicians and recording artists in metal today?
Dave Mustaine- I don't know for sure about that.
(Q)- Is Megadeth a metaphor for Dave Mustaine?
Dave Mustaine - Megadeth as a metaphor for Dave Mustaine?
(Q)- Yes. That is the question.
Dave Mustaine- While I appreciate that and I'm flattered with that comment, although I'd love to take all of the credit, I believe there's a little bit more then just me. I have other guys who are great musicians in the band. If there wasn't three other guys in the band, I'd say yes. But these are my brothers in the band.
(Q)- Megadeth has always been a technologically oriented band. In your opinion, is that why you've remained so popular in Japan? The Japanese people are very comfortable with advanced technology.
Dave Mustaine- Basically there's two reasons. One, because we're accomplished musicians. And they appreciate that in Japan. And, I can honestly tell you that we may not be the best at what we do, I can tell you there are hundreds and thousands of musicians who are better then I am. But, because we live the rock and roll lifestyle, they look at us as being western and 'bad ass'. We represent, in Japan, coming from America a,' don't mess with me' attitude.
(Q)- You've said that you are viewed in Japan as the (actor) Clint Eastwood of heavy metal music by many of your fans. Why?
Dave Mustaine- A lot of people there (In Japan) look at me as the Clint Eastwood of heavy metal and I like that because Clint's my hero. But, I would never be so bold as to say I am him (Clint Eastwood) personified in the heavy metal rock band Megadeth. A lot of people look at me and see that I have a, 'don't mess with me', attitude. And Clint Eastwood portrays that attitude in many of his movies. So, I'm kind of like the Clint Eastwood of the heavy metal world to many
people in Japan. The Japanese look at me and say, "Dave is so cool.' And I don't get it. But then I go
to Japan and see them and they're like, 'Oh my, it's Dave!' They're excited to see me. You know?
(Q)- Does the excitement of the fans in ever scare you?
Dave Mustaine- No.
(Q)- What do you not like about the fan worship element of being who you are in a popular rock and roll band?
Dave Mustaine- When girls get near me and they want to pull out my hair. Some girl pulled some of my hair out recently in Indonesia. And I wanted to kill her. I grabbed her hand and said, (Dave shouts) 'don't pull my hair!' And she said, "I just wanted a piece of your hair!' And I was thinking, 'she was going to make some kind of voodoo doll and later I'd be developing some kind of a migraine headache or something. (he laughs) She'd try control me by making a voodoo doll and suddenly I'd loose control of my arm and I'd start hitting myself in the head. (he laughs)
(Q)- Why in your opinion, have the Japanese fans always remained excited about Megadeth and why have they supported the band continuously for many years now?
Dave Mustaine- When I first went to Japan with Megadeth they called me "The Red Devil".
(Q)- The media in Japan did?
Dave Mustaine- Yes
(Q)- Why?
Dave Mustaine- I guess it was because I'm six foot tall and when I first went toured there, I was drunk and I was pretty much having my way there. I mean, when I first toured Japan, I had four, even five big men who were my security guards. I was drunk and mean. When I went to Japan the first few times, people would come up to me and my security guards who were around me, would just pound (attack) them.
(Q)- That was the old days.
Dave Mustaine- Yes. Things have changed for me in Japan. Things have changed for the better.
(Q)- Dave Mustaine has changed quite a bit over the years as an individual. You're clean and sober now, no drugs or alcohol. And thus you're a different person. You're a family man and you're married with children and responsible for your family.
Dave Mustaine- I've worked very hard to reach this point in my career and in life. Some people will say it is a blessing that I don't do drugs and drink heavily anymore, while other people will say it's been a curse. I know a lot of my fans wish I was still on drugs and drinking and not married and that I didn't have kids.
(Q) Why? You are saying a lot of fans actually wish you were on drugs and drinking and not married,
living life towards a fate like the great actress and singer Judy Garland?
Dave Mustaine- (He laughs.) Whatever. Yeah they do because they think I made better music whenever I was getting stoned. Now the thing is, whenever I started getting sober, the time was when we had "Countdown To Extinction" and after that album success we followed up with the "Euthanasia" and in the middle of that promotional campaign we had a devastating blow to Megadeth. Because the manager of the band just quit and he pulled the plug and decided that he was going to go off and do something else. That kind of pulled the rug out from under us. This started in 1995. I spent the next five years of my life trying to undo what was going wrong and now, I don't care about, 'what was going wrong.' It's like, You know what? I'm starting over. And we're going to play like we've never played before, we've got a new record out and we're born again.
(Q)- You're, 'born again hard'.
Dave Mustaine- Yes.
(Q)- Is the most important issue for you personally simply is Dave Mustaine is happier now then he has been in years? No more drugs or alcohol ruining your health. No one at the record company is telling you what to do whenever it comes to your new music. The fans are involved more then they've ever been in Megadeth. You are financially secure, hopefully at least. Does that not make life better and hopefully happier for you, regardless of your walk in life?
Dave Mustaine - (Long silence.) I am happy, regardless of my walk. I don't really care what people think about me. I was concerned about that for a while in my life, but over the past few years there's been a pretty serious change in Megadeth. A lot of people who were in our organization are gone. Most of the people from the old days of Megadeth are gone. Most importantly, I still have the desire to be metal.
(Q)- Can a fan get to know what Dave Mustaine is about as an individual by listening to the lyrics of your albums?
Dave Mustaine - Yes. I'd like to think that.
(Q)- On your recent concerts in Japan among several of the countries you performed in, how did the new songs work into your play list?
Dave Mustaine- Absolutely awesome. You see, if you go away and come back then you've gone away and came back. In some places, we've never left. I've never gone on a hiatus for my entire career. So in certain regions of the world, like Japan, we've always been there for the fans and they've kept in touch with what we've been doing on each album.
(Q)- Why?
Dave Mustaine- There is a lot of really good guitar player and technology oriented guys who are very popular in the Pacific Rim countries. More so in Japan. Japan likes players like Paul Gilbert of Mr. Big and really accomplished player, player, kind of bands.
(Q)- So for eighteen years it's been a cycle of record an album, promote the album and then tour the world?
Dave Mustaine- Yes.
(Q)- Where else are you extremely popular outside of the U.S.A.?
Dave Mustaine- Germany. When we toured with AC/DC in Germany, we played as the support act to 30,000 to 80,000 seat stadiums. We figured out that we played in front of over a quarter of a million people in Europe this summer. As far as our recent tour of Germany goes, the concerts were simply amazing. So we played these shows in Germany and we played to such huge, amazing audiences that the shows were simply fantastic. But anyway, when we were in Germany and I finally met with the guys in AC/DC, I asked them, 'What's the secret to you guys selling out all of these big venues?' Because, while I am a huge AC/DC fan, they haven't had a major hit album since "Back In Black", which was some time ago. (Twenty years.) So when I met them in Germany when we were playing all of these huge shows I asked the guys, 'How can you not have a major hit album for all of these years and still sell out all of these huge venues?' And they told me simply this,' We give the people what they want and we haven't forgotten what made us who they are.' They know the songs that made them who they are, are the songs the fans want to hear whenever they come out to see AC/DC live in concert. So I learned from the guys in AC/DC that I need to,' Give the people what they want.'
(Q)- So are you doing that with Megadeth and the band's live shows for the rest of 2001 into early 2002?
Dave Mustaine- Yes we're letting the fans pick our songs for the concert touring in North America.
(Q)- How will this North American tour be different?
Dave Mustaine- This North American tour we're giving the people what they want and he fans can pick the songs by voting on the Internet that we'll be playing live (in concert) each night. We're telling the fans, you pick the songs.', for the North American tour. We've added the songs that made us who we are, we're giving the people what they want. It's like we're telling the fans, '"You pick the songs! OK?' I'm tired of playing for a (North American) audience and having people yelling out for us to play all of our old songs night after night. This time around, the fans will pick the songs.
(Q)- Is there one rock festival you'd really like to play with Megadeth and you have yet to perform at?
Dave Mustaine - I'd really like to play the Sturgis
Bike Week. (Sturgis is in the state of South Dakota. U.S.A. . It is a once a year, week long motorcycle/rock music festival). They pay you in Harley Davidson motorcycles. (he laughs)
(Q)- Back to the music.
Dave Mustaine - Alright.
(Q)- Lyrically, is Megadeth a metaphor for Dave Mustaine? After all, you write all of the song lyrics.
Yes?
Dave Mustaine- Absolutely.
(Q)- So much of what you write about for your song lyrics have to be about what you are experiencing in your own personal life?
Dave Mustaine- I do know that for certain. I do know, it has a lot to do with what's going on in-between my ears.
(Q)- There is not the voice of an angry young man in the song lyrics for your latest album, as in the early days of Megadeth and your songwriting. In the early days, there was a lot of angry attitude in regards to you being mad at the world.
Dave Mustaine- I still do watch a lot of CNN. I'm still a guy who writes about politics. I'm not as angry anymore though.
(Q)- But you're more concerned about the issues which effect your children and our future as global citizens and the future of the world then at any other time in your career and that shows within the lyrics of your new album.
Dave Mustaine- I think there are more things now involved in this world that are beyond our control. While we've still got a lot to do in this world,
I'm not an angry young man anymore. Let's put it that way.
(Q)- Your music has changed over the years and for a while, Megadeth's music seemed at times an attempt to be more alternative rock then metal. Yet, over the past five years, Megadeth has become more about heavy metal music then at any other time since the first Megadeth album in the 1980's.
Dave Mustaine- We're still metal and I'm glad. For a while there with our old record company (In U.S.A., Capitol Records.) they wanted to turn us into an alternative band and even a pop band. And they'd be telling us that and I'd be thinking,' What? They're telling us we're going to turn Megadeth into alternative/ pop band? No way will that work!' They even tried to have us record a disco song.
I didn't want to do that, because if it didn't work, I'd have to sell my house and go into hiding. Now we're on a new record company, (In the U.S.A., Sanctuary Records.) we're respected and we are left alone to do what we want with our music. No disco, no alternative rock and that's a great feeling.
(Q)- Are you a perfectionist whenever it comes to working in the recording studio?
Dave Mustaine- Yes.
(Q) Then, if that is the case, has that made some recording projects difficult for you? In addition, has that trait made you hard to work with at times?
Dave Mustaine- Yes. As well as being a perfectionist, I do know however, whenever I'm out of my league. So, I can recognize what I want to hear on the completed song, but I also know that, I don't know how to get it right, at times. So I have to go down to a basic level to get the right sound for a song.
(Q)- So you admit you are a perfectionist, but you also know whenever you're out of your league and cannot achieve yourself, whatever it is you're trying to do sonically, with the music of a song.
Dave Mustaine- Yes. I know when I'm outmatched.
(Q)- Why is that so important?
Dave Mustaine- Because in the early days (In the
mid 1980's.) whenever I was recording in Megadeth, there was no automation in the recording studio. So a lot of the music, when you were mixing a song, you had to have two or even three and four people involved in mixing the tracks of the music down into the song while you were working in the recording studio.
(Q)- Why was that a difficult situation for you to be involved in?
Dave Mustaine - There'd be too many people who had to be involved. If one guy would do one thing wrong, then it would make it a situation where you'd be doing the same thing over and over again. And, that is such a drag as a situation to be in whenever you're working in the recording studio on new music. I mean, you know your part, but there is two other people and the producer and the sound engineer at times might blow it. Then, since you've played your (guitar) part correctly, you have to ask yourself, 'Is this guy honest enough with himself and us to admit that he didn't do it right?' Then you go back and if they admit it, do it over again. But then, whenever you listen to the music ten years later, you start thinking, 'How did I ever let that get by?' So it did make for some difficult times working with me in the early days, because I wanted to have everything just right every time. Things are different now.
(Q)- How are things different whenever it comes to making songs for Megadeth? What is the songwriting process like now, whenever you're working on songs for your next album?
Dave Mustaine- When we are working on songs for the next album and the new material, it goes (the songwriting process) like this. When we're writing music we'll look at the (guitar) riffs, create it, then do a scratch track and come back and overdub it until it's done. And what's different now compared to years ago is, we don't go for overkill by doing the music for the tracks over and over again. You've got to have an element of live feeling, if it doesn't feel live then it's not going to be good. Meaning a good live-sounding track on the album. We're more about live sounding songs then ever before.
(Q)- The phrase "heavy metal" music has changed over the past twenty-five years to include many different styles of rock music.
Dave Mustaine- Yes it certainly has.
(Q)- You are one of the originators of "thrash" style of heavy metal.
Dave Mustaine- And?
(Q)- How do you describe a heavy metal fan, regardless of where they live, today, to someone who has never meet a fan of that style of rock music?
Dave Mustaine- Heavy metal is a way of life.
(Q) By making that statement, what do you mean?
Dave Mustaine- Well, you can see a guy with long hair and say,' That guy is a metal person.' But more often then not, when some woman is in her car, and her car is broken down on the side of the road, who is the person who stops to help her? It's usually the kid who has the long hair, who works at the grocery store.
The same kid who will take out your grocery's to your car. People who are fans of other types of (pop, rock) music, they're very fickle. They'll go which ever way the wind blows. They are fair weather fans. Heavy metal fans are very conservative. They like what they like and they don't like what they don't like. They know a couple of sexual positions and they like one type of beer of cigarette and they've got their true blue favorite style of music. Which is heavy metal. You can get a guy who is a fighter jet pilot or someone who makes food products for a living and they can both be Megadeth or heavy metal fans and they can both sit down and have meeting of the minds, regardless of what their career is.
(Q)- Any recent examples of that come to your attention via your web site?
Dave Mustaine- I just saw something on our Internet site about a guy who was stopped at a traffic stop light (In the U.S.A.) and some other guy plowed right into the back of his brand new car, damaged his brand new car. And the guy who hit him had, "Killing Is My Business", in his CD player. And while they were waiting for the cops to come the guy who ran into the other guy, started singing the lyrics to the song and then the other guy asked him, 'Do you like Megadeth?' and the guy said, 'Yeah, I love Megadeth.' They started talking and after the cops came and they had the cars towed away the two guys who had been in the accident had been talking about Megadeth for some time. They both decide, after they shook hands, to go to the Megadeth concert whenever we're in their city.
(Q)- Megadeth has gone through various stages of popularity in the U.S.A. Right now heavy metal is becoming more popular in the U.S.A., then it was five years ago. Five years ago, British pop rock bands were very popular, like Oasis.
Dave Mustaine - Those two guys are just punks.
(Dave is referring to Liam Gallagher and his brother Noel Gallagher of Oasis.)
(Q)- In your opinion, why has heavy metal rock risen and dropped in popularity in the U.S.A., so dramatically over the past ten years?
Dave Mustaine- As far as anything falling in popularity (In the U.S.A.) I think it has to do with the economy. When the economy was good, then people are not really concerned whenever I'm singing about anarchy and people overthrowing the government. When things are bad, people are looking for some kind of relief. Oppression is a terrible thing to face, it's as bad as depression or repression. It's just a blocking out or holding down, any kind of feelings and memories. When you're feeling like you just don't fit and you've got a guy who is singing music that says, 'Hey, you know what? I feel just like you.' You've got a sense of identity and a sense of being juxtaposed with someone who is very important to you. And, you can live vicariously through them. They say to you that a burden shared is a burden lightened. I know there are times with our fans, they listen to the things that I'm saying and they might not get what I'm saying on the first spin of a new record. But you know what? They get it eventually. And, if they don't get it, then they get their own interpretation of what it is that I'm saying by singing about the burden. A burden shared is a burden lightened.
End.
interviewsofrecordingartists.com
DAVE MUSTAINE
interviewsofrecordingartists.com
Megadeth founder and leader Dave Mustaine, has learned to take his personal anger and hostility and channel
those feelings into his music and the lyrics to his songs. That has always been the art of Dave Mustaine and Megadeth's music.
Since the early days of his career, as the original guitarist with Metallica, and later, when he founded his group Megadeth, now 18 years ago, few recording artists in the heavy metal genre, sang as powerfully and wrote songs with such creativity as Dave Mustaine has.
Yet, the latest Megadeth album titled," The World Needs a Hero", shows a different side of a Dave and his personality. No longer the, "angry young man",
Dave is now more of the responsible adult, singing songs about environmental and social and political problems with a newfound sense of confidence and maturity.
And, in this exclusive interview, Dave Mustaine talks about how he has discovered the way to constantly make his music grow without changing its fundamental "heavy metal" character. And how Dave himself has changed and grown into a recording artist who is comfortable with his personal life.
.(Q)- Is Dave Mustaine one of the most understood musicians and recording artists in metal today?
Dave Mustaine- I don't know for sure about that.
(Q)- Is Megadeth a metaphor for Dave Mustaine?
Dave Mustaine - Megadeth as a metaphor for Dave Mustaine?
(Q)- Yes. That is the question.
Dave Mustaine- While I appreciate that and I'm flattered with that comment, although I'd love to take all of the credit, I believe there's a little bit more then just me. I have other guys who are great musicians in the band. If there wasn't three other guys in the band, I'd say yes. But these are my brothers in the band.
(Q)- Megadeth has always been a technologically oriented band. In your opinion, is that why you've remained so popular in Japan? The Japanese people are very comfortable with advanced technology.
Dave Mustaine- Basically there's two reasons. One, because we're accomplished musicians. And they appreciate that in Japan. And, I can honestly tell you that we may not be the best at what we do, I can tell you there are hundreds and thousands of musicians who are better then I am. But, because we live the rock and roll lifestyle, they look at us as being western and 'bad ass'. We represent, in Japan, coming from America a,' don't mess with me' attitude.
(Q)- You've said that you are viewed in Japan as the (actor) Clint Eastwood of heavy metal music by many of your fans. Why?
Dave Mustaine- A lot of people there (In Japan) look at me as the Clint Eastwood of heavy metal and I like that because Clint's my hero. But, I would never be so bold as to say I am him (Clint Eastwood) personified in the heavy metal rock band Megadeth. A lot of people look at me and see that I have a, 'don't mess with me', attitude. And Clint Eastwood portrays that attitude in many of his movies. So, I'm kind of like the Clint Eastwood of the heavy metal world to many
people in Japan. The Japanese look at me and say, "Dave is so cool.' And I don't get it. But then I go
to Japan and see them and they're like, 'Oh my, it's Dave!' They're excited to see me. You know?
(Q)- Does the excitement of the fans in ever scare you?
Dave Mustaine- No.
(Q)- What do you not like about the fan worship element of being who you are in a popular rock and roll band?
Dave Mustaine- When girls get near me and they want to pull out my hair. Some girl pulled some of my hair out recently in Indonesia. And I wanted to kill her. I grabbed her hand and said, (Dave shouts) 'don't pull my hair!' And she said, "I just wanted a piece of your hair!' And I was thinking, 'she was going to make some kind of voodoo doll and later I'd be developing some kind of a migraine headache or something. (he laughs) She'd try control me by making a voodoo doll and suddenly I'd loose control of my arm and I'd start hitting myself in the head. (he laughs)
(Q)- Why in your opinion, have the Japanese fans always remained excited about Megadeth and why have they supported the band continuously for many years now?
Dave Mustaine- When I first went to Japan with Megadeth they called me "The Red Devil".
(Q)- The media in Japan did?
Dave Mustaine- Yes
(Q)- Why?
Dave Mustaine- I guess it was because I'm six foot tall and when I first went toured there, I was drunk and I was pretty much having my way there. I mean, when I first toured Japan, I had four, even five big men who were my security guards. I was drunk and mean. When I went to Japan the first few times, people would come up to me and my security guards who were around me, would just pound (attack) them.
(Q)- That was the old days.
Dave Mustaine- Yes. Things have changed for me in Japan. Things have changed for the better.
(Q)- Dave Mustaine has changed quite a bit over the years as an individual. You're clean and sober now, no drugs or alcohol. And thus you're a different person. You're a family man and you're married with children and responsible for your family.
Dave Mustaine- I've worked very hard to reach this point in my career and in life. Some people will say it is a blessing that I don't do drugs and drink heavily anymore, while other people will say it's been a curse. I know a lot of my fans wish I was still on drugs and drinking and not married and that I didn't have kids.
(Q) Why? You are saying a lot of fans actually wish you were on drugs and drinking and not married,
living life towards a fate like the great actress and singer Judy Garland?
Dave Mustaine- (He laughs.) Whatever. Yeah they do because they think I made better music whenever I was getting stoned. Now the thing is, whenever I started getting sober, the time was when we had "Countdown To Extinction" and after that album success we followed up with the "Euthanasia" and in the middle of that promotional campaign we had a devastating blow to Megadeth. Because the manager of the band just quit and he pulled the plug and decided that he was going to go off and do something else. That kind of pulled the rug out from under us. This started in 1995. I spent the next five years of my life trying to undo what was going wrong and now, I don't care about, 'what was going wrong.' It's like, You know what? I'm starting over. And we're going to play like we've never played before, we've got a new record out and we're born again.
(Q)- You're, 'born again hard'.
Dave Mustaine- Yes.
(Q)- Is the most important issue for you personally simply is Dave Mustaine is happier now then he has been in years? No more drugs or alcohol ruining your health. No one at the record company is telling you what to do whenever it comes to your new music. The fans are involved more then they've ever been in Megadeth. You are financially secure, hopefully at least. Does that not make life better and hopefully happier for you, regardless of your walk in life?
Dave Mustaine - (Long silence.) I am happy, regardless of my walk. I don't really care what people think about me. I was concerned about that for a while in my life, but over the past few years there's been a pretty serious change in Megadeth. A lot of people who were in our organization are gone. Most of the people from the old days of Megadeth are gone. Most importantly, I still have the desire to be metal.
(Q)- Can a fan get to know what Dave Mustaine is about as an individual by listening to the lyrics of your albums?
Dave Mustaine - Yes. I'd like to think that.
(Q)- On your recent concerts in Japan among several of the countries you performed in, how did the new songs work into your play list?
Dave Mustaine- Absolutely awesome. You see, if you go away and come back then you've gone away and came back. In some places, we've never left. I've never gone on a hiatus for my entire career. So in certain regions of the world, like Japan, we've always been there for the fans and they've kept in touch with what we've been doing on each album.
(Q)- Why?
Dave Mustaine- There is a lot of really good guitar player and technology oriented guys who are very popular in the Pacific Rim countries. More so in Japan. Japan likes players like Paul Gilbert of Mr. Big and really accomplished player, player, kind of bands.
(Q)- So for eighteen years it's been a cycle of record an album, promote the album and then tour the world?
Dave Mustaine- Yes.
(Q)- Where else are you extremely popular outside of the U.S.A.?
Dave Mustaine- Germany. When we toured with AC/DC in Germany, we played as the support act to 30,000 to 80,000 seat stadiums. We figured out that we played in front of over a quarter of a million people in Europe this summer. As far as our recent tour of Germany goes, the concerts were simply amazing. So we played these shows in Germany and we played to such huge, amazing audiences that the shows were simply fantastic. But anyway, when we were in Germany and I finally met with the guys in AC/DC, I asked them, 'What's the secret to you guys selling out all of these big venues?' Because, while I am a huge AC/DC fan, they haven't had a major hit album since "Back In Black", which was some time ago. (Twenty years.) So when I met them in Germany when we were playing all of these huge shows I asked the guys, 'How can you not have a major hit album for all of these years and still sell out all of these huge venues?' And they told me simply this,' We give the people what they want and we haven't forgotten what made us who they are.' They know the songs that made them who they are, are the songs the fans want to hear whenever they come out to see AC/DC live in concert. So I learned from the guys in AC/DC that I need to,' Give the people what they want.'
(Q)- So are you doing that with Megadeth and the band's live shows for the rest of 2001 into early 2002?
Dave Mustaine- Yes we're letting the fans pick our songs for the concert touring in North America.
(Q)- How will this North American tour be different?
Dave Mustaine- This North American tour we're giving the people what they want and he fans can pick the songs by voting on the Internet that we'll be playing live (in concert) each night. We're telling the fans, you pick the songs.', for the North American tour. We've added the songs that made us who we are, we're giving the people what they want. It's like we're telling the fans, '"You pick the songs! OK?' I'm tired of playing for a (North American) audience and having people yelling out for us to play all of our old songs night after night. This time around, the fans will pick the songs.
(Q)- Is there one rock festival you'd really like to play with Megadeth and you have yet to perform at?
Dave Mustaine - I'd really like to play the Sturgis
Bike Week. (Sturgis is in the state of South Dakota. U.S.A. . It is a once a year, week long motorcycle/rock music festival). They pay you in Harley Davidson motorcycles. (he laughs)
(Q)- Back to the music.
Dave Mustaine - Alright.
(Q)- Lyrically, is Megadeth a metaphor for Dave Mustaine? After all, you write all of the song lyrics.
Yes?
Dave Mustaine- Absolutely.
(Q)- So much of what you write about for your song lyrics have to be about what you are experiencing in your own personal life?
Dave Mustaine- I do know that for certain. I do know, it has a lot to do with what's going on in-between my ears.
(Q)- There is not the voice of an angry young man in the song lyrics for your latest album, as in the early days of Megadeth and your songwriting. In the early days, there was a lot of angry attitude in regards to you being mad at the world.
Dave Mustaine- I still do watch a lot of CNN. I'm still a guy who writes about politics. I'm not as angry anymore though.
(Q)- But you're more concerned about the issues which effect your children and our future as global citizens and the future of the world then at any other time in your career and that shows within the lyrics of your new album.
Dave Mustaine- I think there are more things now involved in this world that are beyond our control. While we've still got a lot to do in this world,
I'm not an angry young man anymore. Let's put it that way.
(Q)- Your music has changed over the years and for a while, Megadeth's music seemed at times an attempt to be more alternative rock then metal. Yet, over the past five years, Megadeth has become more about heavy metal music then at any other time since the first Megadeth album in the 1980's.
Dave Mustaine- We're still metal and I'm glad. For a while there with our old record company (In U.S.A., Capitol Records.) they wanted to turn us into an alternative band and even a pop band. And they'd be telling us that and I'd be thinking,' What? They're telling us we're going to turn Megadeth into alternative/ pop band? No way will that work!' They even tried to have us record a disco song.
I didn't want to do that, because if it didn't work, I'd have to sell my house and go into hiding. Now we're on a new record company, (In the U.S.A., Sanctuary Records.) we're respected and we are left alone to do what we want with our music. No disco, no alternative rock and that's a great feeling.
(Q)- Are you a perfectionist whenever it comes to working in the recording studio?
Dave Mustaine- Yes.
(Q) Then, if that is the case, has that made some recording projects difficult for you? In addition, has that trait made you hard to work with at times?
Dave Mustaine- Yes. As well as being a perfectionist, I do know however, whenever I'm out of my league. So, I can recognize what I want to hear on the completed song, but I also know that, I don't know how to get it right, at times. So I have to go down to a basic level to get the right sound for a song.
(Q)- So you admit you are a perfectionist, but you also know whenever you're out of your league and cannot achieve yourself, whatever it is you're trying to do sonically, with the music of a song.
Dave Mustaine- Yes. I know when I'm outmatched.
(Q)- Why is that so important?
Dave Mustaine- Because in the early days (In the
mid 1980's.) whenever I was recording in Megadeth, there was no automation in the recording studio. So a lot of the music, when you were mixing a song, you had to have two or even three and four people involved in mixing the tracks of the music down into the song while you were working in the recording studio.
(Q)- Why was that a difficult situation for you to be involved in?
Dave Mustaine - There'd be too many people who had to be involved. If one guy would do one thing wrong, then it would make it a situation where you'd be doing the same thing over and over again. And, that is such a drag as a situation to be in whenever you're working in the recording studio on new music. I mean, you know your part, but there is two other people and the producer and the sound engineer at times might blow it. Then, since you've played your (guitar) part correctly, you have to ask yourself, 'Is this guy honest enough with himself and us to admit that he didn't do it right?' Then you go back and if they admit it, do it over again. But then, whenever you listen to the music ten years later, you start thinking, 'How did I ever let that get by?' So it did make for some difficult times working with me in the early days, because I wanted to have everything just right every time. Things are different now.
(Q)- How are things different whenever it comes to making songs for Megadeth? What is the songwriting process like now, whenever you're working on songs for your next album?
Dave Mustaine- When we are working on songs for the next album and the new material, it goes (the songwriting process) like this. When we're writing music we'll look at the (guitar) riffs, create it, then do a scratch track and come back and overdub it until it's done. And what's different now compared to years ago is, we don't go for overkill by doing the music for the tracks over and over again. You've got to have an element of live feeling, if it doesn't feel live then it's not going to be good. Meaning a good live-sounding track on the album. We're more about live sounding songs then ever before.
(Q)- The phrase "heavy metal" music has changed over the past twenty-five years to include many different styles of rock music.
Dave Mustaine- Yes it certainly has.
(Q)- You are one of the originators of "thrash" style of heavy metal.
Dave Mustaine- And?
(Q)- How do you describe a heavy metal fan, regardless of where they live, today, to someone who has never meet a fan of that style of rock music?
Dave Mustaine- Heavy metal is a way of life.
(Q) By making that statement, what do you mean?
Dave Mustaine- Well, you can see a guy with long hair and say,' That guy is a metal person.' But more often then not, when some woman is in her car, and her car is broken down on the side of the road, who is the person who stops to help her? It's usually the kid who has the long hair, who works at the grocery store.
The same kid who will take out your grocery's to your car. People who are fans of other types of (pop, rock) music, they're very fickle. They'll go which ever way the wind blows. They are fair weather fans. Heavy metal fans are very conservative. They like what they like and they don't like what they don't like. They know a couple of sexual positions and they like one type of beer of cigarette and they've got their true blue favorite style of music. Which is heavy metal. You can get a guy who is a fighter jet pilot or someone who makes food products for a living and they can both be Megadeth or heavy metal fans and they can both sit down and have meeting of the minds, regardless of what their career is.
(Q)- Any recent examples of that come to your attention via your web site?
Dave Mustaine- I just saw something on our Internet site about a guy who was stopped at a traffic stop light (In the U.S.A.) and some other guy plowed right into the back of his brand new car, damaged his brand new car. And the guy who hit him had, "Killing Is My Business", in his CD player. And while they were waiting for the cops to come the guy who ran into the other guy, started singing the lyrics to the song and then the other guy asked him, 'Do you like Megadeth?' and the guy said, 'Yeah, I love Megadeth.' They started talking and after the cops came and they had the cars towed away the two guys who had been in the accident had been talking about Megadeth for some time. They both decide, after they shook hands, to go to the Megadeth concert whenever we're in their city.
(Q)- Megadeth has gone through various stages of popularity in the U.S.A. Right now heavy metal is becoming more popular in the U.S.A., then it was five years ago. Five years ago, British pop rock bands were very popular, like Oasis.
Dave Mustaine - Those two guys are just punks.
(Dave is referring to Liam Gallagher and his brother Noel Gallagher of Oasis.)
(Q)- In your opinion, why has heavy metal rock risen and dropped in popularity in the U.S.A., so dramatically over the past ten years?
Dave Mustaine- As far as anything falling in popularity (In the U.S.A.) I think it has to do with the economy. When the economy was good, then people are not really concerned whenever I'm singing about anarchy and people overthrowing the government. When things are bad, people are looking for some kind of relief. Oppression is a terrible thing to face, it's as bad as depression or repression. It's just a blocking out or holding down, any kind of feelings and memories. When you're feeling like you just don't fit and you've got a guy who is singing music that says, 'Hey, you know what? I feel just like you.' You've got a sense of identity and a sense of being juxtaposed with someone who is very important to you. And, you can live vicariously through them. They say to you that a burden shared is a burden lightened. I know there are times with our fans, they listen to the things that I'm saying and they might not get what I'm saying on the first spin of a new record. But you know what? They get it eventually. And, if they don't get it, then they get their own interpretation of what it is that I'm saying by singing about the burden. A burden shared is a burden lightened.
End.
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