How Megadeth's Dave Mustaine went from thrash metal outsider to finally conquering the charts

After helium woke up connected Sunday, Feb. 1, Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine got retired of furniture and went into the room of his location successful Franklin, Tenn. He downed a assortment of wellness and wellness liquids and supplements, past picked up his telephone and noticed a substance from his son, Justis, who works astatine the band’s absorption company. It read, “We’re fig one!!!”

Two days earlier, Megadeth’s self-titled swansong debuted astatine the apical of the charts successful Australia. It was the band’s archetypal No. 1 medium there, and Mustaine thought the substance mightiness notation to the Australian illustration presumption since helium wasn’t definite whether U.S. income and streams for the week had been tabulated yet. He Facetimed Justis to interaction base.

“I said, ‘Good morning,’ and helium goes, ‘We did it!’” Mustaine says, his words aglow. “I said, ‘You mean successful America?” He goes, ‘Yeah!’ And I could spot the axenic happiness connected his face, which was truthful rewarding.”

“Megadeth” bested state vocalist Morgan Wallen’s “I’m the Problem” by 4,000 units to instrumentality the apical slot connected the Billboard medium chart. Aside from being the band’s archetypal No. 1 album, lone 3 different hard rock/metal bands (Ghost, Sleep Token and AC/DC) person deed the apical presumption successful much than 5 years. Megadeth is acold faster, louder and much assertive than immoderate of those acts. Mustaine is revered arsenic 1 of the pioneers of thrash metal, a subgenre that combines the breakneck velocity of aboriginal American hardcore bands specified arsenic Circle Jerks and Misfits with the precision and powerfulness of British metallic groups similar Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. The lone different thrash set to deed No. 1 is Metallica, who person done truthful six times, astir precocious with 2016’s “Hardwired ... to Self-Destruct.”

Megadeth connected stage

(Noel Vasquez / YouTube Theater)

“Having a No. 1 was 1 of the past things we needed successful bid to accidental we’ve done it all,” Mustaine says, sitting astatine the table of his location office. Resting connected a array down him are a potted angiosperm and the Grammy Award that Megadeth won successful 2017 for metallic show for the rubric way from the 2016 medium “Dystopia.”

Along with Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax, Megadeth is simply a subordinate of the exclusive dense metal’s Big Four. The word has been wide utilized passim the decades by fans, journalists and outlets chronicling the past of thrash. In 2010, each 4 bands played 9 shows astir the satellite unneurotic connected a bundle tour.

“When I heard Megadeth were No.1, I was blessed for Dave,” says Anthrax drummer and songwriter Charlie Benante, whose set is opening for Megadeth connected a Canadian circuit that ends March 6. “But I was besides blessed for america due to the fact that Megadeth’s occurrence shows that a batch of radical are inactive funny successful this music.”

The band’s self-titled medium is an uncompromising cliff dive into a churning whirlpool of crunching guitar riffs, rapid-fire solos and tumbling beats that spans the band’s vocation and includes a assortment of breakneck thrash, sneering, punk-ish metallic and blazing rock. It could person been the earthy follow-up to the band’s bestselling album, 1992’s “Countdown to Extinction,” which reached No. 2 connected Billboard and sold much than 2 cardinal copies.

Topping the medium illustration has been a extremity for Mustaine ever since Megadeth deed No. 2, and it virtually couldn’t person travel astatine immoderate different time. On Aug. 13, 2025, astir six months earlier “Megadeth” was released, Mustaine announced it would beryllium the band’s last workplace album.

Having flooded decades of adversity — including unstable lineups (15 members person travel and gone since the band’s 1985 workplace debut, “Killing Is My Business… And Business Is Good”), cause addiction, relapses, a near-fatal overdose, large cervix country and a 2019 conflict with pharynx crab that required 9 chemo sessions and 51 doses of radiation — the thrash icon deed an obstacle that modern medicine, rehab and therapy couldn’t cure.

For overmuch of the past decade, Mustaine has experienced important discomfort since the cartilage successful the tips of his fingers has worn distant from decades of frenzied playing, causing the bones to scrape together. Grimacing, helium plowed ahead, driven by the pain. About halfway into the signaling of “Megadeth,” helium realized thing other was earnestly wrong. He was doing chin-ups during a workout erstwhile helium experienced a caller benignant of stabbing symptom successful his hand.

“It wounded similar a bitch erstwhile I was hanging with my assemblage value connected this,” helium says, pointing to a raised ridge of fleshy insubstantial that bisects his palm. Mustaine saw a specializer and was diagnosed with Dupuytren’s contracture, a progressive information that affects astir 8% of the world’s population, according to National Institutes of Health statistics. There is nary cure for the disease, and arsenic it evolves, it typically causes the fingers to crook inward, making it hard oregon intolerable to afloat flex. “It’s not fatal, but erstwhile it comes down to people’s careers, it is,” Mustaine says with a resigned sigh.

The longer helium spent signaling guitar parts for “Megadeth,” the much his ailment interfered with his playing. He gutted it out, but erstwhile helium was astir two-thirds done with the album, helium decided that, with the velocity the illness was progressing, determination was nary mode he’d beryllium capable to constitute and grounds different album. “I wholly mislaid my equilibrium,” helium says with nary of the bravado that was antecedently a trademark. “I didn’t privation to halt making records, but I knew I had to. Finally, I decided, OK, good present I conscionable privation to spell retired connected top.”

Megadeth launched its circuit Sunday. Forty-one dates are booked astir overmuch of the satellite done precocious June. In August, the set volition play its past 15 scheduled shows successful North America. Mustaine hopes Megadeth volition beryllium capable to adhd galore much concerts and circuit astatine slightest done 2028 earlier helium packs up his guitar lawsuit for good. “We’ll play until it’s clip to accidental goodbye,” helium says. “And if thing happens earlier than that, I’ll person to bravely denote that the extremity came sooner than I thought.”

Once Mustaine decided Megadeth’s days were numbered, helium started reflecting connected his full career, including his aboriginal days arsenic a co-founder of Metallica … earlier helium was kicked retired for being a belligerent drunk. It was April 11, 1983, and Metallica were successful Queens, N.Y., moving connected their debut album, “Kill ‘Em All,” 4 songs of which Mustaine co-wrote. As soon arsenic helium arrived astatine rehearsal, the set fired him and handed him a autobus summons backmost to Los Angeles. It was an acquisition that near an indelible stain connected his psyche. For years, nary substance however fashionable Megadeth became — selling millions of albums and packing stadiums — Mustaine was plagued by the specter of Metallica. He seethed with resentment astatine their mainstream occurrence and regularly took jabs astatine his erstwhile bandmates successful the press. Metallica reacted successful kind.

“Think of it. Where would I beryllium close present if I didn’t person 1 of the biggest bands successful the satellite spending their clip trying to clasp maine back?” Mustaine says, rubbing a forefinger implicit his achromatic knit headdress that hides his leonine locks. “They don’t bash it anymore, but astir of the clip erstwhile they did, it conscionable made maine shingle my head. And it wasn’t conscionable Metallica, it was everybody. For a agelong time, it precise overmuch was maine against the world. It was like, OK, if you’re not with me, you’re against me.”

When Megadeth announced its last medium would see a screen of the rubric way from Metallica’s “Ride the Lightning,” which Mustaine co-wrote, galore fans thought the signaling would service arsenic a past enactment of defiance. Others wondered whether the opus would beryllium a extremist reinvention that would render the archetypal astir unrecognizable. The signaling is neither, and lone somewhat antithetic than Metallica’s version. Mustaine felt covering the opus would supply a bookend to his career, illustrating precisely wherever helium was earlier helium formed Megadeth. Strangely, helium besides wanted the way to beryllium an olive subdivision to Metallica.

“There whitethorn not beryllium a accidental to ever accidental hullo to [Metallica members] James [Hetfield] oregon Lars [Ulrich] again,” Mustaine explains. “I knew immoderate radical would person a hard clip with maine doing the song, but that’s OK due to the fact that I wanted to wage tribute and amusement my respect. If they similar it, fine. If they don’t similar it, fine. If they perceive to it, fine. If they don’t, fine.” To date, nary 1 successful Metallica has commented connected the recording.

When discussing the 2 years helium spent successful Metallica and the atrocious humor that followed, Mustaine is contemplative and serene. Comments that erstwhile elicited antagonistic barbs are met with calm acceptance.

Dave Mustaine of Megadeth performs astatine YouTube Theater successful Inglewood.

(Noel Vasquez)

“You know, I had a large clip erstwhile I was successful Metallica, and we did thing tremendous,” helium says. “It’s a shame what the booze did, but we were each kids and, speech from Lars, we came from beauteous breached families. Lots of worldly has happened implicit the years, but I felt similar it would beryllium large to marque everything bully with them earlier we stop. We should beryllium friends. There’s nary crushed wherefore we shouldn’t beryllium friends.”

Long ago, Mustaine learned erstwhile not to instrumentality the bait adjacent if helium sometimes gobbled it anyway. Today, his spite and resentment person have faded and helium compliments others arsenic often arsenic helium boasts. More than anything, helium wants to bask the clip helium has near alternatively of lamenting implicit missed opportunities.

“There were immoderate spots successful my beingness erstwhile I felt I had reached the nadir of what I thought was going to beryllium a spotless career. And erstwhile I had immoderate of those unsmooth days, I asked myself, ‘Did I f—ing motion up for this?’” helium says. “But then, you get to the moments similar now, wherever I person a existent consciousness of accomplishment. I’ve gotten to the apical of the summit, and I’m capable to beryllium the maestro of each I survey.”

Mustaine looks up and smiles, past concludes, “You know, man, I was No. 2 truthful long, I forgot determination was a No. 1.”