Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along with Metallica, Anthrax, and Slayer, responsible for the genre's development and popularization. Their music features complex arrangements and fast rhythm sections, dual lead guitars, and lyrical themes of war, politics, religion, death, and personal relationships.
Rust in Peace is the fourth studio album by American thrash metal band Megadeth, released on September 24, 1990, by Capitol Records. It was the first Megadeth album to feature guitarist Marty Friedman and drummer Nick Menza. The songs "Hangar 18" and "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" were released as singles. A remixed and remastered version of the album featuring four bonus tracks was released in 2004.
Hidden Treasures is an EP by American thrash metal band Megadeth, released on July 18, 1995, via Capitol Records. The album features songs that originally appeared on film soundtracks and tribute albums. Four of the tracks were released as singles, and three have received Grammy Award nominations for Best Metal Performance. Despite having garnered mediocre or negative reviews, the material on the EP has been credited with helping expand the group's MTV audience in the early 1990s.
Cryptic Writings is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Megadeth. Released on June 17, 1997, through Capitol Records, it was the band's last studio album to feature drummer Nick Menza. His departure would mark the end of the band's longest lasting lineup to date, having recorded four studio albums. Megadeth decided to produce the record with Dann Huff in Nashville, Tennessee, because they were not satisfied with their previous producer Max Norman. The album features twelve tracks with accessible song structures, specifically aimed for radio airplay. The lyrics were also altered, in order to make the music more inclusive for wider audience. These changes were met with mixed opinions from music critics, who noted the band moving away from their thrash metal roots.
Risk is the eighth studio album by American heavy metal band Megadeth, released on August 31, 1999, by Capitol Records, the band's last album to be released by the label. The first Megadeth album since 1990 to feature a lineup change, Risk marks the studio debut of drummer Jimmy DeGrasso with the band, as well as the final appearance of longtime guitarist Marty Friedman, who announced his departure a year later. Meant to be a breakthrough on alternative rock radio, Risk received a mixed response because of the great deviation from the band's traditional sound. The backlash ultimately resulted with the band returning towards a heavier sound with their next album.
The World Needs a Hero is the ninth studio album by American thrash metal band Megadeth, released on May 15, 2001, by Sanctuary Records. After the critical and commercial failure of the previous album Risk (1999), The World Needs a Hero represented a change back to a heavier musical direction. Subsequently, the album charted at number 16 on the Billboard 200 upon release.
David Scott Mustaine is an American musician. He is the co-founder, frontman, primary songwriter and sole consistent member of the thrash metal band Megadeth. Mustaine has released sixteen studio albums with Megadeth, sold over 38 million records worldwide, with six albums platinum-certified, and won a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 2017 at the 59th Grammy Awards, for the title track of their fifteenth studio album, Dystopia.
MD.45 was an American heavy metal/punk rock band formed as a side project by Megadeth guitarist/vocalist Dave Mustaine and Fear vocalist Lee Ving. Bassist Kelly LeMieux and drummer Jimmy DeGrasso rounded out the band's lineup.
"Anarchy in the U.K." is a song by English punk rock band the Sex Pistols. It was released as the band's debut single on 26 November 1976 and was later featured on their album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. "Anarchy in the U.K." was number 56 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and is included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.
The System Has Failed is the tenth studio album by American thrash metal band Megadeth, released on September 14, 2004. It was the band's second and final studio album to be distributed by Sanctuary Records. The System Has Failed was the first album to be released after Dave Mustaine recovered from his arm injury sustained in 2002. It is also the first of four Megadeth studio albums not to include original bassist and co-founder David Ellefson. The album features former Megadeth member Chris Poland (guitar), who previously performed on Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! (1985) and Peace Sells... but Who's Buying? (1986), as well as session drummer Vinnie Colaiuta and bassist Jimmie Lee Sloas.
Arsenal of Megadeth is a DVD by American heavy metal band Megadeth, released on March 21, 2006 via Capitol. Presented as an anthology of the band's first 20 years, the two-disc DVD set contains music videos, live performances, interviews, home videos, and special appearances. As a result of licensing issues, videos from soundtrack and non-Capitol albums are not featured, save for "No More Mr. Nice Guy" and "Go to Hell" as well as despite being on Risk, "Crush 'Em" and "Breadline" were not included. The album was certified gold in the United States and platinum in Canada.
"Hangar 18" is a song by American thrash metal band Megadeth from their 1990 studio album Rust in Peace. The song was inspired by a mythical building purportedly located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, where an alien spacecraft or bodies were supposedly stored. The song reached number 25 on the Irish Singles Chart, also reached number 26 on the UK Singles Chart.
"Sweating Bullets" is a song by American heavy metal band Megadeth. It was released in 1993 as the third single from their fifth album, Countdown to Extinction (1992). A music video for the song was made, directed by Wayne Isham. The song charted at No. 27 on the US Mainstream Rock chart and at No. 26 in the UK.
"Holy Wars... The Punishment Due" is a song by American thrash metal band Megadeth. Released in 1990, it is the opening track off the band's fourth studio album Rust in Peace (1990).
"Symphony of Destruction" is a song by American heavy metal band Megadeth, released as a single from the band’s fifth studio album, Countdown to Extinction (1992). The lyrics explore the hypothetical situation where an average citizen is placed in a position where he runs the country while the public is led by a phantom government. Penned by vocalist and frontman Dave Mustaine, the song received significant radio play and charted in various territories, making it one of Megadeth's best known songs.
"Angry Again" is a 1993 heavy metal song by Megadeth, written by frontman Dave Mustaine. The song was written exclusively for inclusion in the 1993 satirical action film Last Action Hero, directed by John McTiernan and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. The track featured on the film's soundtrack. "Angry Again" never appeared on any of the band's official studio albums but was included on their 1995 EP, Hidden Treasures, and several later compilations.
"Use the Man" is a song by American thrash metal band Megadeth. It was released as the third single from their seventh studio album, Cryptic Writings (1997). The song was one of the band's biggest hits, at #15 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
Dystopia is the fifteenth studio album by American thrash metal band Megadeth. It was released on frontman and guitarist Dave Mustaine's Tradecraft label via Universal on January 22, 2016. It is the first Megadeth album to feature guitarist Kiko Loureiro, the only album with drummer Chris Adler, and their last with bassist David Ellefson. The album was produced by Mustaine and Chris Rakestraw and features cover artwork by Brent Elliot White.
Humanary Stew: A Tribute to Alice Cooper is a 1999 tribute album to American rock musician Alice Cooper.
"Dystopia" is a song by American heavy metal band Megadeth, written by Dave Mustaine. It is the second and title track from their fifteenth studio album Dystopia, which was released on January 22, 2016. The song was released early on streaming services on January 7, 2016.
