Megadeth Concert Review

MEGADETH STICKS TO THEIR ROOTS

Show Date: September 18, 2007
Location: Sauget, Illinois, U.S.A.
Venue: Pop’s Nightclub
Reviewer: Graham LaMontagne
Band Website: www.megadeth.com

Define Megadeth: Greatest Speed/Thrash Metal band of all time that has stuck to their roots since day one.

On September 18, 2007 Megadeth played the very small, deathtrap club Pop’s in Sauget, IL. Only a few months ago, Megadeth tore the roof off the Rosemont Auditorium, which holds thousands of bodies and is home to NCAA tournament action, but on this night, they chose to play a more intimate show to really connect with their loyal fans.

Seeing Megadeth back in May from the safety of my seat was a completely epic metal moment, but being “caught in a mosh” right against the stage was an entirely new experience for me.

Every second of the show was a brutal battle royale. Some of the ugliest, biggest brutes I have ever encountered made the mosh pit an unsafe mixture of flying fists, bodies that smashed into you like an out of control pinball, crowd surfing, body odor, sweat and a slippery beer floor that made standing a difficult challenge.

For me, Megadeth‘s music is heavy enough that I don’t need to punch and push into strangers to enjoy myself. Sure when I am in my car I often throw up the devil horns with my left hand and punch the steering wheel with the other, but that is about all the carnage I exhibit. The nonstop moshing eventually went from fun to annoyingly painful, but still, I can now at least say I survived a little pit action.

Megadeth is touring in support of their brilliant new album United Abominations and kicked things off with their instant classic Sleepwalker. Being so close to the stage allowed me to visually telescope in on Dave Mustaine‘s fantastically speedy fingering of the fret board. Now I practice guitar at home with Megadeth guitar books laid out in front of me, but I cannot even begin to capture the sound of any of their metal masterpieces. I guess I will forever be stuck playing easy licks like “Smoke on The Water” while Megadeth continues to defy what one would think is possible on the electric guitar.

The amazing set incorporated 17 songs including Take No Prisoners, Peace Sells…But Who’s Buying, Symphony of Destruction, Holy Wars…The Punishment Due, Gears of War, Never Walk Alone…A Call to Arms (best song from the new album), She Wolf and Washington is Next. The stand out songs were Reckoning Day, Hangar 18, Wake Up Dead, A Tout Le Monde and my favorite Megadeth song In My Darkest Hour. The last time I saw Megadeth they failed to include my favorite song, but their delivery of In My Darkest Hour was easily one of the best songs I have ever seen live.

It makes me absolutely sick to my stomach when people choose Metallica over Megadeth. Metallica should bow down to genius Dave Mustaine and apologize for kicking him out of Metallica by taking turns kissing his guitar. Kicking Dave out of Metallica did lead to the formation of Megadeth, so in retrospect, the metal community is actually quite lucky for Metallica‘s back stabbing. Megadeth is definitely the better band of the two. Megadeth‘s music is much more intricate and lyrically more prolific. Many people do not even give Megadeth a listen because they hear the name and immediately cringe thinking that they are nothing more than a band that glorifies death and Satan. However, in reality Megadeth is one of the most political and intelligent bands of all time. Frontman Dave Mustaine is on a never ending quest for answers to all of the failing political actions that plague our world. Did you know that their name was taken from an article in Readers Digest that explained nuclear war as a Megadeath? For those of you that simply fear the unknown, if you took the time to listen to Megadeth you would realize they are basically a heavier version of Rush (because of their complex arrangements) with a witty, more evil sounding version of David Lee Roth on vocals.

As long as Megadeth is a functioning gang of talent, Heavy Metal will continue to be a thriving genre in the music industry. The real “United Abominations” of the world, like Justin Timberlake, will soon fade away, but Megadeth will always remain pioneers and legends of Heavy Metal.