Trace amounts of solid underlying thrash can’t save the ship that Dave Mustaine sinks on Megadeth‘s The Sick.
Megadeth has had a relatively difficult 25 years. The one-time legends of thrash metal arguably have failed to produce a worthwhile album since The System Has Failed in 2004. Allegations of misconduct led to the forced departure of long-time and founding bassist David Ellefson. Likewise, the lineup remains a revolving door and long gone are the days of Chris Poland and Marty Friedman to provide interest. Yet Megadeth forges onward with its first album this decade, having been largely silent since 2016’s mediocre Dystopia, which at least was itself a step up from the laughable Super Collider that preceded it.
Once upon a time, in the mid-to-late 80s, Megadeth earned its place as one of the Big Four of trash metal. Albums like Rust in Peace and Peace Sells still hold up incredibly well today. Mustaine, ever disagreeable, held a solid foundation built on dizzying guitar leads and solos, though questionable lyrics and half-sincere punchlines always make up a significant part of any given Megadeth album. Markedly, almost 40 years after Mustaine‘s ejection from Metallica, these elements prove to be too significant to overlook.
Of all the battles won and lost,
The lives and treasures that it cost,
I know I’ve got to soldier on.
An instrumental version of The Sick might prove a wise investment for the band to make. Even on this track, the most notably painful to listen to on the album, one can dig up some value in these guitar leads and riffs. However, Mustaine sticks to an odd bootlicker theme throughout the album, vague notions of war and other neocon dreams. Naturally, he must “soldier on” and keep doing whatever this might be.
I’m a soldier of fortune, of torture, and pain,
I bash in your skull until no teeth remain,
A ‘most-deadly’ weapon pulverizing your head,
With each crushing blow, how you wish you were dead.
Astoundingly, this man is 60 years old. I see no charm in writing these kinds of lyrics at his age. Unfortunately, the band leaves the listener with only pain and confusion.
In short, any self-respecting Megadeth fan should make themselves believe that the band broke up in 1997, or 2004, or at worst 2009. Equally important: no one should subject themselves to The Sick, the Dying… and the Dead!
4/10
Sick, the Dying… and the Dead! is out now via Universal Music, you can purchase this album here.