Metallica vs. Megadeth
and why are we STILL debating this shit?
I need all of my fellow metalheads here to simmer down a bit.
What I’m about to say will be some harsh, but objective facts.
Starting with Metallica, the original lineup started with James Hetfield, Ron McGovney, Dave Mustaine and Lars Ulrich. Ron was replaced by Cliff Burton, formerly of Trauma and then, on the eve of their breakout, Dave was given the boot, sent back across America for two days on a bus and Kirk Hammett was his replacement.
For decades, we have heard Dave’s side of the story. The fights, the drinking, all of it, it was a crazy time for everyone involved.
From the day Dave was sent packing back to California, the boys in Metallica absolutely crushed the world of metal with their offerings
Dave went on to meet Dave Ellefson, nicknaming him Junior and then formed Megadeth with Gar Samuelson and Chris Poland for the album Killing Is My Business…And Business Is Good. There were some lineup changes and demos before that but this was the band everyone saw on stage following the release of that first album which was…oof. The recording wasn’t where it should have been, neither was the cover. Peace Sells, But Who’s Buying was a solid effort with solid artwork.
Let’s get back to Metallica. Through the years, Metallica polished their sound, tightened the songwriting and even experimented with later albums like Load.
Megadeth didn’t start doing anything experimental until the album Risk.
Metallica went in search of Crossover Appeal while Megadeth stayed with the technical and precise playing and, the really wild part, drugs were truly in play in the Megadeth camp. To Megadeth’s credit, that’s pretty amazing.
Megadeth rarely, if ever, strayed from their roots while Metallica sounds a bit different than their earlier days.
Personally, I’ve always preferred Megadeth to Metallica but I’m still a fan of both.
Fact is, both bands built legacies that have lasted forty years. Let that sink in.
While they both share musical DNA, I don’t truly consider one band more successful than the other. They’re both successful, playing world tours, releasing albums to an excited fanbase with me being among them.
Remember when I said I’m a fan of both bands? That’s true but it’s for different reasons. I love Megadeth’s lyrical content and the music is just damned great and it stays true to its thrash metal roots.
Metallica, I love because they really do have range. Some efforts didn’t exactly rock my boat but that’s to be expected. The same has happened with Megadeth.
The thing I don’t get is that both bands have had divergent paths but the same beginnings and it would seem there’s always a Team Metallica or Team Megadeth somewhere and, as always, You Must Choose A Side.
No. Absolutely Fucking Not. Take a seat and listen for a change.
These are different bands with different people, obviously doing different things. While I’m always going to have a preference of Megadeth over Metallica, truth is, you might catch me listening to more Metallica some days. Why? I dunno, probably mood or maybe I’m just itching to hear Creeping Death or Of Wolf And Man again. Sometimes, I’m good with letting one Megadeth album like Cryptic Writings just roll on through to completion. I do love that album and the coinciding comic book from Chaos Comics, that was kinda cool to see. In any case, just because I have a preference for one over the other doesn’t make Megadeth objectively better or Metallica objectively worse. To me, they’re two of the Big Four that will grace my Metal Mt. Rushmore.
Without Metallica, there’s no Slayer as they were largely inspired by Metallica. Without Slayer…there’s no Big Four and for a Gen-X Kid like myself, I don’t know that a world without The Big Four is a world that I’d care to live in.
I did mention that I was going to hit with some harsh facts and here it is. Whether you prefer Megadeth to Metallica as I do or vice-versa, none of that matters. Metallica and Megadeth are still going to truck on. Just enjoy your damn music and quit making it everyone else’s problem. We do not need to have this discussion and we sure as shit don’t need to keep bringing up 1983 over and over and over again. I mean, Jason fucking Newsted has moved the hell on, we really need to take a cue from him. He’s doing his own thing now and hasn’t really spoken up save for maybe once about his departure, that I’m aware of.
Personally, when it comes to Megadeth, Metallica or even Jason Newsted, I’m happy for all of them. Boys, if you see another brass ring to grab, then grab the motherfucker and stop comparing yourselves. You don’t. I know there are still sore spots and raw feelings but, goddamn, this is metal we’re talking about. Write and perform the absolute best metal songs you can, rock those damn stages out, leave it all on the stage and be done with it. Pick your band, pick every band, listen to every song, learn to play them, whatever you do, just enjoy the damn music and can we please put this stupid fucking debate to bed once and for all?