In a new interview with Primordial Radio presenter Dewsbury, MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine spoke about the making of the band’s final, self-titled album, which arrived late last month via Mustaine’s Tradecraft imprint on Frontiers Label Group’s new BLKIIBLK label. Dave said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “We went into the studio and we just started writing. And we said, ‘Okay, guys, let’s write. And whenever we have the right amount of songs, we’ll know.’ So we got to, I think it was 15 or 16 ideas, and we’ve got a lot of really good tracks out of the recording. The main album comes out with 10 tracks and then of my version of [METALLICA’s] ‘Ride The Lightning’ circa 2026. And we also have a song called ‘Nobody’s Hero’. One called ‘Farewell, My Love’, another one called ‘Bloodlust’. And I think that’s it for the additional tracks.”
Explaining the need for so many bonus songs, Dave continued: “Whenever you make records, you gotta have an additional track for Japan, because Japan had a terrible thing that used to happen a long time ago for artists where the fans there would go and rent the record from a music store and they would record it at home. So it would affect your sales figures and your tracking numbers for the record business. So you don’t really get the awards that you deserve in some of these countries that have these crazy methods for charting and tracking records. Because I don’t care what anybody says — it is competition. That’s why the chart has numbers on it. If it had flowers or something like that, I would say, ‘Whatever.’ But when you’re all vying for that Number One spot, don’t tell me it’s not competition. And at least if you’re worth your salt, you should compete with your former self.”
Mustaine also once again confirmed that his worsening hand condition has forced MEGADETH’s retirement. He’s been diagnosed with Dupuytren’s contracture — also known as Viking’s Disease — which is preventing him from playing his guitar at a hundred percent and ultimately led to his decision to announce that MEGADETH would embark on its farewell tour.
“The injury on my hand, it is progressive,” Dave said. “You can see it right there [on my left hand] — there’s a line going across my palm right there. That’s, called Dupuytren contracture and it’s basically gonna pull my finger down like this, where I won’t be able to play. So the answer to your question [about how long the farewell tour is going to be] is, yeah, when I can’t play anymore, I won’t. I’m not gonna stop before I can’t. And I don’t know how long it’s gonna take for this disease to progress. My pinky and this finger on one side’s numb. My thumb’s numb on [the right] side. That’s all from having my neck broken and having it fused together, ’cause I have a piece of metal in my neck with screws holding the two vertebrae together. And consequently, I’ve got numbness in my hand. I mean, what else can I possibly have happen to my hands?”
According to the Mayo Clinic, Dupuytren contracture is a condition that causes one or more fingers to bend toward the palm of the hand. The affected fingers can’t straighten completely.
There’s no cure for Dupuytren contracture. Treatments can relieve symptoms and slow how quickly the condition gets worse.
Last December, Mustaine told Spain’s MariskalRockTV about his ongoing battle Dupuytren’s contracture: “Yeah, you can look right here on this hand. There’s a line right there that’s sticking up… It’s gonna make my finger come down like this. It’s already started, where it’s kind of bunching up a little bit. And then if you look at the tips of my fingers, they’re severely arthritic. So, all those bumps makes it really painful to play.”
Asked if he has contemplated undergoing surgery to correct the issue or if he has already done that, Dave said: “I’m gonna wait for that until I’m ready to try it, because if I try it now and I’m 95 percent, and I do a surgery and it sets me back, that would’ve been a bad decision. If I wait until my hands are causing a problem and I try it and it doesn’t work, well then I’ve toured everywhere, I’ve said farewell to everybody and I’m not leaving stuff unsaid or unfinished.”
Earlier in December, Mustaine spoke to SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk” about MEGADETH’s recently announced “farewell” tour, which will officially launch later this year. The trek, dubbed the “This Was Our Life” tour, will be in support of “Megadeth”, which marks the end of more than four decades of musical history for the 64-year-old musician.
Asked why “Megadeth” is the band’s final album and why he decided to embark on a “farewell” tour at this point of his career, Mustaine said: “It had been a long time coming — just physical stuff that was going on with my hands… My hands were letting me down. And there were other things that were difficult because of all the stuff going on in my neck and my trunk. All that area there has arthritis and it has discs that are bulging. I’ve got a broken lumbar bone. Of course, you know I have my back fused, up by my shoulders, by my neck. And just a lot of stuff.”
Mustaine continued: “I always said when it got to the point where I was unable to give a hundred percent every night, that’s when I was gonna start considering winding down. And it wasn’t that I was unable to give a hundred percent, because we finished the record, and I think we did a good job on it, but there was a period when we were working and I said to my manager, I said, ‘I don’t know how much longer I can do this. My hands are really hurting.’ And I didn’t mean to set the ball rolling. Honestly, I just was making conversation, and it turned into me talking to the band guys and sleeping on it and talking to my family and praying on it. And the answer was clear to me that by the time we’re done with the record, I’m gonna know how the record’s gonna do. If the record does really well, then I’ll be able to have one last really good tour. And the part about the farewell thing, it’s kind of like the same thing, isn’t it? We’ve got some dates that we wanna play to say goodbye to our friends.”
Dave added: “The thing is we’re an American band, but we play everywhere. So it’s not like we just are weekend warriors, like country acts here in the States. We’ve got a lot of touring to do in order to do our farewell properly.”
After host Eddie Trunk noted that a lot of veteran artists overstay their welcome and don’t gracefully bow out of the music scene after they are no longer able to perform their songs properly, Mustaine concurred. ”I don’t think there’s any reason [for us] to [keep playing when we are not able to deliver a hundred percent],” he said. “I mean, unless you’re financially in a bad way and you need to keep playing, which, by the grace of God, I’ve been successful. I’ve been able to pay all my bills. All the band guys, they all get their paychecks on time. We do everything right by the book. So, some people, like I said, they may have to keep playing, because there’s nothing else for them to do. Now, when I think about, what am I gonna do after I hang the guitar up, that’s in relation to touring, and I believe that I’m going to keep doing music in some way, shape or form. But not in the fashion that I was doing with MEGS because if I can’t do it and I need to stop playing with my first love, I’m not gonna go out and try and do it again with someone else.”
In November, Mustaine told Kerrang! magazine that MEGADETH’s farewell run of shows could last a long time. “We’re easily talking about touring for another three to five years,” Dave said. “And if we’re going to be doing it for that long then, shit, I’ll be looking at the birthday I don’t even want to think about,” he added, referencing the fact that he will turn 70 in 2031.
As someone who overcame addiction to drugs and alcohol and beat throat cancer, Mustaine added: “I’m not caught up in longevity and stuff like that, and being one of those guys who can play until he’s in his 80s. I have to remember that people live and they die. And I need to take good care of myself.”
In a press release announcing MEGADETH’s final album and farewell tour, Mustaine thanked fans for their commitment and love while celebrating the band’s impact on the music world.
“There’s so many musicians that have come to the end of their career, whether accidental or intentional,” Mustaine said. “Most of them don’t get to go out on their own terms on top, and that’s where I’m at in my life right now. I have traveled the world and have made millions upon millions of fans and the hardest part of all of this is saying goodbye to them.”
He continued. “We can’t wait for you to hear this album and see us on tour. If there was ever a perfect time for us to put out a new album, it’s now. If there was ever a perfect time to tour the world, it’s now. This is also a perfect time for us to tell you that it’s our last studio album. We’ve made a lot of friends over the years and I hope to see all of you on our global farewell tour.
“Don’t be mad, don’t be sad, be happy for us all, come celebrate with me these next few years. We have done something together that’s truly wonderful and will probably never happen again. We started a musical style, we started a revolution, we changed the guitar world and how it’s played, and we changed the world. The bands I played in have influenced the world. I love you all for it. Thank you for everything.”
For its final album, MEGADETH once again worked with Chris Rakestraw, a producer, mixer and engineer who previously worked on MEGADETH’s last two LPs, the aforementioned “The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!” and 2016’s “Dystopia”.