By Carl Zielinski

Gargoyle staff reporter


Posted Monday, May 21, 2007, The OG, arts

AT A GLANCE

— CD: Megadeth, “United Abominations”

— Release date: May 15, 2007

— Megadeth's Web site

— Megadeth's MySpace page

— Megadeth's Wikipedia entry

AT LONG LAST, “United Abominations” has been released!

It's not that it was delayed or put off by the band, but any waiting period definitely put me off; after all, I'm a huge Megadeth fan. However, that year of anticipation worked against me in one major, crippling way: I expected (apparently) unreasonable music.

While I had largely anticipated hyper-fast, complex, and technically challenging metal, instead I got a mixture of mid-tempo political posturing and some melodic, slightly faster songs with a little humor thrown in for good measure. As good as the songs on “United” may be, they are hamstrung by the memory of Megadeth's past.

After all, this was the band that made the underground classic “Peace Sells … But Who's Buying?” back in 1986. Shouldn't that peak have lasted for 20 years?

Anyway, “United” is decent, at least. Several songs stand out reasonably from the rest, even if not from the rest of Megadeth's back catalog.

The black humor of “Sleepwalker” and “Amerikhastan” lifts both songs out of rather boring instrumentation, and “Washington is Next!” is the one song on the record that sounds like it could have been written prior to Megadeth's 1992 shift from speed metal to mainstream rock.

Also, it would appear Megadeth are actually starting to take themselves seriously. While they have been political before, older songs like “Peace Sells,” “Hook in Mouth,” and “Holy Wars … The Punishment Due” were usually just dark satire, as opposed to serious commentary.

In contrast, on their latest release, album-closer “Burnt Ice” is a highly serious look at the consequences of drug use. Similarly, “Gears of War” is supposed to be a parody of the military, but instead ends up just sounding too serious for its own good.

Songwriter and bandleader Dave Mustaine's newfound Christianity could very well be an influence on more “serious” writing, but even that shouldn't put him in a straitjacket against writing better lyrics.

However, even if Mustaine is starting to run out of steam after 20 years of writing, at least he still has good taste in guitarists. Glenn Drover, Megadeth's eighth and newest guitarist, is so skilled it's scarcely believable.

When combined with Mustaine's guitar virtuosity, the two make a great pair and sound like they have been trading off solos for years. While the two don't get into the “Rust in Peace” era practice of throwing out 10 solos per song (except on “Burnt Ice”), the one or two that are there make even the most boring songs more worthwhile and memorable.

However, new drummer Sean Drover (Glenn's brother) can't match the brutal attack established by forerunners like Gar Samuelson and Nick Menza, and he spends most of the album doing absolutely nothing but keeping time. While this may be an admirable pursuit, Megadeth drummers have always been skilled soloists as well as timekeepers.

Similarly, new bassist James Lomenzo is the third bassist to try filling the shoes of Megadeth co-founder Dave “Junior” Ellefson, and he, like the others, fails miserably.

While Lomenzo's bass is audible through “United,” it never is particularly interesting, and he usually just doubles the guitar riffs. However, both he and S. Drover are relatively skilled at their instruments, enough that someone with no musical experience wouldn't find a problem with their playing.

Interestingly, the most memorable song isn't at all new. “À Tout le Monde (Set Me Free)” is simply a reworking of the rather boring song “À Tout le Monde” from Megadeth's 1994 album “Youthanasia.”

While the lyrics are still contrived, somewhat-emotional garbage, a duet between Mustaine and Lacuna Coil singer Cristina Scabbia gives the song more punch than the original. Also, Mustaine's handling of the French chorus (“À tout le monde/ À tout mes amis/ Je vous aime/ Je dois partir”) is much better the second time around, and his accent is far less obnoxious.

However, this still doesn't really warrant “À Tout le Monde” being the album's first single. (See video below.) Maybe it's just me, but most bands try to put out a song nobody has heard before as their new album's first single. The release of “Washington is Next!” as the second single eases the pain a little, but it still seems to me a stupid idea.

So to answer the question fans are asking, this is not the return to form we've been waiting for since the early 1990s. In fact, 2004's “The System has Failed” seems to have come as close to that as Megadeth are going to get.

If you're not already a fan, “United Abominations” isn't going to make you a convert. Conversely, if you're a longtime fan it isn't going to make you hate the band. All in all, it's just one more step toward a veteran band's eventual retirement.

VIDEO: “À TOUT LE MONDE” (first single from Megadeth's new album)

Note: This video was posted on YouTube by the band's record company

RELATED

— External link: Megadeth's MySpace page (listen to new songs here)

— External link: Megadeth's official site