Dave Mustaine has explained why Megadeth are covering Metallica‘s ‘Ride The Lightning’ for their final album – see what he had to say below.
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Earlier this week, fans of Megadeth believed they cracked a code in the thrash metal band’s social media posts revealing that they’ve recorded a cover of Metallica’s ‘Ride The Lightning’ on their upcoming self-titled final studio album next year.
Prior to the confirmation that they’ve recorded a cover of ‘Ride The Lightning’, Mustaine teased: “We have 13 new songs for the new album… One of the songs is a cover song but I actually wrote it, so it’s kind of like a cover, kind of like my song.”
While Mustaine was kicked out of Metallica in 1983 before they released their debut album ‘Kill ‘Em All’ and his recordings were re-recorded by Kirk Hammett, Mustaine is credited with writing four songs on the album, and is also credited with writing two tracks on Metallica’s sophomore album: ‘Ride The Lightning’ and ‘The Call of Ktulu’.
Now, Mustaine has spoken to Rolling Stone about ‘Ride The Lightning’, revealing that Megadeth’s recording of the track is more faithful to the version he first wrote for Metallica rather than the James Hetfield-led version that they reworked.
According to Mustaine though, it’s all out of respect for Metallica and his storied past with the band: “It wasn’t really that I wanted to do my version. I think that we all wanted it to turn out a certain way, and for me, this was about something so much more than how a song turns out. It was about respect.”
The respect he feels towards the band is largely pointed towards Hetfield: “No one ever talks to me about that. One day he’s a singer, the next day he’s this fucking powerhouse, and I’ve always respected him as a guitar player.
“So I wanted to do something to close the circle on my career right now, since it started off with Panic and several of the songs that ended up in the Metallica repertoire, I wanted to do something that I felt would be a good song.”
Mustaine went on to explain that the cover happened organically, first through a jamming session, and then later led to the guitarist-singer paying homage to his own legacy: “Our intentions were pure. I didn’t have any reason I was going to say, ‘Oh, hey man, this thing that we’ve had for 40 years where you guys will never tour with me, me doing the song is going to change things.’ That wasn’t it at all. It was more about: This is my life going forward. I want to do things that are respectable. And I think doing something where we can pay honor to the guy that … I mean, I hate to say this, because it’s just so fucking arrogant, but the guitar playing in Metallica changed the world.”
Dave also confirmed that neither James Hetfield nor Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich have heard his re-recording of ‘Ride The Lightning’: “It was not for lack of having the thought or the courage or anything like that. I know the last time James and I talked, we were talking about some business stuff, and I haven’t spoken to him since. So I was hoping that we could get his approval on this before we release the track. But when it turned out the way that it did, I think there were so many people that were happy that we did this, that we just went for it. And I’ll be more than happy to talk to him when I get the opportunity, but I don’t have his number anymore.”
The Megadeth frontman also notes that while it would be nice to reconnect with his former Metallica bandmates, he knows “that time takes time to heal wounds, and I don’t know if we still have that kind of relationship anymore. I know I would like to hang out and listen to new music and goof off and do shit like that, but maybe we’re all too old. I don’t know.”
He also reiterated that more than anything, the ‘Ride The Lightning’ cover “was not to try and rekindle relationships or anything. It was about showing respect to a man that … I don’t believe he thinks I respect him and I wanted to make that clear. I wanted to pay tribute to the band. And just now that I’m getting ready to hang my guitar up, I wanted to make sure that nothing is left unsaid.”
While Mustaine and Megadeth have shared a rocky relationship since his firing, he’s since made up with them, and apart from Megadeth joining the Big Four of Thrash Metal performances with Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax in 2010, Mustaine also joined Metallica for their 30th anniversary concert the following year.
Back in May, Mustaine accused Metallica of stealing the ‘Enter Sandman’ riff from crossover thrash group Excel’s 1989 track ‘Tapping Into The Emotional Void’.
