NEED TO KNOW
The final Megadeth tour will only feature its current members, according to Dave Mustaine.
The iconic thrash metal band is releasing its final album later this month and subsequently heading out on a farewell tour. Mustaine opened up to Guitar World in a new interview about why fans won’t see any past members on stage for the upcoming shows.
The band’s founding vocalist and guitarist first explained Megadeth has “already done that” by bringing back former member Marty Friedman for a surprise appearance in 2023. “And I mean, let’s look at the other people we’ve played with, there’s a lot of people,” said Mustaine of the group, which currently also features James LoMenzo, Dick Verbeuren and Teemu Mäntysaari.
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Since Megadeth was formed in 1983, over a dozen additional members have been part of the band at different times. “That would be a huge undertaking,” added Mustaine.
“I don’t think I want to do that,” he said. “I’d rather keep doing what we’re doing and let the fans [experience] Megadeth music and be happy about it. It’s not ‘puppet show Megadeth.’”
Mustaine made similar comments in an interview on SiriusXM’s Trunk Nation last month. “I just can’t — I can’t. Because, first off, it would be unfair to the other band members if I didn’t play with them as well,” he said at the time.
The band’s upcoming self-titled album comes out on Jan. 23, with a world tour kicking off Feb. 15 and continuing through September.
In August, Megadeth announced its retirement will come after the album and tour. “There’s so many musicians that have come to the end of their career, whether accidental or intentional,” wrote Mustaine in a statement at the time.
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“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.
The statement concluded, “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.”
