Megadeth
Peace Sells...But Who's Buying?

THE REVIEW

"Peace Sells. . . but Who's Buying?" 

That's the title of the second album by Dave Mustaine and company, known as Megadeth. After the debut "Killing is my Business", which boasted a production made with a Nokia cell phone, the band’s leader gradually manages to shed the frustration that had plagued him for some time, and yes... it seems that being kicked out of Metallica only caused a huge wound to his pride.

But to give an opinion, who is Dave Mustaine? Mustaine is a classic spoiled kid, moody and sometimes a bit of a bully, someone who believes the world revolves around his ideas. This is evident in his career, a career chasing those who rejected him, constantly changing (trying to) perfect and then changing again. Furthermore, just listen to how he showcases his (excellent) guitar skills: hyper-solos from a metal macho, an attempt to demonstrate his executive superiority to the fans and blatantly to his former bandmates, a pathetic and banal gesture. Dave and Lar$ Ulrich are two irritating figures in the metal scene...

Back to the album. As we said, dear Mustaine, by shedding the deepest wounds of his past, manages to have a reference point to play with, a line still influenced by the genre that got him started, but transforming it into something raw and at the same time very technical. What will emerge is a new kind of thrash metal, with a speed twist. The problem is that the tracks, being raw in every respect, often turn out to be boring and lacking in ideas, although the technique is there, and it is perfectly noticeable. Another flaw is the voice. While in subsequent albums like "Rust in Peace", the melody might reach adequacy, here it doesn’t even get to expiry, it’s so absurd it’s original in its style, this is a thrash voice, with a punk background. And with this, I finish the premise.

Guitar break and the first track "Wake Up Dead" starts, one of the few best tracks on the album. There’s no point describing the dirty sound and composition, a perfect Thrash metal with no nuances or outlines. Dave brilliantly showcases his guitar skills alongside his former accompanist (who would become a future rival) Chris Poland, but what's absurd is his voice, lacking in melody and any quality.
The second track "The Conjuring" is one of those songs that leave an unfillable void until the end, all copied and zero creativity.
"Peace Sells" is a classic from the band, good bass line composed by David Ellefson that follows slow and heavy riffs, the track gains liveliness towards the end with Gar Samuelson's drumming.
"Devil’s Island" is, in my opinion, the best track on the album, notable Metallica influences, riffs are played to be catchy, even the solos, although leaning towards being poorly delivered, are executed with significant executive skill.
"Good Mourning/Black Friday" is a track that’s too immature, something good could have come out if tried to develop it a bit, instead, the result is just a boring episode (and it’s not the only one).
The fifth track "Bad Omen" is the umpteenth monotonous Megadeth track, you can have a good overdose of these copied riffs and solos, listen to test it out.
The album falls to the edge with the last two tracks that seem to change face, the crude and vulgar sound of the guitars transforms into two lively tracks with a melodic touch, "I Ain’t Superstitious" and "My Last Words" close this album with half-closed eyes.

An album so raw and devoid of composition that it completely erases the word originality, the songs all seem to have come from the same father, similar and monotonous, not to mention the majesty of Mustaine’s voice! Over time Dave will elaborate on his tracks trying to give them personality and distinction, while in the year this CD was released, two undisputed masterpieces like "Reign in Blood and Master Of Puppets" came out, unfortunately, Megadeth did not do this.