•
Rating:
Megadeth – So Far, So Good… So what! (1988)
Third album, the moment of truth. Mascot well-positioned on the cover, a war-impact image, planet Earth in the background as if to say, “we'll deal with you later.” Many things happened just before this album: Chris Poland and Gar Samuelson, respectively guitar and drums, were fired. In their place, Jeff Young, a guitar instructor with a degree, and Chuck Behler, Samuelson's drum technician, were hired. Was this a wise choice? The question is poorly posed. Choice? We're not there yet. Let me explain. To replace the two original members properly, Mustaine and Ellefson (respectively vocals/guitar and bass/backing vocals) would probably have had to call Allan Holdsworth and Terry Bozzio, given the level of Poland and Samuelson.
The magic of the first two albums, among the finest examples of how metal can be original and diverse, has almost completely vanished. With this album, Megadeth realigned themselves but effectively became another band. Sure, Mustaine's compositional skills were becoming more and more confident, but it is evident that, even though we are facing another excellent chapter for a band that had only taken its first steps 4 years earlier, the result does not hold up well compared to its predecessor.
The sophistication of the first two albums does not find its proper continuation here, and if in the recent past the group had surprised us with elaborate, eclectic, and memorable tracks, here the music becomes more bare, almost punk rock. To understand what Mustaine and Ellefson had in mind when they fired Poland and Samuelson instead of continuing until today with the same lineup, we would need to ask them directly. The drop in the musical discourse’s tone is evident in the choice to record "Anarchy In The UK" by the Sex Pistols when not long before the band had amazed the music world with two beautiful reinterpretations of "These Boots" by Nancy Sinatra and "I Ain't Superstitious" by Willie Dixon. The production is muddled, although it holds up. The album, recorded at Music Grinder in Los Angeles, had Paul Lani, who had already worked with the group on “Peace Sells,” as producer. It's said that Mustaine fired Lani after seeing him at sunrise feeding a deer with an apple while still in his underwear. At this point, Michael Wagner was hired to finish the job, but the situation was at the height of madness. Personal issues, internal conflicts, and the manager who quit after the ousting of Poland and Samuelson. The band hit rock bottom. After the support tour for the album, Mustaine detoxified from various substances, and shortly before, so did Ellefson. Jeff Young was fired for allegedly making advances towards Mustaine’s partner, and Chuck Behler lost his place (apparently) due to an excessive passion for drugs. The group would take a very short break and then restart with drummer Nick Menza, who was, ironically, Chuck Behler's drum technician.
Tracklist Lyrics and Samples
02 Set the World Afire (05:50)
Red flash clouds choking out the morning sky
They said it'd never come, we knew it was a lie
All forms of life die now the humans all succumb
Time to kiss your ass goodbye the end has just begun
Distorted figures walk the street, it's 1989
Weeds once underneath your feet have grown to vines
Bodies melted like a candle, a land without a face
No time to change your fate, no time left, it's too late
The arsenal of Megadeth can't be rid they said
And if it comes, the living will envy the dead
Racing for power, and all come in last
No winning first stone cast
This falsehood worldly peace
It's treaties soon will cease
No one will be left to prove that humans existed
Maybe soon the children will be born open fisted
We all live on one planet it will all go up in smoke
Too bad they couldn't see this lethal energy
And now the final scene, a global darkening
Dig deep the piles of rubble and ruins
Towering overhead both far and wide
There's unknown tools for World War III
Einstein said "We'll use rocks on the other side"
No survivors set the world afire
03 Anarchy in the U.K. (03:02)
Right now
I am an Anti-Christ,
And I am an anarchist
Don't know what I want, but I know how to get it,
I want to destroy, possibly?
Cause I want to be Anarchy
No dog's body
Anarchy for the USA
It's coming sometime it maybe
I give a wrong time, stop a traffic light
Your future dream is a shopping spree
Cause I want to be Anarchy,
In the city
Of many ways to get what you want
I use the best, I use the rest
I use the enemy,
I use anarchy
Cause I want to be Anarchy,
It's the only way to be
Is this the MPLA?
Is this the UDA?
Is this the IRA?
I thought it was the USA, or just another country
And other cunt-like tendencies
Cause I want to be Anarchy, cause I want to be Anarchy,
You know what I mean?
Cause I want to be an Anarchist,
Again I'm pissed, destroy!
04 Mary Jane (04:27)
Forgive me father for I have sinned
I'm a child of the air, I'm a witch of the wind
And I'm still awake... Mary Jane
From the earth, up through the trees
I can hear her calling me
Her voice rides on the breeze
Oh, it's haunting me
No, I can't get away
No, there's no escape
If I know I'm going crazy
I must not be insane
Beware my friends, as you pass by
As you are now so once was I
As I am now so you must be
Prepare my friends to follow me
Forgive me father for I have sinned
I'm a child of the air, I'm a witch of the wind
Fingers gripped around my brain
No control, my mind is lame
I'm in the astral plane, and I'll never be the same
Never, never, never, never, never, never
Never, never, never
Beware my friends, as you pass by
As you are now so once was I
As I am now so you must be
Prepare my friends to follow me
It hurts so bad I can't breathe
Prepare to follow me
05 502 (03:30)
Pull over, shithead, this is the cops
Full tank, pockets lined with cash
Full throttle, gonna rip some ass.
Drive all day, and through the night,
Romance the road, winding left and right.
The stars above guide me, the moonlight is free.
A feeling inside me, and the whole world to see.
Driving fast makes me feel good,
The speed of light trapped under my hood.
Breaking laws, 'cause there's nothing to do.
Driving the interstate, stopped for a 502
Hundreds of miles rolled off today.
Signs lose their meaning, minutes tick away.
Dirt roads to interstates, I must have drove them all.
Cigarettes and burgers, caffeine and alcohol.
Drive until daybreak, always on the go.
Life on the freeway, night shift till dawn patrol.
Driving fast makes me feel good,
The speed of light trapped under my hood
Breaking laws 'cause there's nothing to do.
Driving the interstate, stopped for a 502.
Stopped for a 502, next time it's gonna be you.
Stars above guide me
This feeling inside me.
I drive until daybreak.
Life on the freeway is Hell.
I'm coming through.
06 In My Darkest Hour (06:18)
In my hour of need
ha! no, you're not there...
and though I reached out for you
wouldn't lend a hand.
Through the darkest hour
grace did not shine on me.
It feels so cold, very cold
no one cares for me.
Did you ever think I get lonely ?
did you ever think that I needed love ?
did you ever think to stop thinking ?
you're the only one that I'm thinking of...
You'll never know how hard I tried
to find my space and satisfy you too.
Things will be better when I'm dead and gone
don't try to understand, knowing you I'm probably wrong.
But, oh, how I lived my life for you!
still you'd turn away
now as I die for you,
my flesh still crawls, as I breathe your name
all these years I thought I was wrong
now I know it was you!
Raise you head, raise your face your eyes
tell me, who you think you are?
I walk, I walk alone
into the promised land.
There's a better place for me
but it's far, far away
Everlasting life for me
in a perfect world
but I gotta die first,
please god send me on my way !
Time has a way of taking time,
Loneliness is not only felt be fools.
Alone I call to ease the pain,
yearning to be held by you.
Alone so alone, I'm lost
Consumed by the pain
the pain, the pain, the pain.
Won't you hold me again?
And you just laughed, ha! ha! Bitch !
My whole life is work built on the past
but the time has come when all things shall pass
this good thing passed away.
In my darkest hour.
07 Liar (03:22)
You take great pride in never having lived up to anything
Lie, steal, cheat and kill, a real bad guy
Your daddy is a wino, and your mommy is quite insane
From altar boy to sewer rate, you don't give a damn
Your sister's a junkie, gets "it" anyway she can
Your brother's a gay singer in a stud leather band
Your girlfriend's got herpes to go with your hep and AIDS
There ain't one person you know you ain't ripped off yet
Look deep in the mirror, look deep into its eyes
Your face is replaced, a creature you despise
But I know what you're made of, it ain't much I'm afraid
I know you'll be lying until your dying day
Make up your stories, the truth's so hard to say
Brain is numb and your tongue will surely dig your grave
Your mind is sickly from Alzheimer's Disease
And decadence and debauchery killed your memories
You're a liar, liar, liar, everyone can see
You're a liar, liar, it's all you'll ever be
Liar, liar, liar, it's what you mean to me
Liar, liar, lies....
Start trouble, spread pain
Piss and venom, in your veins
Talk nasty, breathe fire
Smell rotten, you're a liar
Sweat liquor, breathe snot
Eat garbage, spit blood
Diseased, health hazard
Scum bag, filthy bastard
Greasy face, teeth decay
Hair matted, drunk all day
Absessed, sunken veins
Rot gut, scrambled brains
Steal money, crash cars
Rob jewelry, hock guitars
Rot in hell, it's time you know
To your master, off you go
You're a liar
A fucking liar
Filthy liar
Liar
You fucking liar
Liar
08 Hook in Mouth (04:40)
A cockroach in the concrete
Courthouse tan and beady eyes
A slouch with fallen arches
Purging truths into great lies
A little man with a big eraser
Changing history
Procedures that he's programmed to do
All he hears and sees
Altering the facts and figures
Eventus and every issue
Make a person disappear
And no one will ever miss you
Rewrites every story
Every poem that ever was
Eliminates incompetence
And those who break the laws
Follow the instructions of the New Ways' Evil Book of Rules
Replacing rights with wrongs
The files and records in the schools
You say you've got the answers
Well who asked you anyway?
Ever think maybe it was meant to be this way?
Don't try to fool us
We know the worst is yet to come
I believe my kingdom will come
F is for fighting
R is for red, ancestors' blood in battles they've shed
E we elect them
E we eject them, in the land of the free, and the home of the brave
D for dying
O your overture
M they will cover your grave with manure
This spells out freedom, it means nothing to me
As long as there's a P.M.R.C. (repeat)
Put your hand right up my shirt
Pull the strings that make me work
Jaws will part, words fall out
Like a fish with hook in mouth
Rewrites every story
Every poem that ever was
Eliminates incompetence
And those who break the laws.
Follow the instructions of the New Ways' Evil Book of Rules
Replacing rights with wrongs
The files and records in the schools
I'm not a fish
I'm a man
Hook in Mouth!
Loading comments slowly
Other reviews
By So che?
"Megadeth's arsenal is unleashed, with Mustaine's voice fantastic, angry and clear at the same time."
"How can you not get hyped while listening to '502' while driving? Forget about the morning grind, I’m pumped for the evening."
By FedeHetfield
"The cover, however, seems made for a video game, which despite this comparison, is undeniably unique in its style."
"So Far, So Good... So What? is what I consider a good Thrash metal album, no more no less."
