Posts Tagged ‘megadeth’

Megadeth Bassist David Ellefson Penning Autobiography ‘My Life With Deth’

Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has been busy at work on his official autobiography. The founding Megadeth musician is approaching the band’s 30th anniversary along with frontman Dave Mustaine , the only other original member still with the legendary thrash act. The memoir, ‘My Life With Deth,’ will tackle subjects such as the band’s road to iconic status, addiction and much more. This won’t be Ellefson’s first endeavor penning a book, as the bassist released ‘Making Music your Business: A Guide for Young Musicians’ in 1997. Fifteen years later, Ellefson returns to writing with some help from author Joel McIver, who has written biographies on bands such as Black Sabbath , Slayer , Metallica , Tool and many others. According to Blabbermouth , Ellefson’s autobiography will also feature contributions from Slayer’s Kerry King , Anthrax’s Scott Ian , current Megadeth bandmate Shawn Drover and former bandmates Chris Poland and Marty Friedman. “My autobiography is not the usual tale of rock ‘n’ roll woe, but rather something I hope will truly inspire people,” says Ellefson. “I have dedicated my life to my craft, and I wanted to share the story of how a kid with a bass guitar and the dream of rock stardom literally risked it all to move from the farm in Minnesota to Los Angeles, and with a lot of hard work, sacrifice and a little luck along the way, made the dream come true.” The bassist continues, “I think the readers will enjoy the stories, as well as the hardships, of this way of life as a musician and artist. I’ve been very open about my life’s obstacles and the means by which I overcame them. Now, my hope is that this story will inspire others to follow their dreams and really live out the purpose for their lives, too.” The official release date for David Ellefson’s ‘My Life With Deth’ will be announced in early 2013. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/best-megadeth-songs/” title=”10 Best Megadeth Songs” align=”center”]

New Species of Tarantula Named After Megadeth Frontman Dave Mustaine

Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com Scientists love metal, it’s a fact. With the metal gods guiding his way, Brent E. Hendrixson, Ph.D. discovered a new species of tarantula in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona. After Hendrixson uncovered the spider, he put down his guitar and wiped off his corpse paint, held the tarantula to the sky and let out a mighty roar. From that moment on, the species would be forever known as Aphonopelma Davemustainei, after Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine . Metal musicians have inspired the official scientific names of various new species in the 21st Century. In 2006, Dr. Mats E. Eriksson named a genus of extinct marine polycheaete annelid worm, Kalloprion Kilmisteri, was dedicated to Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister . This year, the same doctor discovered the jaws of an unclassified marine worm. In keeping with his heavy metal tradition, the marine worm was christened ‘ Kingnites Diamondi ‘ after legendary vocalist King Diamond . After learning of the new tarantula species which now bears his name, Dave Mustaine posted a picture of the spider on his Twitter page, sharing his excitement with his fans. How cool is this? I got my own tarantula named after me! Totally metal!!! twitter.com/DaveMustaine/s… — Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) December 12, 2012 There are currently more than 850 classified species of tarantula, although it is believed that there are at least double that amount in existence. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/2013-grammy-awards-best-hard-rock-metal-performance-nominees-anthrax-halestorm-iron-maiden-lamb-of-god-marilyn-manson-megadeth/” title=”Megadeth Nominated for 2013 Grammy Award” align=”center”]

2013 Grammy Nominees for Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance: Anthrax, Halestorm, Iron Maiden, Lamb of God, Marilyn Manson + Megadeth

Recording Academy While hard rock and metal bands were snubbed in most of the categories for the 2013 Grammy Awards that were announced tonight (Dec. 5), the one category devoted to those genres features a diverse range of nominees. The Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance category boasts nominations for Anthrax , Halestorm , Iron Maiden , Lamb of God , Marilyn Manson and Megadeth . Of all those acts, only Iron Maiden has previously won a Grammy. Anthrax are nominated for ‘I’m Alive’ off their album ‘Worship Music,’ while Halestorm got a nod for ‘Love Bites (So Do I)’ from their full-length effort ‘The Strange Case Of …’ Meanwhile, Iron Maiden scored a mention for ‘Blood Brothers’ from their ‘En Vivo’ CD/DVD and Lamb of God got a nod for ‘Ghost Walking’ from their ‘Resolution’ album. Finally, Marilyn Manson earned a nomination for ‘No Reflection’ off ‘Born Villain, while Megadeth scored a mention for ‘Whose Life (Is It Anyways?)’ from their album ‘TH1RT3EN.’ Congrats to all of those acts for representing hard rock and metal at the upcoming 55th annual Grammy Awards taking place on Feb. 10, 2013 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The event will air live on CBS at 8PM ET. In other rock categories, the Black Keys and Jack White led the way with multiple nominations. Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Anthrax, ‘I’m Alive’ Halestorm, ‘Love Bites (So Do I)’ Iron Maiden, ‘Blood Brothers’ Lamb of God, ‘Ghost Walking’ Marilyn Manson, ‘No Reflection’ Megadeth, ‘Whose Life (Is It Anyways?)’ [button href=”http://loudwire.com/rock-song-of-the-year-2012-loudwire-music-awards/” title=”Next: Vote in the 2012 Loudwire Music Awards” align=”center”]

Megadeth Frontman Dave Mustaine Chalks Up Obama Re-Election Comments as ‘Stage Fodder’

Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com Barack Obama has been re-elected president and Megadeth leader Dave Mustaine is still an American citizen. The rocker, who made headlines earlier this year suggesting he might move out of the country if the president was re-elected, says his comments were primarily “stage fodder.” The vocalist tells Atlantic City Weekly about his Obama commentary in front of a Singapore audience, “A lot of that was stage fodder … I was just there marveling how beautiful Singapore is and I started thinking about how our nation is changing and I don’t know if we can handle all of the taxation. I know years ago that in England the taxes got so out of control that people left and I can see it happening here. There could be a mass exodus here.” Mustaine went on to add, “There are quite a few musicians who are blessed enough to be making $250,000 or more a year and they will be taxed. I think what will happen is that bands will be dying left and right. What’s happening now is that everything America has been built on will be destroyed.” Regardless of what happens politically, Mustaine says, “I think life will continue on. We’re a strong nation, no matter who is in the White House.” The vocalist has been quite the lightning rod in the past year for some of his comments made onstage and in interviews. However, Mustaine said in a recent interview he’s learned his lesson about voicing his thoughts. “You can’t joke around very much anymore without people misinterpreting what you’re saying,” says the vocalist. “You know, I probably should have said things differently. I probably should’ve skipped that altogether … I learned a valuable lesson from all of this stuff.” Recently, Megadeth have been revisiting their ‘Countdown to Extinction’ album on tour, and Mustaine says the feelings now are similar to when the album was first recorded. He explains, “What’s similar about now and then is that it’s a difficult time in our country. There’s extreme tension now and there was extreme tension then. Maybe that’s why ‘Countdown to Extinction’ is still resonant today.” [button href=”http://loudwire.com/best-megadeth-songs/” title=”Next: 10 Best Megadeth Songs” align=”center”]

Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine Receives Marine Corps Flag Dedication

Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com Megadeth ‘s Dave Mustaine is one of the biggest supporters of America’s military out there, so the frontman definitely took it to heart when Lieutenant Colonel Stephen D. Sklenka of the U.S. Marine Corps dedicated an American flag that was flown over Camp Leatherneck in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan in his honor. Mustaine remarked, “Besides getting married and the birth of my two children, I have never been more proud than this moment. To all of our servicemen and servicewomen, I love you all, and THIS American supports our troops!” On his  Facebook account , the metal frontman posted photos of the dedication, the letter he received from Sklenka , the flag itself, and what appears to be a gold plated bottle opener that were all presented to him as part of the ceremony. The dedication declaration can be seen below. Another thing Mustaine supports is his right to free speech, which he used this summer to suggest to an audience in Singapore that some of the mass shootings over the summer were “ staged ” to help President Obama pass a gun ban. He’s also argued that Obama was “ born somewhere else than America .” Dave Mustaine recently made it to the quarterfinals of our President of Heavy Metal election , but lost out to Rob Zombie. Facebook: Dave Mustaine [button href=”http://loudwire.com/megadeth-dave-mustaine-shares-concerns-vocal-damage-cursing/” title=”Next: Dave Mustaine Shares Concerns Over Vocal Damage + Cursing” align=”center”]

Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine Shares Concerns Over Vocal Damage + Cursing

Kevin Winter, Getty Images Megadeth ‘s Dave Mustaine had his share of health problems over the years, but the recent discovery of vocal damage had him a little concerned. The frontman headed online to his Facebook page to update fans on how he’s holding up. Mustaine has also been working toward a new record and figured it was time to share all things Megadeth, including his health status as well as revealing another recently discovered truth. The leader says that after hearing some of his interviews and watching footage of shows, he realizes his cursing has gotten a little out of hand, and while he may not scale it back completely, he’s definitely more conscious about how much he’s doing it. In his message, he stated: Droogies, I wanted to check in with you as I get ready to start tracking my 14 Megadeth record. For some of you that are new fans; the word ‘Droogie’ may seem a strange way to start a letter, but it means ‘friend’ supposedly in Russian slang. I got the idea to call you that from watching Alex from ‘A Clockwork Orange’ call his two co-conspirators that. So, now you know I ain’t calling you “druggies.” Onward to the update. Last Thursday I went to see an ENT (ear, nose, and throat Doctor), to find out the status of the damage to my vocal chords that they discovered prior to my surgery, and my neck from after the surgery. I was told during the first MRIs that I had a cyst or something on my vocal chords, and I didn’t give it anymore thought, because the fusion was way more important. I still find it laughable that someone I know said I was a p—y while lying in an ER awaiting spinal surgery for contemplating cancelling the BIG 4 show in NYC. I guess the old saying, ‘You spot it — you got it!’ applies here, except I don’t want to offend our female fans by comparing this excrement to a body part of theirs. I walked away from the surgery, which was done after the concert (who’s the p—y now?) and was a complete success, thinking I had nodes or polyps or something, and I wanted to wait until a year after the surgery to go get checked, because I just didn’t want to go under the knife again that soon, if of course I had too. Thank God I don’t. Fortunately, if you can say that, my problem with my vocal chords is treatable, and it is just a matter of exercise, diet, and eating habits. I started drinking Aloe Juice, taking a tablet for my stomach, and I have to cut out some things I like. Coffee is one of things, but since I am not a cheerleader for overpriced — overrated Starbucks, like Thor and Junior, I am not taking this too hard. I am bummed about no chocolate (I love chocolate!), and tomatoes (no spaghetti or pizza), but I am loving this ‘Countdown’ 20th Anniversary tour, and with the new record starting next week, singing is more important to me than ever. Thanks for all of your support through this whole ordeal, and I really, really look forward to seeing you at some point before the end of the year. Check out our support band Kyng and lemme know what you think. I like ‘em and I hope you will too. One last thing, I don’t generally watch video of myself, unless we are mixing or editing something, and over the last few months I had to; for one reason or another. I am really embarrassed by how much I swear or swore on stage and in interviews. I’m not a prude, but I am sorry for my language and some of the offensive words I chose to say. We all have said stuff we regret, and while I don’t ‘regret it’ I do feel that you deserve better from me. Here’s to a great fu– erm, a great flipping new record and tour! Dave Mustaine The singer recently revealed that he’ll be working with acclaimed producer Johnny K. , who has produced hit records for Disturbed , Staind , and 3 Doors Down among others. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/best-megadeth-songs/” title=”Next: 10 Best Megadeth Songs” align=”center”]

James Lomenzo + Mark ‘Abba’ Abbattista Share How Metal Aided Their ‘Amazing Race’ Journey

CBS While viewers have yet to see even see the first episode of the new season of ‘The Amazing Race,’ rockers James LoMenzo and Mark ‘Abba’ Abbattista have completed their journey and now get to reflect on it with the rest of America. LoMenzo, a veteran of Megadeth , Black Label Society , and White Lion who is now a member of Hail!, and his partner on the race and Hail! cohort Abbattista are flying the metal flag on this year’s edition and they told TheGauntlet.com how their time on the road actually benefitted them. LoMenzo says, “The weird thing is Mark and I have traveled all over the world with our band Hail! To me, this is in so many ways, even though we have much more going on, much more enjoyable. For one thing, I didn’t have to carry a guitar on my back getting on airplanes. All we had to carry places was a really light backpack. It was just so much fun having to do nothing but compete everyday.” Abbattista added, “Only having one person yelling at me instead of the whole band was great!” LoMenzo admitted there were a few times during the race where their familiarity to metal fans aided their journey, though not as much as they initially thought might happen. “Things are just so frantic and we never really stayed in one place for very long,” explains LoMenzo. “There were some times it came to our advantage. I don’t know if we’ll see it on the show, but it definitely happened.” Though they could not reveal their fate, the bandmates were one of 11 teams competing for a $2 million dollar prize. By the time the season ends, the winning team will have covered over 25,000 miles spanning three continents. The 21st season of ‘The Amazing Race’ begins tonight (Sept. 30) at 8PM ET/PT on CBS. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/best-megadeth-songs/” title=”Next: Top 10 Megadeth Songs” align=”center”]