We’ve been at this point before. Dave Mustaine initially broke Megadeth up in 2002, due to what was called an arm injury he sustained that left him unable to play guitar. (Fortunately, physical therapy was able to resolve this issue.) Mustaine was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2019; while Megadeth did not disband at that time, there was significant concern that his career could be over. The end result, The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!, proved to be one of Megadeth’s strongest efforts in a long time.
Now, in 2026, Mustaine is stating that he is hanging the Megadeth name up for good. Whether this will last or not, only time will tell. However, if this truly is the last studio effort from Megadeth, then their self-titled release, their 17th studio album overall, has some outstanding moments, but in the end, leaves the listener wanting more from the effort.
Oh, make no mistake, this is not a bad album at all. Mustaine and his ever-revolving band of backing musicians (this time featuring lead guitarist Teemu Mantysaari) have musically lost none of the sharpness they’ve displayed over the past four decades. If anything, it simply proves that Mustaine is Megadeth, and he’s always had the good sense to surround himself with top-notch musicians to bring his vision to fruition.
Indeed, Megadeth opens up with an absolute punch to the throat in “Tipping Point”; while Mustaine’s voice shows the scars of the years of pushing himself to the limit, it also shows that Megadeth still has (had?) lots of gas left in the tank. “I Don’t Care” and “Hey God?!” slow things down a little bit, but in terms of overall power, they keep the pedal pressed to the floor.
It’s when we hit “Let There Be Shred” that Megadeth dips a bit. Again, it’s not that the songs or performances are bad; they simply don’t carry the same emotional punch that the opening tracks had. Songs like “Puppet Parade,” “I Am War” and “Obey The Call” all tend to blur into each other—and, while they’re still enjoyable to listen to, they simply don’t stand out like one would have hoped. Assuming that this is the final Megadeth album, one would have expected it to be non-stop shredders that grabbed the listener by the neck and throttled them into submission.
In fact, it’s not until “The Last Note” that things click back into gear; if this track was truly Mustaine saying goodbye, he chose one of the best songs he’s ever written to be his final bow out of the spotlight. It’s powerful, but also vulnerable, with Mustaine essentially telling the tale of his band’s career in a short period of time with no bitterness or anger, just grace and nostalgia. It would have been the perfect one to close the curtain with.
Thing is, that’s not what the album closes on. Instead, we get the bonus track of Mustaine presenting his take on “Ride The Lightning.” Frankly, Mustaine had every right to record a version of a song he had a hand in writing; if anything, doing this brings us full circle when Megadeth recorded “Mechanix” on Killing Is My Business… And Business Is Good! all those years ago. The issue I have with this version is that it lacks the real power and punch that Megadeth might have put into the song had Mustaine recorded a version in the ’80s or ’90s. It’s not terrible by any means, but, well, it just doesn’t kick my ass like some originals on Megadeth do. And, I’m sorry, but I’ll die on the hill debating that this disc should have closed with “The Last Note” and properly cemented Megadeth’s place in metal history.
Megadeth is a very listenable album and contains some material I’d hold against tracks like “Holy Wars… The Punishment Due,” “Trust” and “Peace Sells, But Who’s Buying” as the high-water marks of the band’s career. I just wish I could say the same for the entire disc.