aaamusic | On 10, Dec 2012

Megadeth Shmegadeth, Dave Mustaine is a Right Wing, homophobic, reactionary cunt who genuinely believes that President Obama staged the Aurora, Colorado shootings and others like it in order to ban guns in the US and supported Rick Santorum’s presidential campaign. I honestly couldn’t give less of a shit whether it makes me a bad journalist if these facts influence what I think of a record that he’s involved with but they do. Sue me. On a related note we’re looking at metal super group Red Lamb’s debut record, co-produced and lyrically co-written by Mustaine, this has his hateful finger prints all over it, but I’ll do my best to ignore that and focus on the side of things that doesn’t involve him. In all seriousness Mustaine has very little to do with the band itself, Red Lamb is a duo made up of Anthrax guitarist Dan Spitz and Vocalist Don Chaffin with help from Patrick Johansson on the drums and Chris Vrenna on synths as “Brothers in arms” in their words. Despite several lofty claims by the band that this is “Music for a new era” (seriously), the sound is, on the whole pretty bog standard thrash, like early nineties Anthrax with less interesting riffs, hooks… less interesting everything basically. On first listen this doesn’t seem to be for anyone except hardcore Anthrax bods, and I’m not confident that any further exploration will change my mind, but never say I don’t work for your love because I’m going in again…
So now I can say for certain that the best I can say about this album is that it makes you nod your head. At points it might make you tap your foot. Otherwise this is just tired. Musically it’s the same mothballed thrash riffs recycled over Chaffin’s embarrassingly cliché vocals, lyrically it’s toe curling and the production makes it sound like a set of professional demos, everything that could make it raw and exciting ironed out and everything that could make it sound professional and accomplished just… what, not put in? Forgotten about? Just wasn’t worth the effort? I’m going to go with the latter. In the deepest depths of my journalistic integrity I can find it in myself to say that the backing tracks are pretty solid, nobody’s going to listen to this album and say that Dan Spitz can’t play guitar, or that Patrick Johansson can’t drum (he might actually be the best part of the record incidentally, it’s not saying much but hell, I’ll take what I can get) it’s the way it’s recorded and what’s going on over the top of it that totally kneecaps it.
Even when the lyrics are halfway decent, like on the passionate protest song Puzzle Box, about the treatment of Autistic kids in America (to which every sale of the album donates 50 cents to, which might be the only all around good thing this sorry venture has given us), Chaffin’s grunting, gurning vocals would make Steel Panther cringe, and it’s nigh on unbearable when they aren’t, like on Watchman’s genuinely infuriating attempt at satire. In all only Megadeth and Anthrax mega fans need apply, and even then only the most profoundly deluded would think this was anything other than a total waste of their time. I conclude with message to those people, go to Google, find your nearest local venue, see what struggling, unsigned Metal bands are playing there and then go and see them, cos chances are they have more exciting ideas, more drive and they’ll need your money more than these past it millionaires ever will. Although, give a little to Autism Speaks before you do, it’s a good cause and it’ll mean this album will have done some good in the world, sound good? Good.

★★★★★

Will Howard