Welcome to Retro-Reviews, a space where I indulge in my own nostalgic reveries, reminiscing about a time that never truly existed, but one that I’ve crafted through various random albums that hold significance for me. Whether good or bad, one thing is certain: remembering can be a bittersweet journey.
It’s 1990, believe it or not, a pretty good year for humanity overall. Germany becomes one country again, the Cold War is practically over, Mandela is released after decades in prison, Iraq invades Kuwait (okay, maybe not so good after all). Oh right! The Metal! An iconic year for our music with releases from Obituary, Bathory, and Entombed. But today, we’re talking about the one that probably had the most impact on “pop culture” (or as the higher classes like to call it: “what comes out when you have none of your own and just need to consume goods”)—Megadeth‘s Rust in Peace.
Why am I covering such an overexplored and even overloved album? Do we desperately want the clout? Well, yes and no. We’re writing about one of the top 5 most iconic Thrash albums because one of our followers would like to hear our smug opinion about it, and we live for our followers! Also, before you think we’re trying to say Ride the Lightning sucks, since it just turned 40, you’re wrong. Picking between these two is like choosing between your children (your parents have a favorite, but they’ll never tell; it’s not “PC”).
Have you ever seen that meme that summarizes every Megadeth song as “the government sucks, here’s 15 guitar solos?” This is the album where that stereotype came from. It’s full of face-melting guitar solos. However, what I’ve always loved about Rust is the stark contrast between the clean and theoretically gorgeous solos Marty can perform and the bar-fight/drunkard hysterical aggression of Dave’s solos. They’re like the Yin and Yang of guitar shredding: the guy who made it through music school and the guy who got kicked out for not paying attention. Both equally talented, but most importantly, equally passionate about reshaping Thrash forever.
It’s always baffled me that this album came out in the 90s, making it a crepuscular Thrash album, or for you uncultivated swine, an album that represents the end of an era (you know, like The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, if you dig old Westerns like me). So everything hinted that the time for old Thrash was up, and yet Rust is some of the best, if not the best, of its kind. It says goodbye to the 80s, an era of excesses, as it should be, with a bang!
Hate books have been written about Dave’s voice, and I must say it’s an acquired taste. But in Rust, he reaches that balance between angry brat and old hillbilly that to me just sounds iconic and irreplaceable in Megadeth. Love it or hate it, nobody can make weird sounds like that but the OG. It’s true that the band has other great albums, but they could never reach these heights again. Then name a band that did (say Metallica please, so the comment section turns into war; we thrive on controversy after all!). Plus, don’t you miss this production? Yes, it’s dated, but it sounds alive, crunchy, and has its own personality. It couldn’t foresee the cookie-cutter mold some Seath and Black Metal would become.
It’s strange because I believe Rust should sound way more dated than it does, especially when you check the lyrics that are, being polite, an absolute teen mess typical of the bands of those days. There’s nothing poetic to read between the lines. Fortunately, everything else shines through, and no other album before or after had this style. If Metallica was like a one-way, enormous and monstrous train, Megadeth was a spider-web of thin and complex railings. The beauty of Rust is in its details, which makes it an easy replay for the ages.
I won’t say anything new by declaring that Rust in Peace is an absolute must for every Metalhead out there. Even if you deeply hate Megadeth, even if you hate its band members (who aren’t afraid of the most awkward and disturbing controversies), you should give it a chance. What am I saying? You probably did already, and you’re just passing by to confirm your bias or enrage because you disagree with all your cold heart. Either way, you can’t just remain indifferent to this classic.
Shotout to elvenqueenofmetal! Who came up with this week’s suggestion. Follow her YT channel here!
Label: Capitol
Release date: 27 September, 1990
Website: https://www.facebook.com/Megadeth
Country: USA
Score: It’s really pointless for this one!
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