Megadeth’s David Ellefson – ‘As an Instrumental CD,’ New Record Would Be an ‘Amazing Prog-Metal Album’

At the beginning of April, Dave Mustaine revealed he was wrapping up vocals for Megadeth’s new album, and now we’re starting to get some insight on what to expect from the forthcoming release. During a recent chat with Metal Rules, bassist David Ellefson revealed his approval of what’s coming, stating, “We could have released it as an instrumental CD, and it would be an amazing prog-metal record. It was enjoyable to listen to.”

During the chat, Ellefson made note to offer praise to Dirk Verbeuren, who is making his first album recording experience with the band after joining their touring for the Dystopia album.

“Dirk was a weapon in the arsenal that we really wanted to maximize,” said Ellefson. “The drumming in Megadeth has been held to a very high standard, with Gar Samuelson, Nick Menza, Jimmy DeGrasso and Chris Adler, as we have had some of the best in the business. Dirk is a guy who is a great writer who writes riffs and drum parts, and it was fun to push him to do things that were almost insanely impossible to play but were easy for him.”

He added, “It’s great to have guys in the band that you can put anything in front of them, and they can play. That takes things to another level. We listened to all the tracks and were blown away.”

In February, Mustaine revealed that the lyrics were done for the record and teased that there will be a cover song on the upcoming release, adding that he was “pretty stoked” about the choice.

In early January, the singer-guitarist also revealed that the album had the working title of The Sick, The Dying and the Dead, though he admitted that it could change. He also played an audio clip of music he’d been working on during a Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp Masterclass.

No official title or release plans have been revealed of yet, but it does appear Megadeth are in the home stretch of finalizing their new record.