Rhythm & Views

Megadeth

It's always a hard pill to swallow when realizing that one of the most anticipated albums of the year is a major disappointment. This is the unfortunate case for metal legend Dave Mustaine, and the rebirth of Megadeth.

In April 2002, Mustaine disbanded Megadeth after 20 years of dominance, due to a severe arm injury. With much time spent in physical therapy, he managed to miraculously recover from his "career-ending injury."

Mustaine recruited a slew of musicians, including old Megadeth guitarist Chris Poland, to help record The System Has Failed. Driven by beliefs of corruption ranging from politics to religion to health care, Mustaine felt ready to step up to bat once again.

Whereas "the system" may have failed, depending on who you ask, so has this album. Simply put: It sucks.

For the most part, The System Has Failed sounds like a mediocre hodgepodge of the Megadeth catalog. A song about reflecting on the good days of metal, "Back in the Day," sounds like a jam session gone haywire. With three unexplained musical changes, the song causes listener to wonder what track they are listening to.

The chorus in "Tears in a Vial" seems like a pathetic confession to Mustaine's former bandmates about originally disbanding the group: "I had to walk away / Give up something I love / For what I loved even more / And save my tears for you."

An annoying trend throughout the album is the numerous guitar solos in each song. If Dave Mustaine wanted to prove to the world that he can still play guitar and be considered one of the greatest axmen in metal history, it sure seems like somebody is in major need of a pat on the back.