During an appearance on the latest episode of SiriusXM‘s “Trunk Nation L.A. Invasion,” MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine reflected on departure from band’s longtime bassist David Ellefson.
As previously reported, Ellefson was fired from the group after sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving the 57-year-old musician leaked.
“I don’t really talking about him anymore,” Mustaine now said. “I like telling the funny stories, but I really don’t like talking about that part of things, because the guy that I know and love was a different person.
“Making the change to Steve [DiGiorgio, TESTAMENT bassist who joined MEGADETH to re-record Ellefson‘s bass tracks on the band’s upcoming album, The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!], we needed to do that; we needed to do that for so many reasons. On the outside looking in, there were a few people that were saying that I did the wrong thing, but I’m sorry — for my personal convictions, I just couldn’t have that around us. And even if it wasn’t true, I didn’t want that in my life.
“When Steve came in, he was a wonderful breath of fresh air because he could play the parts [on the new MEGADETH album],” Mustaine continued. “And the parts that were on the record that were there… I did an interview recently and the girl says, ‘Why did you change Dave‘s parts?’ And I thought, ‘You can’t be that stupid. I have to change the parts.’ I didn’t say that to her, but I was thinking that.
“First off, the majority of the bass on the record I played. And it’s demo tracks — we didn’t have all the record recorded yet. When I was in my studio with [engineer] Chris Rakestraw and I’m writing the guitar parts, I picked up the bass and plunked along with it. I mean, it wasn’t terrific, but it was the parts. So when anybody came in to record the parts, whether it was Steve or Dave, the parts were already written and recorded.
“The part about DiGiorgio coming in, it was cool because there was just so much bad going on at the time,” Mustaine added. “It just seemed like the record was gonna keep getting delayed and delayed and delayed. But I believe there’s a spiritual vacuum in my life and that whenever things get really bad, there’s a breakthrough ready to happen. And I know that when things get bad like that, it’s kind of a challenge for the universe to see if I’m gonna stop living my life on the right side of things, if I’m gonna start trying to force things to happen again.
“And that’s not who I am anymore. I think right now we’re sitting on some of the best years ahead of us ever. I feel great. I think I’m playing really well. My relationships with most of the people in my life are really doing good. And I think that the band’s trajectory has just continued to go upward.”
MEGADETH‘s upcoming studio album, The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!, will be released on September 2 via UMe.
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.