Megadeth - Endgame

By Brian Hastie - Countdown To Armageddon - 09/15/2009

Megadeth
Endgame
Roadrunner Records

    If anything, Megadeth mainman Dave Mustaine must be applauded for his workmanlike ethic. The rather eccentric frontman/guitarist lay down the 'deth moniker earlier on in the millenium, only to decide to reform with new members for a pair of highly satisfactory albums (2004's The System Has Failed and 2007's United Abominations). These albums found Mustaine abandoning his desire to come up with "monster anthems"/hyper-accessible songs and instead become a veritable Memorable Riff Machine (patent pending). Both albums had great vocal melodies engaging songs and a the aforementioned avalanche of great six-string elements, so much so that nary  a track could be labelled "filler". It's too bad, though, that with Endgame, Mustaine has dropped the ball. The entire 45-minute record reeks of a certain brand of sameness that's not outright unlikeable, yet somehow grows tiresome far sooner than you hoped it would. Lead single "Head Crusher" sounds almost indistinguishable than "This Day We Fight!" and "Bodies", with fast-paced riffing and a healthy dose of double-bass drum patterns. Upon multiple listens, one can kind of pinpoint differences in songs but it largely remains a body of familiar work, respectable though far from original. The situation's beginning to look a lot more AC/DC-like...
3/5
R. Brian Hastie