Megadeth: Countdown To Extinction : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Megadeth, which used to be notorious for its frequent upheavals, seems to be settling down. Not only has its outspoken leader, guitarist and singer, Dave Mustaine, gotten married and become a father since the release of Rust in Peace in 1990, but the band's fifth full-length album, Countdown to Extinction, is the second consecutive LP to be recorded by its present lineup. And for the first time, all four members have collaborated on the writing, which takes up such issues as endangered species ("Countdown to Extinction"), the spoils of war ("Symphony of Destruction"), the American dream ("Foreclosure of a Dream"), the plights of prison inmates and other social misfits ("Captive Honour," "Skin o' My Teeth," "Sweating Bullets") and the group's new high – sky diving ("High Speed Dirt").

While Countdown echoes the band's earlier work thematically, it's stylistically disappointing: The music, which is considerably more subdued than anything Megadeth has ever done, sounds formulaic; the musicianship is pedestrian; and the album as a whole seems to have been written for marketability rather than merit. Nothing on the album compares with the brilliance of either "Holy Wars ... the Punishment Due" or "Hangar 18," on Rust in Peace. The only song that even begins to approximate the drive of earlier albums is "Ashes in Your Mouth."

Put simply, Countdown just does not measure up. Even though it was never as technically advanced as Slayer, Megadeth, from its inception, was in the vanguard of metal bands. What attracted its fans were the passion, energy and variety of its music. All of these qualities have been watered down on Countdown to Extinction. This smoother, mellower sound may attract a wider audience, but original fans should quite rightly feel let down.