#Chris Boderick

[youngsouloldmusic]

[cjostrander]

Megadeth: Endgame

Good morning guys! today i will be tackling a Megadeth album that is turning 10 years old in September. In my opinion it is another example of the band’s growing technicality that had dominated the later 00′s up till now. As a result it features a modern spin on their 80′s thrash era as opposed to their mid to late 90′s mainstream rock days. I was thinking it would be a good day to toss in something heavier since most of my recent reviews have touched on more easier listening music (minus Dir en Grey). Hope you guys enjoy this one!

Dialectic Chaos (instrumental): We begin the album off which an instrumental build up for the following track. It presents a good opportunity for Chris Boderick to demonstrate his abilities with the band for the first time on an album (left after the release of Super-collider). Some straightforward riffs warm up over moving drum bashing before bring forth a nice jam instrumental. It showcases some interesting power metal influences and will do a decent job of warming a listener up for this album. I could see some potential in it being a smooth opener for a live show due to its opportunity for an audience to soak in the band’s technicality on a visual level. 8.5/10

This Day We Fight!: This track begins with some furious drum riffs and chaotically fast guitar riffs to churn along with them in perfect harmony. Dave does a solid job of delivery his vocals with a nice sense of throaty angst as well as a interesting sense of calmness. The band showcases their musical chops very easily and show that this album would very likely be fun to see being played live. It also showcases some of the band’s most complicated work in awhile (minus their previous album United Abominations); and will be a very pleasant surprise for any older fans catching up on their recent work. The lyrics are a good focal point and should give the listener plenty of metallic substance to salivate over. So far no real complaints on this well-rounded opener. 10/10

44 Minutes: This track showcases a robbery that happened in california i believe. It uses a steady instrumental support to create a nice level of tension without taking energy from the mix. Dave focuses mainly on delivering a story telling style of two robbers that were decked out in body armor and military grade weapon while robbing an armored car i believe. I don’t have the name of the event present but look it up because it’s a really interesting story. The instrumentals keep this support structure going while the listener pays ample attention to the nature of the lyrics. They do however take plenty of time to deliver plenty of complex and melodic solos for the listener to bask in. It’s another one that would be a decent toss in for a live performance due to the interesting subject matter in the song. 8.5/10

1,320: This track begins with a nice race car effect before guitars arrive to give it a bit of their Countdown to Extinction style of jamming.It takes a little bit of warm up time before Dave arrives to infuse a nice show of energy into the track. The lyrics are decently done and will serve as a good focal point to balance things out as the instrumentals continue to deliver some solid jam instrumentals. The melodic nature of them will be ideal for any fan of 80′s metal; so this album so far is doing a good job of creating an old meets new presence. This definitely is due in part to some well done production as well for the album which shouldn’t be overlooked; because if the instrumentals were mixed terribly there wouldn’t be anywhere near the level of smooth balance on here. 9/10

Bite the Hand: The instrumentals begin with a nice and aggressive rhythm approach and Dave arrives shows up with a decent showing of energy; grit; and firm control in his voice. The lyrics take on a bit more of a political nature unsurprisingly considering his heavy focus on worldly events. The solo is pretty nice and will be hard not to appreciate due to it’s arrival at ideal times; in order to space out the vocals. This helps to keep them purposeful and free of monotony in the song; thus not boring the listener later on in the song. 8.5/10

Bodies: We begin this track with a stronger bass presence in the mix; which works well with the instrumentals to create a more tense rhythm for Dave to work with vocally. His chorus showcases a decent level of melody that will keep the lyrics remaining fresh and of interest to the listener. The slower but firm tempo of the instrumentals will help to decompress the listener a bit from the more intense nature of the previous tracks. It showcases some slower but equally appreciative melodies in the solos that will give the listener added variety in terms of riffs. It will do well to keep the tracks from sounding too familiar in tones and hopefully enable you to be able to pick out your favorites easier. This completes the first half of the album. 9/10

Endgame: This title track begins with a prison audio sample that sets an interesting degree of tension in the track. Dave arrives over more raw riffs to deliver the opening monologue. Its a bit more bumpy of a beginning but gradually shapes together a nice texture for the listener to groove with. The lyrics aren’t as fluid as the previous tracks but as with most of Megadeth’s music; Dave will be able to remain a focal point both instrumentally and vocally. The solos are not as stand out this time around so i could rate this as one of the weaker tracks on the album overall. 7/10

The Hardest Part of Letting Go... Sealed with a Kiss: This is two songs within one that touch on two entirely different subject matters; so it is risky in theory but provides plenty of interest for the listener to come across. It begins with a melodic acoustic riff which infuses a bit of a romantic desert vibe into the album. Strings join with them to give Dave’s vocals a unique style of complexity that is not often found in the band’s work. It does venture into ballad territory and makes a nice touch lyrically on here. The strings remain prominent in the background while the instrumentals shift into more aggressive but controlled territory. It will gradually grow more sinister lyrically and provide the listener with plenty of substance to ponder over. I could see live potential on here due to its ability to stick out as something out of the usual for the band. Not a bad risk track to surprise the listener this late into the album. 8.5/10

Head Crusher (Single): The instrumentals immediately pick up with a good show of chaotic fury and help to showcase a nice bashing element from the drumming. The vocals do get a bit muffled at first by the intensity of the guitars but the lyrics still maintain a firm focus in the mix. The lyrics have an interesting sense of catchiness during the chorus that could get an audience up and moving to a great effect. They due to in some audio sample styled verses to develop the overall theme of the album; which mostly deals with political overreach and fascist style incarceration acts in the USA. The jams on this one will be a very nice stickout point on the album so i wouldnt recommend skipping if going on the browse session; though it is hard to pick what i would skip since the quality is remaining firmly consistent throughout the album. 9/10

How the Story Ends: The guitars begin with a nicely climatic and tense guitar charge that will get the listener feeling renergized. Dave takes on a more casual delivery which leads into a decently catchy chorus segment. The lyrics are bit more simplistic so the strength in the aspect is average in comparison to the previous tracks but the overall tone of the song will help to set the album up effectively for its finale track. It also brings in a nice Spanish guitar vibe to set up for a decently rounded solo to finish off with  8/10

The Right to Go Insane (Single): This finale track and final single is probably the most well known track on this album if any. The music video is interesting and touches on the guy that hijacked a tank and went driving through a city in a tank before being shot dead by police. The guitars begin with a nice rhythm which establishes plenty of tension for the listener to gain interest in. The instrumentals develop a nice and quick rhythm that is nice to dance to a bit and Dave arrives to deliver some pretty straightforward vocals. The chorus doesn’t really bring catchiness but instead focuses on showcasing a strong sense of substance in the lyrics. It proves to be a pretty straightforward end to the album which hopefully will leave the listener feeling content. 8/10

Overall album rating: 8.6/10

Well this one got an expectedly decent score and proves to be one of the band’s stronger albums overall. I recommend checking it out if you are looking for an album that is filled to the brim with tasteful solos and a well rounded vocal performance. I was originally planning to do their album Risk since i’ve mentioned it a lot on previous reviews and it turns 20 years old; but this album was a good one to scratch off the list finally. I hope you guys all enjoy this and tomorrow i will try and jam out another review for you if all goes well.

*Reviewer’s Pick*

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Megadeth @ Singapore's airport 060812 8'D