MEGADETH — Dystopia (review)

MEGADETH — Dystopia album cover Album · 2016 · Thrash Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Nightfly
Released in January 2016 Dystopia is the fifteenth studio album from Megadeth. The first since 2013’s Super Collider which divided fan opinion for not being heavy enough and lacking thrash elements. We have also seen the departure of drummer Shawn Drover and guitarist Chris Broderick and replaced by Lamb Of God drummer Chris Adler and Angra guitarist Kiko Louriero. Both excellent and exciting players but making it seem somehow less of a permanent solution due to their commitments to their other bands – we shall see.

Dystopia is certainly a return to the thrashier Megadeth style and a damn good album and somewhat better than Super Collider when at its best, speaking as someone who’s a fan of that release. The band plays brilliantly, Loureiro and Adler easily proving their worth and hats off to Dave Mustaine for this inspired choice. Loureiro plays some spellbinding solos and Adler whilst not quite as inventive with his playing as in his day job delivers the goods better than most would and a master of his art. This is the strongest line up since the days of Marty Friedman and Nick Menza.

When Dystopia is good it’s very good to excellent with some captivating moments – the album gets off to a great start with The Threat Is Real with its pummelling galloping riff and some stunning guitar soloing – sure to become a live favourite. The high quality is maintained for a large part of the album highlights being Fatal Illusion, Death From Within, Poisonous Shadows and Lying In State. The title track could however have sat comfortably on Super Collider and not one of the best songs here but the solo section raises it from ordinariness. The energy level is high throughout with plenty of the Megadeth groove but a few tracks rob the album of classic status, mainly towards the end, a couple of lack lustre songs in The Emperor and Foreign Policy – a cover of USA hardcore band Fear – as necessary as their cover of Anarchy In The UK on So Far, So Good…So What! The stuff of B sides.

Despite a couple of weak moments the overall quality of the songs and playing on Dystopia just about place it in the top 5 albums of their career and hopefully this line up will last long enough to make a follow up.
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