Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine has provided fresh insights into the thrash metal legends’ retirement timeline, revealing that fans still have several years to witness the band’s live performances before their final curtain call.
The metal icon confirmed that Megadeth’s farewell tour could extend for another three to five years following the release of their seventeenth and final studio album in January. Speaking candidly about his decision to wind down his career, Mustaine acknowledged the physical challenges he has overcome throughout his journey.
“I think when things happen like the throat cancer, or my neck being fused, or the saturnine palsy in my arm, most people would stop,” Mustaine explained to Kerrang!. “Most people would be terrified, and I did step back and regroup. But this is what I love doing, and I know that at some point the time is going to come for our last show.”
By the end of the proposed touring period, Mustaine will be approaching his 70th birthday in 2031, a milestone he admits he doesn’t want to contemplate.
“I’m not caught up in longevity and stuff like that, and being one of those guys who can play until he’s in his 80s,” he stated. “I have to remember that people live and they die. And I need to take good care of myself.”
Megadeth’s self-titled final album carries particular significance beyond marking the end of an era. The record features an unexpected cover of Metallica’s “Ride the Lightning”, a track Mustaine co-wrote during his tenure with the band in the early 1980s before his departure that led to Megadeth’s formation.
“I think it was the right time to record it and close the circle,” Mustaine told Metal Hammer. “It’s back to where I came from, and honestly, it’s a good song, we played it really well. We sped it up a little bit, but I personally think when you’re going to do a version of a song then you have to make it just as good or if not better.”
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