Megadeth have launched a special website for their forthcoming album, The Sick, The Dying And The Dead.
On Monday, June 20th, the band shared a short video teasing the new website. “The sick, the dying and the dead are among us,” the caption read. “Mark yourself SAFE from Vic Rattlehead (the illustrated mascot of the band) before it’s too late at sickdyingdead.com.”
The album is the thrash metal outfit’s 16th studio album and is expected in September, as frontman Dave Mustiane told a U.K. festival crowd earlier this month. It was initially supposed to be released next month. The lead single is set to arrive this week on Thursday, June 23rd.
The Sick, The Dying And The Dead is the band’s first studio album since 2016’s Dystopia, the longest wait between two studio albums in their history. There’s big personal changes on it too, after bassist David Ellefson was infamously removed from the lineup last year after a video surfaced online of him engaging in an inappropriate sexual encounter with a young woman.
It was announced back then that Megadeth would hire someone to re-record all Ellefson’s bass parts on their new album, with Steve Di Giorgio, bassist for thrash metal icons Testament, ultimately chosen.
“It was a good choice. I didn’t think about anybody else at the time,” Mustaine said at the time. “I was thinking about ‘who’s the hottest guy out there that can play these new songs?’ [My son] Justis told me one of the fastest songs we’ve ever written is on this record.”
Di Giorgio, though, isn’t Megadeth’s new permanent bassist, with that honour going to James LoMenzo. The musician was initially recruited to join Megadeth in a touring capacity, featuring on their ‘Metal Tour of the Year’ alongside Lamb of God, but he can now call himself a full-time member. LoMenzo, of course, previously performed in Megadeth between 2006 and 2010, playing on the albums United Abominations and Endgame.
Love Metal?
Get the latest Metal news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more
“I’m so excited to rejoin Megadeth and move forward full steam into the next phase of this iconic band’s history! With Dave, Kiko and Dirk there’s no stopping us! It just feels great to be home again,” LoMenzo said about joining the band.
For more on this topic, follow the Metal Observer.
