FEAR, EMPTINESS, DECIBEL: THE TH1RT3EN LIVES (AND FINGERS) OF DAVE MUSTAINE

Before there were blogs there were these things called magazines, and the only metal magazine we still get excited about reading every month is Decibel. Here’s managing editor Andrew Bonazelli…

I’m kind of scared to interview Dave Mustaine. Not because I have a Vic Rattlehead backpiece and placekick my cat every time she comes within three feet of my Peace Sells… vinyl box. And not because he’s an intimidating, confrontational guy with a scary-low tolerance for perceived affronts. Mostly because he has a tendency to ramble like the bum downstairs who just tried to buy one of my smokes for a quarter, and we don’t have a Decibel intern right now who would transcribe that clusterfuck for me. Luckily, Jeff Treppel is a true believer with infinite patience, and he did an unsurprisingly stellar job on December’s Megadeth cover story.

It’s about time we gave MegaDave a cover all to himself (he shared the glory with Testament and Slayer back in February of ’10). Hell, there are plenty of occasions to commemorate. The oddly stylized new record is, in fact, number TH1RT3EN, and Dave just celebrated the big 5-0 with a (literally) backbreaking Big Four homecoming. Most surprising of all, he comes off as legitimately introspective and humble for the duration of the piece. And bonus: the cover image is just the right blend of really cool and disarmingly creepy. The December ish also features a super-exclusive interview Jef Whitehead of Leviathan (speaking of confrontational), as well as Daniel Ekeroth’s favorite new-school Swedish death metal bands, stories on Absu, Animals as Leaders, Muni Waste and… yeah, you can see it all for yourself right there on the cover.

-AB

The December 2011 issue of Decibel also features Landmine Marathon, Hammers of Misfortune, and an awesome Goatwhore flexi disc, and can be ordered here. But why not just get a full subscription to ensure that you never miss one an issue?