Dave Mustaine Questions The State Of Metal: “How Long Since An Album Like Master Of Puppets?”

Dave Mustaine has never been shy about calling things as he sees them, and in a new conversation with Kerrang! the Megadeth frontman made it clear he’s not impressed with where metal is sitting in pop culture right now.

With the band gearing up for their final self titled album and a farewell tour expected to run for several years, Mustaine used the moment to talk about the state of the genre he helped build. Asked whether he felt metal was in “safe hands” once Megadeth hangs it up, Mustaine pushed back, hard:

“How long has it been since you heard an album like [Nirvana’s] Nevermind, or [Guns N’ Roses’] Appetite For Destruction or [Megadeth’s] Rust In Peace or [Metallica’s] Master of Puppets?” he said. “You just don’t hear records like that anymore. You get maybe one good song on a record now, and people are so used to skipping tracks.”

He added that it saddens him to see deep cuts ignored. “There are a lot of our songs where, if you listen to them multiple times, you’ll hear there’s a lot more to them.”

Despite Megadeth prepping their final chapter, Mustaine made it clear he isn’t retiring tomorrow. “We’re easily talking about touring for another three to five years,” he said. “I’ll be looking at the birthday I don’t even want to think about!” So while fans might be bracing for the end, there’s still a long runway ahead.

Mustaine’s frustration echoes a growing chorus of legacy artists, including Gene Simmons and David Ellefson, who claim rock is fading from mainstream consciousness. The “rock is dead” argument isn’t new, and like most sweeping statements, it ignores the reality happening at ground level

Yes, the world isn’t gathering around monolithic albums the way they did for Master of Puppets or Rust in Peace, but younger artists are redefining what “massive” looks like: Deafheaven’s Sunbather, Sleep Token’s Take Me Back to Eden, Beabadoobee, Geese, Wisp, King Gizzard, and an entire wave of genre mixing bands pulling rock in new directions.

Even Mustaine seems aware of the bigger picture. As he put it: “The body will disappear, but the legend will remain. And the music will go on forever.”

Megadeth’s last act may be approaching, but the world they helped shape is still evolving.