CHRIS BRODERICK Would Have Stayed In MEGADETH If He Had Been Given More Creative Freedom

Currently on tour in North America with ACT OF DEFIANCE, former MEGADETH guitarist Chris Broderick has launched a new guitar play-through for the track "Disastrophe", taken from ACT OF DEFIANCE's debut album, "Birth And The Burial".

In a new interview with Ultimate-Guitar.com, Broderick stated about the circumstances that led to his decision to exit MEGADETH in late 2014: "I wouldn't say it's necessarily artistic and musical differences as much as it is the ability to express my musical and artistic choices. Everybody knows that MEGADETH is really Dave [Mustaine] and that's fine."

He continued: "I knew that [Mustaine was captain of the ship] going in. But there comes a time where you're like, 'I've done this and it's great but I'm a musician and artist at heart and I need to express myself that way. So I need to have that outlet for myself and not just do it in support of another person.'"

Regarding how MEGADETH was run, Broderick said: "It wasn't a democratic or an equal band in terms of the decision-making process. And again, I was totally fine with that at the time. It was awesome for my career and it was great playing for all those fans but at some point, when do you decide you're gonna be a musician and really create your own music or are you just going to record what somebody else wants?"

Asked if he would stayed in MEGADETH if he had been given more input and creative freedom, Chris said: "Oh, yeah. Definitely."

Broderick previously told Zombitrol.com about the three MEGADETH studio albums that he played on, 2009's "Endgame", 2011's "TH1RT3EN" and 2013's "Super Collider": "Well, I think ultimately those records are why ACT OF DEFIANCE exists. Because, ultimately, I didn't feel the freedom to be able to express myself musically on those CDs. So, for me, I have fond memories of really, more [than] anything, getting out and meeting the fans and being a part of that live culture, where they were so nice, they were so welcoming to me. You know, when you fill in somebody else's shoes, not everybody's gonna be there to congratulate you. And I felt like, overall, the fans really did, and I appreciate that to no end. But as far as the discography goes, I don't feel like I really had a lot of creative input on that end."

In addition to Broderick, ACT OF DEFIANCE features former MEGADETH drummer Shawn Drover, ex-SCAR THE MARTYR singer Henry Derek Bonner and SHADOWS FALL's Matt Bachand (bass).

ACT OF DEFIANCE's debut album, "Birth And The Burial", was released on August 21, 2015 via Metal Blade Records.