MEGADETH Mainman Slams 'Vultures' That Wait On His Bedpost To Report Everything He Does

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine was the featured guest Tuesday night (March 20) on "The Radio 1 Rock Show with Daniel P. Carter" on BBC Radio 1. Listen to the interview online at BBC.co.uk (the Dave Mustaine interview begins approximately one hour, 10 minutes into the program).

When asked about MEGADETH's touring plans in support of the band's upcoming "United Abominations" album, Mustane said, "One of the things that we really wanna do is to look at what our touring potential is. And we've got a pretty busy year. Because I'm a little older, I've got a nerve problem in my back and I can't play as many days in a row. That's one of the things that is important for me — really taking care of myself and utilizing my time on the road well. That means I'm gonna play less, and that means the concerts need to be more important, the way that they're planned and routed. There's so many territories that have to be done on this record, this tour will probably be a year and a half. I imagine that if everything goes according to the plans that my health holds up — the primary purpose of this whole thing is to allow me to function at my optimum health — it could be a two-year campaign. Because there needs to be time off in between each leg for me to nurture my family, because I just resolved heading for divorce, and that was really a terrible thing. It was not meant to be public, but because of the vultures that wait on my bedpost for everything I ever say — everything I do is on a particular web site [referring to a June 15, 2006 BLABBERMOUTH.NETarticle about him filing for the dissolution of his marriage to Pamela Mustaine — Ed.] — and it was unfortunate. We're together — my wife is actually here [in England] with me now [on a promotional trip for the band's new CD], with my son, and it's a great thing. Because over the years, it never really worked well because the music was always first. It ain't anymore, and that's why this record turned out as good as it is. Because my family is first… Well, my family is actually second. My faith is first, and then my family is second, and then the music is third. So because everything else is going so good, when I go into the guitar world and I put on my little headphones and pick up my guitar, it's like, 'OK, now it’s time to unleash the beast and to really, really just get it on.' Instead of being in character all day long, every day. 'Oh, look, it's Dave Mustaine.' 'Gosh, he was really nice, but when he got on stage, he was a monster.' That's what I like — I like getting on stage and being the guy that everybody thinks they know."

In other news, MEGADETH fan site Rattlehead HQ is running a contest with the prize being a copy of the latest MEGADETH DVD, "That One Night: Live in Buenos Aires". More information is available at this location.

Due on May 15 via Roadrunner Records, "United Abominations" was mixed at Backstage Studios in Derbyshire, England by Andy Sneap (MACHINE HEAD, SKINLAB, NEVERMORE). Check out the cover artwork at this location. The song "Sleepwalker" is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. A professionally shot video clip of MEGADETH performing another new track, entitled "Washington is Next!", on October 14, 2006 at the Loud Park '06 festival in Tokyo, Japan has been posted online at YouTube.com. A rough-mix version of "Gears of War", is available for download at this location.