MUSTAINE: CHRIS BRODERICK Is Everything That MARTY FRIEDMAN Wanted To Be And Then Some

Carl Sundberg, the host of "The Edge" show, which airs on Eugene, Oregon's 101.5 KFLY radio station, recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine. The chat is now available for streaming using the audio player below. A couple of excerpts follow.

On where the rumors of a "Big Four" tour (featuring METALLICA, SLAYER, MEGADETH and ANTHRAX) came from:

Mustaine: "Well, I don't know where that came from and we still haven't gotten anything official on that. But if it's gonna happen, you'll know. I have no reason not to do it. I've made it absolutely clear to the people that we work with what our touring requirements are. The more important thing right now instead of speculating on what's gonna happen is what's for real. For real right now is we have a new record out ['Endgame']. For real right now is we're out on tour with MACHINE HEAD and what's real right now is that this SLAYER/MEGADETH tour is coming up after the New Year's, and after that we've got some enormous festivals that will be happening, but it ain't happening here — it's overseas. And a lot of the stuff everybody's wondering about, there's a lot of talk about that still, but it ain't over here."

On the past friction between SLAYER and MEGADETH and whether there are still "barbs" being thrown between the two bands:

Mustaine: "No, and there are no barbs. You are perpetuating bullshit from the past. That's the past, man. That was 19 years ago. Unfortunately, cats like yourself that don't know that it's the past, they don't know any better and they keep putting wood on the fire. The bands... I mean, Kerry [King, SLAYER guitarist] was in my dressing room in Japan partying with me, so you tell me. Anybody that keeps saying there's a problem, once they've been notified that they're just trying to cause problems... And we tour well together. The first couple of dates we did in Canada, we did it just to see how we would get along and it was great. And then we went down to Australia and we played down there and that was great. We know it's good business for both bands. The two bands are both really intense bands, they both have fantastic live shows. As a music fan, I would wanna go see this thing, just because of the brutal power and energy of SLAYER and the finesse and guitar skills of MEGADETH. It would be definitely a heavy metal fan's wet dream, because if you like it fast and aggressive, that's one of the things SLAYER is known for, and if you like that guitar pyrotechnics, that's what my band is famous for."

On who will headline — MEGADETH or SLAYER — on the upcoming "American Carnage" tour:

Mustaine: "The way that it's working on this thing... When we were up in Canada, we flip-flopped because it's just the way that it was working. Different territories call for different positioning. We figured that it was easier for us with what we were doing with projection and stuff like that to go on before SLAYER because they use pyro. And the use of all of those curtains and projector screens and stuff around, all that flammable stuff, it's better that we take it down before they start lighting fires, you know what I mean?! And there's the fact that SLAYER's been together without incident for pretty much their whole lineup. We've had a lot of ups and downs, a lot of personality conflicts, a lot of personality disorders, and we've survived a lot of stuff, but, man, there were a lot of setbacks and there was a lot of time lost. So while the perception is that we're both really two big bands, SLAYER's got more time under their belts with consistency, and I think the promoters look at that and they factor that into the situation. Now, I think that if you ask any of the eight of us, we would all say that we're happy to be out here playing with each other. [Dave] Lombardo [SLAYER drummer] came in my dressing room in Japan and said, 'I need to talk to you,' and took me aside and said some really encouraging things. So I think it's a great thing."

On what he was trying to with "Endgame" that he hadn't with MEGADETH in the past:

Mustaine: "Well, having a new guitar player with Chris Broderick, Chris is a wunderkind. I thought that I had outdone myself with [former MEGADETH guitarist] Marty Friedman, who is a great guitar player. Chris is everything that Marty wanted to be and then some, because Chris is a guitar player who loves playing guitar, who loves playing metal music and I believe that Marty just wanted to play music in general and he didn't really care too much about what was going on with MEGADETH, he was kind of always doing his solo stuff. Chris is much more of a team player. No offense to Marty, 'cause Marty is a good guy, but the dude put on a kimono for a reason. He moved over to Japan and he loves the Japanese culture. I like Japan, too, but I wouldn't live there. I would feel like I was in the middle of outer space because of the language barrier and the food. I mean, I've been there before, and I'll tell you what — there's only so much sushi you can eat."

On his recent statement in Gutar World magazine that he's got one more album to do and that he's retiring:

Mustaine: "Well, this was pretty much when things were going really well with Roadrunner [MEGADETH's record label]. But we don't talk anymore at all, so I'm just biding my time to get away from them, and I don't wanna go out with my last record being with the record company that doesn't appreciate me being there. So we're getting ready to write this record, hand it off to them and then go and see what the world holds in store with us, because I know that there are a lot of people that would be proud to have me, proud to have MEGADETH. Whether the records sell or not, there is a certain prestige of having a legend on your label."

Dave Mustaine interviewed by Carl Sundberg of Eugene, Oregon's 101.5 KFLY (click on player below to launch audio):