Mustaine says there is not a Megadeth and Metallica competition

The guitarist and singer Dave Mustaine was a member of Metallica from 1981 until 1983 when he was fired by the group. In that same year he formed Megadeth, that like his previous group would become one of the most influential Thrash Metal bands of all time.

Even though decades had passed since the musician was fired, that matter keeps appearing always when he gets interviewed. In a conversation with Guitar World he was asked if there was a competition between the two bands. He also said that Metallica first achieved fame using his compositions on the first albums.

Mustaine says there is not a Megadeth and Metallica competition

“In my mind, there is no competition between Megadeth and Metallica. We’re different bands, and I believe Megadeth has been more consistent. But the sad thing is that the drama between us has been more popular than the music ever was. And remember, Metallica got a big head start, and they did so on the back of what I helped create.

“They became one of the biggest bands in the world, and here’s one of the biggest bands wasting their breath trying to discredit me by saying, ‘Dave’s not a good guitar player.’ Excuse me, what the fuck did you say? [Laughs] I think I wrote many of the songs that made you famous, so you probably should recheck that bullshit statement. But this is the shit those guys say, and you’ve got the sheep who follow them around believing it,” Dave Mustaine said.

Even though Dave Mustaine was replaced by Kirk Hammett, many of his guitar riffs still appeared on the band’s first album and on their second work “Ride The Lightning”.

Megadeth released in 2022 their sixteenth studio album called “The Sick, the Dying… and the Dead!” Besides Mustaine, the band is currently formed by Kiko Loureiro (Guitar), Dirk Verbeuren (Drums) and James LoMenzo (Bass).