Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir Kindle Edition

I found this book totally engaging and a great read. Not just a great rock bio, simply a top biography.Some context: I never listened to Megadeth. I heard of them, of course. Frankly, when Metallica got big, I didn't like the music much and wrote off the whole genre (sorry, Dave). On the upside, I have three decades of music to "binge listen" to, so it's not all bad.**The point is, I bring no biases to this. I have no dog in the fight of Mustaine v. Metallica or Mustaine v. ... well, everyone else. I'm not mad about this or that musician that left or got kicked out of the band. I found the book on a list of top rock biographies, and it sounded interesting.It is insightful and honest. It's got the gory details of rock life and plenty of behind the scenes with the band. The writing is insightful, honest, sometimes funny, sometimes crude -- but always very real and very fast-paced. With other rock bios I've read, I've skipped large portions of boringness. There's none of that here.The narrator -- which is Mustaine in middle age -- is likable and honest. The younger, often substance-addicted, always intense Mustaine can be quite the bad guy. He cops to that. But the book tells it like it was. So when he relates the tale of another musician, it's not gossipy or mean-spirited. It's just his honest observations and thoughts at the time and the simple truth. In any case, I came away liking the guy.Put this on your list of bios to read. You won't be disappointed.** I've now got at least six songs on my Megadeth playlist. Still no Metallica.

Since about halfway through this book, I've been thinking about what kind of review I'd write after finishing it...without sounding like a jerk. Let me first say that I have a great amount of respect for Mr. Mustaine and everything he's accomplished. But at the same time, I grew tired of him "patting himself on the back" at every opportunity. I really felt like throughout the entire book, he wanted the reader to feel sorry for him, for a multitude of reasons. I've seen him in concert a couple of times, years ago, and I DID feel sorry for him then. He couldn't remember the words to his own songs, threatening the front row crowd with violence. It was bad. I'm truly glad that he claims he's found God, he needs that. I believe that the sad truth is, he never REALLY got over being kicked out of Metallica, and maybe he never will. I can't help but think that this book might have been better if it had been written by someone else. Then again, it may have been worse.

This is a great book. I've read a lot of biographies by 80's metal bands and the fact is they're boring because almost all of them are unauthorized so there is no true insight into the subject of the book, i.e. So Let It Be Written about James Hetfield. I was so disappointed by that book, it's like the author watched a bunch of youtube videos and pieced it together from that. Dave actually wrote his book with some help of course but it gives the real story and the real feelings about what was going on in the early Metallica days and then the creation of Megadeth. I found myself looking forward to the spare time I had so I could get back to Dave's story. Metallica sold out as far as I'm concerned, I'm still a fan of their older material but they should have quit after the black album, everything since sounds forced. Dave never sold out, he's still making the same thrash he always has and it's brilliant, much like his biography. It's a great story, a must read for 80's metal fans.

As a huge fan of Megadeth for decades now, I was very excited to read this book to see the rise of Dave Mustaine and most especially, what exactly went down with early Metallica. Mustaine goes into everything in detail from his start in metal, all the drama with Metallica, his unfortunate injury that almost made him not being able to play a guitar, rehab, and everything else in between.It's a great inside look at one of the pioneers of thrash metal written by in my opinion, the best guitarist of the entire Big 4. If you love this band or thrash metal in general as much as I do, you'll undoubtedly enjoy reading this book from start to finish. You kind of feel for Mustaine as he goes into deep details of his struggles and addictions throughout his life and how Megadeth could have almost ended in their prime.This is 5/5 stars in my book and then some, it's that good and something I highly recommend for all my fellow metalheads. I also enjoyed listening to Megadeth while reading and recommend the same to others for an even more immersive experience.

A buddy of mine said I’d like this book and he wasn’t wrong. A lot of us Metallica fans have a preformed opinion of Dave, likely based on what the guys from Metallica said about him over the years. This is especially true if you’ve never really listened to Megadeth. I started listening to his band a few years ago and really like some of their songs.What I liked about this book is to finally hear Dave’s take on things. He gives a good account of his story and Megadeth and his with Metallica. If you don’t know much about Dave or his band, it really fleshes him out as a person and offers a three dimensional view of the man and the musician. Of course, with all rock bios, take everything you read with a grain of salt.This book is worth the money, and I hope you like it!

I love Megadeth and Dave Mustaine; his contribution to Music is outstanding, especially Thrash Metal. It’s a good read, but like other Rockstars i.e Ozzy, Lemmy, etc you’ve kind of heard it before. Rise to the top. Sudden fall. Alcohol and Drug abuse. Overcoming said issues. I get it. I truly do, but I feel once you’ve heard it from say Ozzy and Lemmy (if you’ve read their books) you’ve heard it all before.I do recommend the book though if you are into Thrash Metal and want to hear Mustaine’s perspective of the ‘split’ from Metallica, as well as his success with Megadeth.

It didn't take me long to read thus, purely because I got hooked straight away. I've been a Megadeth fan for years and have similar opinions to albums as Mustaine has. But the man known as Dave Mustaine is a more than a great guitar player, he's also a teacher, and a now wise man. This fills in the blanks regarding the Metallica saga, and the amount of times he went to rehab, his whole life at one point or another crumbling before him, and not once did he ever quit and walk away. He got into a lot of fights, for his band, his marriage, his children, his friends, for honour and sometimes for the pure he'll of it, but it was himself where the fighting never stopped. Like a true warrior, he fought for everything he had, and kept going. He is a true legend in the world of heavy metal, an extremely talented musician, and one to be admired. If you live metal, and in particular, Megadeth, then you must read this, because it's definitely a true testament to what anyone can achieve if they fight hard enough, and have that burning desire to succeed with friends, music, or just itself. A simply metastatic read.

Very good open and honest book, very well written and an easy read. Reminds you what a great band Megadeth are. Loses a star as he goes a bit over the top with the Christian talk towards the end. Definitely recommended.

First heard Megadeth in 1988 at Donington and liked the intensity of the music,first album i bought was SFSGSW and played it to death along with And Justice for All by his previous employer 😊 Mustaine comes across as both genuinely driven and egotistical ,hard to put down the book which ends with him justifying his new found faith and sense of well being. Well worth a read

Dave Mustaine whines. That is what he does. It would have been really interesting to understand the genesis of the music that I have loved since childhood, but, for example, the entirety of the making of Youthanasia is basically relegated to a couple of paragraphs, surrounded by more of Dave's bitter, drug related navel gazing.This may well have been a cathartic experience to write, and it may have allowed him to shake out those skeletons and demons that had accumulated over the years, but it does not make a riveting read.Dave is a supremely selfish as, and this is borne out by the fact that a book that could have really illuminated the music for the fans has become a suppository (sic) of his loathing for himself and others. His tortured genius may have made some great music, but sadly, it makes for a disappointing read.