CD: Endgame by Megadeth

This is my first blog/review. So, please bear with me.

Well, I suppose I'm a bit late to the party on this one, but I thought that I'd start with this album for my first review since it is my latest purchase.

Endgame by Megadeth is receiving a lot of great reviews: 10 out of 10, 5 out of 5, etc.

Personally, I thought that the last album, United Abominations, was a 10 out of 10 and that their latest effort was not up to par; however, after multiple listens and a study of the lyrics I can understand why this album is receiving the praise it is due (I can't get the songs out of my head).

The guitar work is much more intense than it has been on recent releases, and there is a definite feel of purpose as Dave and Chris burn through their respective solos.

Highlights of the album include "44 Minutes" about the bank robbery in North Hollywood, CA that occurred on 2/28/97. Where local police were not properly equipped to deal with what hell spit out that day. What Heavy Metal album would be complete without a song about a Medieval torture device? "Head Crusher" delivers in both lyrical content and musical symbolism as the listener can truly feel his head being crushed as the guitars crunch through their riffs.

"And what of love," you ask? "The Hardest Part of Letting Go...Sealed With a Kiss" touches on that subject as Dave has his love "immured" in a wall alla Edgar Allan Poe.

The title track "Endgame" refers to a bill signed in secret by former president GWB and its implications for a "New World Order." Whether you agree or disagree with the politics, the idea of concentration camps or detainment centers in the USA is enough to take notice.

Conspicuously missing is the requisite ode to nuclear war, alas there are two conventional war-inspired epics: "This Day We Fight!" and "How the Story Ends."

Much has been debated pitting Megadeth vs. Metallica. Personally, I enjoy both bands and am a fan of each. Metallica's 2008 release, Death Magnetic, was a definite 11 out of 10 and contains some of their best work. On a similar note, Endgame, does the same for Megadeth. Both of these albums prove that "Rock n' Roll will never die!"