Megadeth vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine has an interesting view on how he handles discussing his early run as a member of Metallica. While Mustaine would be infamously kicked out of that group in 1983 amid a well-publicized battle with substance abuse, years of bitter animosity followed, with Mustaine often launching numerous barbs towards his former bandmates.
This past May, Mustaine‘s former Megadeth bandmate David Ellefson called out Mustaine for “still bitching” about Metallica, some 40 years later. Per a new interview conducted with Rock Antenne, Mustaine stated that its the press that prompts him to discuss Metallica, and is often not a topic of his choosing.
He stated:
“Well, I don’t really talk about my time with Metallica. I don’t bring it up. So if someone brings it up, I’ll answer the question, but I usually don’t bother doing that. ‘Cause I think in a way that kind of gives the impression that I need to talk about them in order for me to feel good about myself. And I don’t — I don’t.
I feel good about who I am just ’cause I feel good about who I am. It has nothing to do with bands that I’ve played in in the past. And if it was, I would say of the three bands that I was in that I enjoyed Panic and Megadeth more than I did in Metallica because we did argue a lot.”
He continued:
“I loved playing with those guys, but it was meant for a season. And I look back on that time with a lot of fondness. I used to not, because I was still hurt from losing my job, but now I know, basically, that things happen for a reason, no matter what they are, and whether I was still in that group or not, that was outta my hands.
And once I accept those things… Acceptance is the key to all of my problems today. If there’s something happening in my life and I can’t change it, and I spend my time wasting energy and effort to try and change something I cannot change, man, you’re gonna go nuts. So I’ve chosen to find the happier things in life.”
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