Megadeth - Last Rites (Demo) (256)

Line-up : Dave Mustaine : Guitars, Vocals, Piano Chris Poland : Guitars David Ellefson : Bass, Backing Vocals Lee Rausch : Drums

The remastered version of Killing is my Business... and Business is Good!
features this demo as bonus tracks. "Loved to Deth" is indeed spelled that way
- the extra "a" was added for the album version. A version of "Rattlehead" from
the same recording session does float about, but was never officially on the
demo.

A certain vinyl bootleg includes "Last Rites/Loved to Deth" and "Skull Beneath
the Skin", and calls the tracks "Rock Me" and "You and Me". The songs were
never, ever called that. Ever.

Lee Rausch is the drummer on this demo.

Review :

This is Megadeth's first ever released collection of songs, and it still remains to be their fastest, most brutally heavy material even to this date. The songs on the demo would eventually evolve into the ones that are found on the debut album, "Killing is My Business...And Business Is Good!".

On to the music, "Last Rites" opens up this show up with a "morbid church" sounding piano intro. Very haunting, I wish it was longer than 45 seconds. This is probably one of the best intro pieces in metal, because it actually goes somewhere and is not just ambient noise for 2 minutes.

Next is "Loved to Deth". An incredibly fast riff gradually builds up and Mustaine's surprisingly brutal scream opens up the song. The verse is VERY fast and would be headbangable if the production didn't lick goat sac. The main riff is decent at best, but at least it is thrashy and fast, so that is a definite plus. Mustin'es vocals are pretty damn whiny, but then again, they never really changed until "Countdown to Extinction" and reached an all time low on "Rust In Peace" (except "Dawn Patrol", of couse!). Back to the song, the solo is pretty insane, and is mainly just scales, but once again, at least it is fast. The song thrashes right until the end, no lame fade out endings here!

The infamous "Mechanix" follows, and the slow intro part is missing. It's better like this. The famous riff opens the song, it sound a bit faster than was performed on "Killing...". The lyrics are lame, but the riffs in this thrash classic easily make up for them. The production on this seems to be a bit cohereant than on "Loved to Deth". The next cool riff ends the second chorus, and one of the coolest parts in all of metal comes in at 2:07, that transition is just great! This has got to be one of the best thrash songs of all time, that ending solo is much better than the one on "Loved to Deth" and actually seems to follow an appealing pattern.

Closing the demo is "Skull Beneath the Skin", and the intro is much slower than the previous songs. The first riff is really cool, and has that build-up feel to it. There is a solo very shortly into the song, which is cool in itself and leads to a completly owning riff. At this point, the song really speeds the fuck up and gets heads banging with its abrupt riff changes. The riffs on this song are fucking INCREDIBLE. Halfway through, the guitar stops for 2 seconds, leaving the bass alone, then rips right back into the kickass riffs. Mustaine's voice is still shitty, but one could say it suits the aggression of the music very well. A "Mechanix"- styled solo closes the show with a bang.

Why didn't Megadeth play this fast and brutally on their debut album? Although the production is shit, the riffs and the speed are so damn enjoyable. Very hard to find, so just download it and hear Megadeth at their loudest, fastest and most brutal.

1.	Last Rites/Loved to Deth	04:16	[view lyrics]
2.	Mechanix	03:59	[view lyrics]
3.	The Skull Beneath the Skin	03:11	[view lyrics]
Total playing time		11:26

Download Link

Pass : http://demo-series.blogspot.com/