Ultimate MAD #1 - Endgame vs Death Magnetic

Welcome to the very first of a new blog post series called Ultimate MAD (Metal Album Debate), where I'm going to be reviewing two different albums and talk about what you should know about the album, and explaining why you should listen to the album.

For this first episode, I will be reviewing Megadeth's Endgame, and Metallica's Death Magnetic. These two albums made by the thrash metal rivals in the late 2000s both served as a comeback album to make their band great again. Which one is better? That will be up to you to decide.

Endgame

After a long period of terrible music and weak albums, Megadeth is back. Their Endgame album would prove that they've made a comeback as they start thrashing again. The album would me a more riff-oriented album, and not as melodic as their 90s material. The solos in Dialetic Chaos, This Day We Fight, 1,320', and Endgame were insane, and the most popular track in the album, Head Crusher, would be their heaviest thrash song in nearly 20 years. The album's most melodic song, The Hardest Part of Letting Go... Sealed With a Kiss, like Holy Wars from their 1990 album Rust In Peace, would be a two-part song, but with the first being soft and melodic, and the second being classic thrash.

With Mustaine and Broderick's insane solos, and the more thrashy style of music in this album would make this album a must-listen to all thrash metal fans, and what I would consider their best album since Rust In Peace.

Recommended Songs: This Day We Fight, 1,320', Endgame, and Head Crusher.

Death Magnetic

For the first time in 20 years, Metallica has done something great. Death Magnetic, their best album since the 80s, would bring back the progressive style of And Justice For All, and the thrashy style of Kill Em All, while introducing a new, modern sound. The album would not only give the fans something good that they've been waiting for a long time now, but it would prove that Metallica still had the talent they had to play the thrash metal that they had in the 80s. The Day That Never Comes would be their best ballad in 17 years, and All Nightmare Long is probably one of the, if not the heaviest song Metallica has produced, which uses the combination of a dark sound and lyrical themes, along with a heavy style of thrash music. The album also contains some of the best solos since the 80s, which include All Nightmare Long, The Judas Kiss, and The End of The Line.

Although not as good as the early Metallica days, this is still a great thrash metal album that brought back the thrash metal roots Metallica had in the early days. The production may be weak, but this album is worth the listen.

Recommended Songs: Broken, Beat & Scarred, All Nightmare Long, and The Judas Kiss.

Both of these comeback albums proved that both bands were still great and still had the talent to play their thrash metal roots. Although they weren't as good as they were during their early days, they were still good enough to make the thrash metal found in both of these albums. Megadeth's Endgame may contain the better solos and production, but Death Magnetic was more melodic, and was the more complex album, bringing back the progressive style of their And Justice For All album.

In Ultimate MAD, the winner is determined by users who will vote on which album they like better. If you just came for classic thrash metal and want to hear something great all around, Endgame would be the album for you. However, if you're into the more complex and lengthy songs, then Death Magnetic will make you satisfied with Metallica's newer music. However, keep in mind that you have a limited time to vote for the better album as when the next episode begins production, the polls will then close.

The next episode of Ultimate MAD will be Judas Priest's Sad Wings of Destiny, and Rainbow's Rising.

Comments

Can you do a black metal album once please? - visitor (1/22/2017)

Maybe, if I ever get into the genre. - visitor (1/22/2017)

Death Magnetic to me was a better album because of All Nightmare Long and The Unforgiven III - visitor (1/22/2017)

You should do Volume 8: The Threat is Real! Vs Diabolus in Musica - visitor (1/22/2017)

The main issue I have with DM, besides the obvious production issues, is the lyricism falls really flat. Hetfield has written way better lyrics in the past. This just seems mediocre and it kind of pulls off the overall good instrumentations. I still believe All Nightmare Long is one of the best Metallica songs post-Justice and I still prefer this over Hardwired.

I've actually never listened to Endgame so maybe I will eventually. Been listening to a lot of new stuff so I skipped some of Megadeth's better albums. - cjWriter1997 (1/24/2017)

I'm changing the second episode to Judas Priest and Rainbow since I realized Overkill and Kreator have two new albums coming out by the end of February and I'll do those instead. - visitor (1/24/2017)