Metallica vs. Megadeth
July 10, 2009 by Mike O'Cull
Metallica and Megadeth are both thrash metal pioneers who helped usher in the modern era of heavy metal and both bands have enjoyed great success and popularity amongst rock music fans the world over. The question before us today is simply which band is better, which is a subject sure to cause much controversy and discussion. Both bands are part of the Big Four (along with Anthrax and Slayer) that redefined metal music in the 1980’s and provided an alternative to the many hairspray-addicted bands that dominated the radio during that time. Both bands have maintained long careers and kept their identities and their fan bases through up and down periods and the inevitable lineup changes that most bands with such long histories must endure.
Knowing how emotional this subject could be to metal fans, we here at Gear Vault decided to look at statistics first and foremost to decide which band comes out on top. This is the record business we are talking about, ultimately, and selling records is the name of the game. Megadeth has been one of the most successful metal acts out there, selling over 20 million records since the band launched in 1983, which is a phenomenal amount of units to move. Metallica, which was formed in 1981, has sold an estimated 100 million records worldwide as of the release of Death Magnetic, their latest release. Their 1991 effort, Metallica, also called “The Black Album”, has sold 22 million copies on its own. In terms of pure sales, Metallica trounces Megedeth at the cash register.
Sales figures are only part of the equation, however, and must be looked at alongside the question of influence, which is often a better gauge of a bands’ greatness than just commercial success. Here, too, Metallica comes out on top. Megadeth founder Dave Mustaine was originally a member of Metallica until he was ejected from the group, which led him to start Megadeth. In other words, without Metallica there would be no Megadeth. This makes Metallica the ultimate progenitor, not only giving birth to its own legend but, in a not-so-roundabout way, to Megadeth’s as well. This combination of record sales and influence in the metal scene puts Metallica on top of Megedeth and gives much credence to calling the band the “Led Zeppelin of their generation”, as many fans and critics have done. Music is subjective, of course, and each band has those fans that will prefer it to the other, but the tale of the tape tells only one story: Metallica rules.
Metallica vs. Megadeth
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i think metallica is the better band , they were and are never afraid to push the limits of thier abilities, whereas megadedth seemed , to me anyway, to worked themsevles into a niche that is simply redundant
mustaine is agood guitarist , his lyrics are good and they have overall cntributed to metal(rust in peace) , that being said , hetfield is a brilliant guitarist , his lyrics are amazing and they are simply the gods of metal
I say neither win, because you left out Slayer. Show No Mercy was the best debut album by any of the Big Four of thrash. If I had to choose between Metallica or Megadeth though, I would go with Megadeth. Why? Megadeth rules, and most of the good solos off of Kill ‘Em All were written by Dave Mustaine, so to me it’s a no-brainer Megadeth is better.
Metallica:
Created 3 of the best Metal records, and that’s IT!
What happened to their other shitty shit after 1990? …
{{{ c man: that’s not what I call “pushing to the limits” I call that signing a contract ang going commercial. And making tours with Shitknot }}}
Note: I didn’t added “And Justice For All” as one of their best because Hammet, played monotonic guitar riffs and solos on that album
Megadeth:
Realistically, non their albums could top Metallca’s, BUT, surelly, he WAS the mastermind for Metallica’s first 2.
Hammet, the only great shit I heard from him was “Master Of Puppets” albums, don’t know how he managed to pull that one, and not do that great for “And Justice for all.”
So, MEGADETH wins! for MANY ALBUMS OF REAL GREAT THRASH ALBUMS {cough and not just only 3 which in reality a big portion created my Mustaine}
megadeth are a poor mans metallica mustaine , though a good guitarist relys too much on power chords his vocals are shitty , and his lyrics when compared to hetfield are pathetic , im not trying to take anything away from the guy though he is good but when compared to hetfield he’s nothing , as for megadeth as a band as a whole ? …… depends on what band you’re talking about …….. theres been so many diferent members that you could say that mustaine is a soloist , playing with a different band each week
metallica on the other hand have been more solid in that regard and thus thier entire body of work is more solid , and twiggy metallica have produced five of the best trash metal albums of all time:
kill ‘em all
ride the lightning
master of puppets
and justice for all (i simply cant agree with you)
death magnetic
whereas megadeth have only produced one:
rust in piece
oh yeah then they released a greatest hits album , hows that for selling out?
he must be desperate for money
mustaine is a fag
metallica rules
oh buy the way i would rank the following bands in this order
1.metallica
2.slayer
3.iron maiden
3.anthrax…………
…………….
100.megadeth
thats right i rank anthrax ahead of megadeth, hell i’d rank britney spears ahead of megadeth, even gwar is cooler
c man:
I bet you’re somewhere between 15 and 25.
Not only that, but you named thrash bands that are well known, there’s way more thrash bands out there, than those.
Abysstower, Anacrusis, Annihilator, Anthrax, Anvil, Bathory, Blacknoise, Celtic Frost {early stuff}, Coroner, Cronos, Cryptic Slaughter {early stuff}, Demolition Hammer, Destruction, Equinox, Exodus, Hatesphere, Heathen, Hellhammer, Hermética, Hirax, Kreator, Massacra, Messiah, Morbid Saint, Mortal Sin, Nuclear Assault, Onslaught, Sabbat, Sacred Reich, Sadus, Sepultura {early stuff}, Slaughtspeed, Slayer, Sodom, Submachine, Testament, Tirant Sin, Vader, Venom, Violator, Xentrix … etc etc.
if you don’t know more than half of these you ARE a poser!
Shitallica produced 3 great albums, and whole load of shit after that.
Megadeth I prefer, BUT the ones listed up there i prefer over megadeth or sellout-shitallica-wah-abusers-who-tours-with-shitknot-and-koRn. lmao!
Metallica had 3 good albums, but that’s it. The good Metallica died with Cliff Burton. Yes, Megadeth has had so many different people in the band, but thats not always a bad thing. If you listen to a “greatest hits” collection by Metallica, you just hear Hammett’s solos and Lars drumming. If you were to listen to Megadeth’s Greatest Hits, you would hear Chris Poland, Marty Friedman, Al Pitrelli, Jeff Young, Gar Samuelson, Nick Menza, Jimmy Degrasso, and Chuck Behler . There’s a different variety of styles and technique, instead of hearing Hammett over and over and over……
As far as your list goes c man, here are your errors
1. lol there are two #3′s on there. Nice job on that.
2. If Metallica’s your #1, you have some serious issues
3. Even though they arent thrash metal, I dont see how the hell you put Judas Priest behing Anthrax. I mean, seriously, Anthrax had like 3 ok songs, and thats it.
c man says:
Kill ‘Em All — ONE OF THE GREATEST {best tracks are my Mustaine/Burton}
Ride the Lightning — ANOTHER GREAT {best tracks are my Mustaine/Burton}
Master of Puppets — GREAT STILL, BUT DOESN’T TOP FIRST TWO
…And Justice for All — MONOTONIC GUITAR PLAYING {start of the decline}
Metallica — SHITTY
Load — LOAD OF SHIT
ReLoad — RELOAD OF SHIT
St. Anger — ONE OF THE WORSE ALBUMS IN METAL HISTORY, WOW! TOYS R’US-LIKE DRUM SET SOUND, POWERED-UP ACOUSTIC GUITARS. BECAME TO CLOSE WITH SHITKNOT, EVEN TOURING WITH THEM!
Death Magnetic — BIGGEST EFFORT IN 22 YEARS, BUT STILL SHITTY
Killing Is My Business… and Business Is Good! — CAN’T COMPETE, BUT ONE OF THE BEST IN THRASH WORLD
Peace Sells… but Who’s Buying? — STILL ONE OF THE BEST IN THRASH WORLD
So Far, So Good… So What! — STILL ANOTHER THRASH GREATNESS
Rust in Peace — FUNNY HOW METALLICA DIEHARDS SAY THIS IS MEGADETH’S ONLY BEST, SINCE BY THEN, METALLICA WAS GETTING TO SELL GARBAGE WHILE MEGADETH WAS STILL THRASH
Countdown to Extinction — VS SELF-TITLED METALLICA ALBUM {hillarious!!}
Youthanasia — VS LOAD = METAL VS MAINSTREAM PLAY
Cryptic Writings — VS RELOAD …… METAL VS EVEN MORE MAINSTREAMED
Risk — NOT THAT HEAVY AS PREVIOUS, BUT HEY, STILL HEAVIER THAN POPTALLICA
The World Needs a Hero — HEAVIER THAN PREVIOUS FOR SURE, I GREAT THRASHER COME BACK
The System Has Failed — VS ST. ANGER … LMAO! NO BRAINER!!!
United Abominations — TONED DOWN ALOT, BUT NON THE LESS STILL METAL
i am between the ages of 15_25 , and i know most of the bands you mentioned(twiggy) , but the original questioned posed was which band was better megadeth or metallica , these are two of the most popular , and mainstream bands of thrash metal and form part of the”big four” , so keeping in with that context , of course i was make a comparision of of bands that fall into that context
LUCAS:
He is most likely a teenager, who is sucked up by what the media has shoved down his throat. Since the media tells him they’re the “top selling” metal band, then he eats it all up. Of course they will be so much more “famous” than Megadeth, they signed a damn contract in which they have to tone down to be played on the radio along korn and other nu-metal lame shit bands.
WHEN have you seen the media acclaim any other thrash band as the best “heavy metal” band … or any other thrash band get airplay on the radio other than poptallica? …. lol!
lucas , judas priest suck let it go
no other metal band was or is as big as metallica ,pureley because no one can do it as good as metallica ,and they are the only one to get radio airtime because they have such a vast fan base
metallica haven’t toned down , sure in recent years thier stuff may not be regarded as metal per say , but to say they’ve toned down so they can get more radio time(lucas) is utterly ridiculous!
metallica haven’t toned down , sure in recent years thier stuff may not be regarded as metal per say , but to say they’ve toned down so they can get more radio time(twiggy) is utterly ridiculous!
c man:
one quick simple question here…
Any REAL thrasher who LOVES thrash, who acclaims thrash, really, will keep listening to {eg. Enter Sandman} when they can headbang to {eg. Holy Wars} ?
Okay, let’s stay within Megadeth VS Metallica grounds then!
They were both THRASH, note the word THRASH….
Metallica/Load/Reload VS Rust in Peace/Countdown to Extinction/Youthanasia/Cryptic Writings ….. WHO WILL YOU THINK A THRASHER WILL STICK TO THE MOST???
MEGADETH VS METALLICA IS THE 90S = THRASH METAL/HEAVY METAL VS HEAVY METAL/NU-METAL
I’M 42 YEARS OLD DUDE, as a thrasher hell no i don’t wanna listen to metallica 1990 and over, can’t headbang or start a mosh to that, atleast I can’t!
c man:
WHY ARE YOU SO BLINDLY IN LOVE WITH METALLICA ?!?!?!
ANSWER THIS DAMN QUESTION THRUTHFULLY: …. IS THERE ANY OTHER “THRASH” METAL BAND TO BE PLAYED ON THE RADIO ALONG KORN, SOAD, DEFTONES ETC ?
IF THERE IS, TELL ME WHICH THRASH BAND WAS PLAYED 24/7 ON THE RADIO?
I REMEMBER, SOME YEARS AGO, SOME DUDE REQUESTED MEGADETH, THE RADIO HOST SAID “OH WE CAN’T PLAY THAT HERE, TO ROUDY FOR OUR STATION, WE CAN PLAY NO LEAF CLOVER FOR YOU?”
C MAN:
No radio station Plays Thrash… don’t be so retarded.
They even hardly play shitknot and they bubblegum!
The heaviest a damn radio station plays is as heavy as korn, you’re just to maniacly creepy in love with metallica, you’re just finding the simplest things to defend them!
heres another point , metallica was greatly influenced by , bands from the new wave of british music or whatever it’s called , bands like deep purple , diamond head etc , where did mustaine draw inspiration from ? metallica , he has so much hang ups over metallica , that if you go through all his albums hes done nothing but cheaply mimic thier stuff , maybe not thier stuff from the 90′s but just about every thing else , and yes you can draw comparisions of thier stuff between that of the black album , thier mimics , copy cats , and the only way mustaine gains attention is from his involvement in metallica , he’s just riding thier coat tails , and quite frankly its starting to wear thin , just look at the dismal sales his last couple of albums got
c man:
fucken brainwashed teens
When you sell out:
You get plastered all over by ads
You get plastered all over on mtv
You get plastered all over internet commercial ads
OF COURSE YOU WILL GET MANY PEOPLE TO BUY YOUR BULLSHIT WATERED DOWN POP METAL!
mustaine made their best tracks, once he was kicked out, and cliff passing away, shitallica feel off, didn’t know what else to fucken write, and decided to sign a damn contract like pussies.
there is NO mainstream record deal that will sign a THRASH metal band because simply enough, IT WON’T GET PLAYED ON THE DAMN RADIO! When you sign the stupid contract they own you, they make millions off of you, a contract is like a damn car insurance. If you crash and you’re insured, you’re covered, if you’re not insured you’re fucked = if you have a contract you’re famous and rich, got no contract you’re fucked.
im not blindly in love with metallica , im just discussing the topic and trying to build a solid argument , (youd probably disagree with me there)i know about other thrash bands and even believe that there are better bands than metallica i just think that megadeth sucks in comparision to metallica , and i believe that compared to the “big four” metallicais still the best in that category(refer back to my list)
i hardly see metallica on mtv , and once again they are on there simply because they have a huge fan base ,not because they are sell outs , or cuz of a damned contract ,but merely because they have a certain responsibility to such a huge fan base
i hardly see metallica on mtv , and once again they are on there simply because they have a huge fan base ,not because they are sell outs , or cuz of a damned contract ,but merely because they have a certain responsibility to such a huge fan base megadeth wish they could even compete
I THINK IT’S WAY MORE EASIER TO EXPLAIN COLORS TO A BLIND PERSON….
tool are great
what do you mean you’ve just been regurgitating the same old bullshit , you’re redundant,
tool , rule and metallica too
you like megadeth , i feel sorry for you
i sez metallica sucks but not as much as megadeth
slayer rules ya fools!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
twiggy you are a gay twat, if i could meet you in person i would fuck you up so bad, c man , same applies to you
Im going with rusty’s opinion: Slayer rules, and I made that clear on my first comment. And at least Slayer hasnt sold out. As little as the media plays Megadeth, they play Slayer even less or not at all because they arent that mainstream. Now that’s what thrash was all about, until shitallica releaced the Black Album. Seriously, listen to And Justice For All the whole thing through and then do the same with the Black Album. I dare you to tell me they didnt sell out. As for my age (twiggy) I am a teenager. Unlike most teens though, I barely watch TV or listen to the radio. I mainly sit in my room listening to Cephalic Carnage, Cannibal Corpse, and Nile CD’s. I dont care for the “top selling” bands out there because they all have something in common: people are going to listen to them for about a week, find another “good” band, and then totally forget them. With underground stuff and bands that are not mainstream, they have a much loyal fanbase.
metallica are still better than megadeth
here something everyone can agree on acdc suck the big one
and and fall out boy suck thier grandmas titties
heres my say , metallica are the better band, hetfield is a better rythm guitarist than mustaine , hammet is a better lead guitarist than friedman , metallica even have a better bassist , thier only weak point is maybe lars , but he still a good drummer, megadeth are a bunch of incompetent retards in comparrision to metallica
take a listen to metallica’s four horsemen and then listen to megadeth’s mechanics and tell me that metallica is not the better band
i am aware that mustaine wrote it , but he can’t even preform it well just shows how incompetent he is
kirk rules
oh yeah i agree tool are good , slayer is gud , maiden is mighty,and motorhead are legends!
TO RUSTY MCGAY:
FUCKER TRYING TO ACT ALL TOUGH SAFELY BEHIND THE FUCKEN SCREEN, OH SHIT! I’M FUCKEN SCARED!
I’D GUTTER MOUTH YOU, IF I MEET YOU, YOU COULDN’T EVEN DARE TO TOUCH A 6’7″ GROWN MAN LIKE ME. NOW STOP BEING SO FAGGOTLY STUPID AND STOP MAKING THREATS OVER THE INTERNET, ESPECIALLY IF YOU’RE NOT TALK NO ACTION.
TO LUCAS:
YOU’RE THE FEW TEENS TO KNOW REALITY!
AND YES SLAYER IS BETTER THAN MEGADETH AND SHITALLICA. AND I CAN TELL YOU THIS MUCH, I GOT ALOT OF THRASH BANDS FIRST THAN SLAYER.
WOW! WE GOT SOME DIPSHITS MAKING THREATS OVER THE INTERNET, CAN’T GET MORE PATHETIC THAN THAT!
THESE TEENS USE WORDS LIKE:
SEZ
TWAT
RULES … WTF?!?
I FEEL AS IF I’M IN A CHILDREN’S MESSAGEBOARD!
take it easy twiggy its just opinions
and mine is that you take thngs too seriuosly, metallica are the better band , and i dont know why you think you’re see all and be all on this topic , you’re views are one sided , you’re clearly an idiot , and i agree with c man you’re redundant
and twiggy i don’t know if you noticed but you kinda made a threat”you wouldn’t dare touch a 6’7 grown man” so you’re kind pathetic yourself , but i agree withyou there are some pretty immature kids out there
metallica rules , megagay suck
i agree with plan a
four horsemen is better than mechanics , mustaine wrote it but for some reason can’t preform it well , he really is incompetent
I never really cared for The Four Horsemen or Mechanix to be honest. I just happen to like Megadeth’s style better than Metallica. I can honestly say that I dont own a single Metallica or Megadeth CD. Its not because I dont like them, it’s because Im not really into their sound. Id much rather listen to black metal and melodic death metal bands.
TO PLAN:
I wasn’t making a threat, I just stated he wouldn’t touch me, that was all.
I’m not taking things to serious, just that why would someone tell me “they want to fuck me up over the damn internet?” how stupid can that get?
TO PLAN C:
HOW IS “ME TAKING THINGS TOO SERIOUS” LINKED IN ANYWAY WITH “YOU TWO IDIOTS LOVING METALLICA” ?
IT’S NOT A ONE SIDED VIEW THAT I’M SAYING, IT’S TRUE INFORMATION THAT YOU PSYCHO DIEHARD SHITALLICA LOVERS DON’T ACCEPT TO TAKE IN, EVEN READING THIS YOU’RE SHAKING YOUR HEAD(S) AND SAYING “THIS FUCKER DON’T KNOW ABOUT MUSIC” OR ANYTHING SIMILAR TO THAT.
I’VE BEEN WORKING FOR RECORD DEALS SINCE 1989, 2 HAVE BEEN MAINSTREAM, AND 6 HAVE BEEN UNDERGROUND. IN FACT, I USED TO WORK FOR MEGAFORCE RECORDS. I KNOW ALL THE BULLSHIT THAT’S WORKED UP BEHIND MAINSTREAM-MEDIA RECORD DEALS. AND I KNOW THAT A CONTRACT MAKES BOTH THE RECORD DEAL AND THE BAND RICH.
IT’S MORE “IDIOT” TO INSIST SHITALLICA IS A “BETTER BAND” WHEN CLEARLY THEY ONLY PRODUCED 2 GREAT ALBUMS, 1 SOMEHWAT GOOD ALBUM, THEN FROM THERE ON WROTE BULLSHIT, AND ENDED UP TOURING WITH NU-SHITMETAL BANDS. IF WE STAY WITHIN THE TOPIC OF THIS, THE ACTUAL QUESTION IS: “WHICH IS THE BEST THRASH METAL BAND” CLEARLY, IT’S MEGADETH! WHY? ONE SIMPLE EXAMPLE *SHITALLICA WAS PRODUCING ENTER SANDMAN WHILE MEGADETH WAS HEADBANGING TO HOLYWARS*
YOU WEREN’T THERE IN 1982 TO SEE SHITALLICA LIVE, YOU WEREN’T THERE WHILE MEGADETH GOT FORMED. YOU AND THE REST OF THE PEOPLE IN HERE COMMENTING ONLY GOT TO BUY THEIR MUSIC READ SHIT ONLINE AND FROM THERE GOT YOUR CRITERIA.
JUST BECAUSE I’M DEFENDING MEGADETH DOESN’T MEAN I’M A FANATIC, CAN CARE LESS, I JUST LIKE THEM A MILLION TIMES OVER SHITALLICA. THERE’S A WHOLE LONG LIST ABOVE MEGADETH TO ME. {I RESPECT MEGADETH FOR STAYING WITH THRASH AS LONG POSSIBLE}
SLAYER I THINK IS BETTER THAN BOTH OF THOSE, JUST THAT THEY HAVEN’T GOTTEN HUGE AS MEGADETH AND SHITALLICA BECAUSE THEY’VE STAYED THRASH … AND THAT’S WERE THE TOPIC ON “CONTRACT” TAKES PLACE AGAIN.
HELLHAMMER, TESTAMENT, KREATOR ARE SOME OF THE BANDS OTHER THAN SLAYER THAT STOMP ALL OVER MEGADEATH AND SHITALLICA …
TO LUCAS:
YOU’RE AHEAD OF THE GAME WITHIN YOUR AGE GROUP. YOU’RE SMARTER AS I READ YOUR COMMENTS. HOPE YOU DON’T TAKE THAT AS A PUT DOWN SINCE YOU’RE A TEEN YOURSELF.
to twiggy:
i give up , you’re obviously a forty year old virgin who lives in his mothers basement playing dungeons and dragons ,while listening to megadeth,you suck
metallica rules
well maybe im wrong but i cant be far off the mark
Id say you are wrong c man. He’s probably got a stable job, a girlfriend or he’s married, and paying off a mortgage like most people are doing on HIS house. And before you get your panties in a bunch for me defending twiggy, Im probably closer on my guess than you are with yours. You are just pissed because we are stating facts that you know are true, yet you still deny them. Besides, Im sure none of us are living in their mothers’ basements. Only the die hard Star Trek fans are doing that while wearing Spock ears and claiming they can speak Klingon.
Dave Mustaine sucks