A sobered-up
Mustaine
returns with yet another lineup, this one featuring ex-
Cacophony
guitar virtuoso
Marty Friedman
and drummer
Nick Menza
, for what is easily
Megadeth
's strongest musical effort. As
Metallica
was then doing,
accentuates the progressive tendencies of his compositions, producing rhythmically complex, technically challenging
thrash
suites that he and
Friedman
burn through with impeccable execution and jaw-dropping skill. Thanks to
's focus on the music rather than his sometimes clumsy lyrics,
Rust in Peace
arguably holds up better than any other
release, even for listeners who think they've outgrown
heavy metal
. While the whole album is consistently impressive, the obvious highlight is the epic, Eastern-tinged
"Hangar 18."
~ Steve Huey