Megadeth

Megadeth is a thrash metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1983 by guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist David Ellefson, shortly after Mustaine's dismissal from Metallica. A pioneer of the American thrash metal scene, the band is credited as one of the genre's "big four" along with Anthrax, Metallica, and Slayer, who were responsible for thrash metal's development and popularization. Megadeth plays in a technical style often featuring fast rhythm sections and complex arrangements; themes of death, war, politics, and religion are common in the group's lyrics.

In 1985, the group released its debut album through the independent label Combat Records. The album's moderate commercial success caught the attention of bigger labels, which led to the band signing with Capitol Records. The band's first major label album, Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?, was released in 1986 and was highly influential in the underground metal scene. Despite the album's prominence in thrash metal, frequent disputes between its members and issues with substance abuse earned the band negative publicity during this period.

After the lineup stabilized, Megadeth released a number of platinum-selling albums, including Rust in Peace (1990) and Countdown to Extinction (1992). These albums, along with touring worldwide, helped bring public recognition to Megadeth. The band temporarily disbanded in 2002 when Mustaine suffered an arm injury and re-established in 2004 without bassist Ellefson, who had taken legal action against Mustaine. Ellefson settled with Mustaine out of court and rejoined the group in 2010. Megadeth has hosted its own music festival, Gigantour, several times since mid-2005.

As of 2014, Megadeth has sold 50 million records worldwide, earned platinum certification in the United States for six of its fourteen studio albums, and received eleven Grammy nominations. The band's mascot, Vic Rattlehead, regularly appears on album artwork, and from 2010 in live shows. The group has experienced controversy over its musical approach and lyrics, including canceled concerts and bans of albums. MTV has refused to play two of the band's videos that the network considered to condone suicide.

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