After finishing their South American Tour at Mexico, metal gods Megadeth came back to the states to launch their Super Collider Tour. Although the tour was launched to support the release of the album Super Collider, Megadeth decided to stick with their legendary songs from “Rust in Peace”, “Peace Sells”, “So far, So Good, So What!” and many others. The only song from the latest album that made its way to the set list was “King Maker.”
As a person who has watched almost every Megadeth show, (from the day that I was old enough for concerts to present of course) I can easily say that this one has been the best. The band has started to use visual elements in a great way to embellish their shows and make them even better. The stage consisted of one upper screen and two side screens. Drums were placed on a platform, which all the members of the band stepped on time to time throughout the show. There was even a fog machine that was used to create “emotional” atmosphere on certain songs like “A Tout le Monde”.
The show started with “Hangar 18”, after an introduction of the song “Prince of Darkness” which was played from the recording, giving the band enough time to set up on the stage. The screens turned on, showing images to accompany “Hangar 18.”
Next was “Wake Up Dead”, and with this song, Megadeth’s drummer, Shawn Drover, began to make the venue shake. The transition between “Wake Up Dead” and “In My Darkest Hour” was so fast it took me some time to realize they have finished the song, with all the people screaming around me. “Tornado of Souls” and “Sweating Bullets” followed, with lead guitarist Chris Broderick nailing the solo as always.
Just when I started to think it would be like every other Megadeth show, with the band standing on the stage, just playing without interacting with the audience much, Dave Mustaine, the lead vocalist, stepped forward and asked, “You guys, so far, so good, so what? Yeah, sounds like you set the world afire!” It was time for “Set the World Afire”, which was the song most of the people were waiting to hear. This is one of the greatest works of the band, but it hasn’t been on previous set lists in a long time.
Photo credit: Sinan Pehlivanoglu
After “Set the World Afire”, everyone except Broderick left the stage and he started playing the intro of “A Tout le Monde.” Soon Mustaine joined Broderick on stage with the spotlight focused on him. After “King Maker” was over, Shawn entered with the drum solo of “Trust.” It was so loud, so clear, so good that I could feel my body pumping adrenaline.
A few minutes of silence and I could hear rising voices, “Megadeth…Megadeth…We love you Megadeth!” It was time for “Symphony of Destruction.” After “Symphony”, the band left the stage one more time and bassist David Ellefson came back with his red Jackson bass, playing the tunes of “Peace Sells.”
Now, It was time for the great ending. Ellefson went off the stage, and the crowd chanted for an encore. The band returned and Mustaine gave a speech about how thankful he was to his audience, gave a guitar pick to the young girl in the audience, and started playing “Holy Wars.” Although every single song was played perfectly, the highlight of the concert was seeing Broderick finger-picking the first “Holy Wars” solo, probably being the first Megadeth guitarist to do so.
Photo credit: Sinan Pehlivanoglu
Although the band is amazing itself, Megadeth’s road crew did a great job behind the scenes. Instruments’ volumes were adjusted perfectly, so that both guitars and bass were clearly audible. Drover’s drums were shaking the whole venue as if you were in a real super collider. However, it was a bit difficult to hear Mustaine singing because of all people cheering and singing along right next to you. However, you could definitely hear Dave telling funny jokes to the audience throughout the show.
I had the chance to see the band both at the House of Blues in Boston and at the Paramount Theater in New York, although I unfortunately could not stay for whole show in Boston. However, the Boston show was almost sold out, where as the Paramount had more space to breathe, most likely because the venue was an hour away from Manhattan. Boston’s audience was much more calm, while at the Paramount, people started crowd surfing right away. One can imagine the security guards had hard times dealing with high number of crowd surfers. Either way, Megadeth seemed to be satisfied with both crowds.
The show so amazing that, I highly suggest going to one of the upcoming shows before the band finishes their tour. The tickets are divided into three different categories; general admissions, the Kingmaker Pack and the Ultimate Guitar pack. Both the Kingmaker and Ultimate Guitar pack come with a meet & greet, a signed Super Collider album, a VIP ticket, and a specially designed Megadeth ring. I would definitely encourage you to get a meet & greet pack since the musicians are all really cool people. Also check Ellefson’s twitter as he is doing book signings for his latest book “My Life With Deth” in certain cities and it is a great chance to get a few things signed, since you cannot do it during the tour meet and greet events.
Photo credit: Sinan Pehlivanoglu
Setlist:
Intro: Prince of Darkness
Hangar 18
Wake Up Dead
In My Darkest Hour
Tornado of Souls
Sweating Bullets
Set the World Afire
A Tout Le Monde
Kingmaker
Trust
She-Wolf
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