Megadeth has revealed the tracklist for its upcoming final album, and it’ll include a long-awaited bonus track.
The band revealed its self-titled album, due out Jan. 23, will have 10 tracks and will include an 11th bonus song called “Ride the Lightning.” The song was cowritten with Metallica’s James Hetfield, Cliff Burton, and Lars Ulrich, which Megadeth’s frontman Dave Mustaine explained was included on the album to celebrate his career.
“As I come full circle on the career of a lifetime, the decision to include ‘Ride the Lightning’, a song I cowrote with James, Lars and Cliff, was to pay my respects to where my career first started,” Mustaine said in a statement.
Megadeth announced in August the band would be saying farewell after 16 albums. Mustaine confirmed their next project would be the group’s last, sharing a video to the band’s YouTube and social media pages that included Mustaine’s alter ego, Vic Rattlehead, delivering the news.
“For over four decades, I’ve been chained in silence, but the end demands my voice,” Vic begins while seated behind a desk. “It is confirmed: The next Megadeth studio album will be the last. Forty years of metal, forged in steel, ending in fire. And when the new year rises, the global farewell tour. You’ve heard the warning. Now prepare yourself, Cyber Army. Stay loud, stay tuned, and meet me on the frontlines.”
Mustaine then thanked fans in a press release for their commitment and celebrating the band’s impact on rock. “There’s so many musicians that have come to the end of their career, whether accidental or intentional,” he said at the time. “Most of them don’t get to go out on their own terms on top, and that’s where I’m at in my life right now. I have traveled the world and have made millions upon millions of fans and the hardest part of all of this is saying goodbye to them.”
The band will additionally join Iron Maiden on its Run for Your Lives Tour next year.
Check out the tracklist below.
