Dave Mustaine Shares Hopes For A 'Big 4' Concert Reunion

Dave Mustaine has gone topic-to-topic in a new interview with Songfacts, swinging from The Big 4 - Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax - working with James Hetfield, Megadeth's latest Grammy nod, and more.

From June 2010 to September 2011, The Big 4 of thrash metal played 14 shows from Warsaw to New York City. In the interview, Mustaine revealed his desire to get the bands back together for one more show.

"I really think it's time for the guys in Metallica to step up, and us do one last round, see if we can get Slayer to come out of retirement and do a 'Big 4 passing of the torch' to the new Big 4," the Symphony Of Destruction singer and guitarist shared. 

Mustaine spoke of the current guitarists he admires, such as Eric Johnson, Dweezil Zappa, "Michael [Amott] from Arch Enemy, and some of the guys like Jeff Loomis. And the guys from Lamb of God and the guys from Trivium. They're all really good guitar players in their right."

He mentioned wanting to make things easier for Slayer if The Big 4 ever played together again and noted, "I think it would be really cool symbolically if we did something at, like, the LA Coliseum, even if it's one show and that's it. Slayer is from Los Angeles, so it would probably make it more convenient for them to go home at night. I personally have been hoping for this for a while, and I keep asking and asking and asking. They're just not into it. But that's up to them."

Mustaine then switched over to discussing a collaboration that wasn't meant to be with Metallica. "The last time we talked, it didn't end very well because we have some memory of a couple of things that took place when I was in the band," he said. "I remember it one way, and he is saying that it happened another. But it's about somebody else - it's not even him. He's talking to me on behalf of you know who [Lars Ulrich].

He added, "I would love to work with James. I'd like to work with Lars again, too, but I think the real talent in Metallica has always been around the guitar - everybody makes fun of the drums."

Read the rest of the interview here. 

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