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Life is good for Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine.

鈥淚鈥檓 pretty happy with the way things are going in life,鈥� he said. 鈥淏een married for a long time, got great kids, got a really cool job, got a great band, love my management. My career is wide open right now.鈥�

Mustaine said after finishing the album 鈥淭he Sick, the Dying ... and the Dead!鈥� that was released in 2022 the band became a free agent after completing its record/publishing deal with Universal Music Group.

鈥淲e became free agents at that time,鈥� Mustaine said of his band Megadeth. 鈥淪o if you can imagine us at that moment, as successful as we are, as big as we鈥檙e perceived by the world, to go out and get a new lease on life is pretty exciting.鈥�

Mustaine said the band is liking not having a label to answer to. However, emphasized the band had a great relationship with UMG and that the label was very supportive of the band. It was not always the case with other labels.

鈥淭here were some other labels we were with over the years that were just a little bit less creative and didn鈥檛 really have a lot of skills to go to take us to where we wanted to go,鈥� he explained.

Becoming a free agent did not mean the band was ready to run to another label.

鈥淲hen we turned the record in, there was a period that we had to wait until it was clear, and then we were able to go to wherever we wanted to go to,鈥� Mustaine said. 鈥淏ut, I haven鈥檛 felt the need to go anywhere. I love my relationship with Universal right now, and when the time comes that we need to start a new record, we鈥檒l obviously cross that bridge when we get there and decide, do we want to stay with Universal? Do we want to go someplace else? So we鈥檙e sitting in a really great position right now.鈥�

Mustaine started Megadeth in 1983 after parting ways with Metallica. Megadeth is referred to as one of the 鈥渂ig four鈥� of American thrash metal bands, along with Metallica, Anthrax and Slayer.

鈥淚t鈥檚 obviously flattering,鈥� Mustaine said, of being recognized as a pioneer of thrash metal music. 鈥淚鈥檓 not sure that I鈥檓 worthy of some of these accolades, but I鈥檒l take them.鈥�

Being in the industry so long has allowed Mustaine to introduce Megadeth and thrash metal to new generations. Megadeth brings its 鈥淒estroy All Enemies Tour鈥� with Mudvayne and All That Remains to Isleta Amphitheater, 5601 University Blvd. SE, on Monday, Aug. 5.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 always fun,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou look in the audience and you see the different groups of people hanging out together. That鈥檚 always fun. But, I think it鈥檚 been like that from the beginning with us having different fans in the audience.

鈥淚 remember playing back in 鈥�80s, back in Long Beach (California) at a place called the Handlebar Saloon. There were a bunch of punkers at our show. And, it wasn鈥檛 so much that punk rockers showing up at our show was not normal. It鈥檚 just that there was a lot of punks that were there, which was really great, and we kind of made that crossover. I was a big punk fan in the beginning myself. I still am. I still dig punk rock a lot.鈥�

Mustaine said his punk influences include the Dead Kennedys, Sex Pistols, Fear, 999, The Exploited, Dead Boys and The Clash.

鈥淭he Ramones were kind of a popular punk band too, but I just was not a super Ramones punk,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd it was weird, one time I had heard this comparison between me and my old band (Metallica) to the Clash and the Ramones. They had said The Clash is to the Ramones as Megadeth is to Metallica. And I thought that鈥檚 kind of a cool thing.鈥�

Following the release of 鈥淭he Sick, the Dying ... and the Dead!鈥� Mustaine predicted a renaissance of metal.

鈥淚 was joking around because I didn鈥檛 want to say anything that precocious, but I really do believe that metal鈥檚 on its way back up in a very strong and bold way right now where it鈥檚 going to be going back up the charts,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 believe that. I believe that when there鈥檚 (stuff) going on in the world, in the government, in politics, in the military, like what鈥檚 going on right now, people of the world can鈥檛 help but to want to fight. And metal music is music that鈥檚 the soundtrack of fighting for a lot of people.鈥�