786. Megadeth / Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good! 1985. 4.5/5

Of all of the albums that introduced me to new bands in my teenage years, this one made the biggest impact on me at the time. That may seem a little far fetched, when you compare it to my first taste of bands such as Iron Maiden (Powerslave), Metallica (Master of Puppets) and Dio (Holy Diver), but it comes to be the truth. I still remember my first time, going to my mate's house during our school lunch break. He pulled out the vinyl - the big heavy 180g stuff too this album came on - and as I scanned over the cover and in the insert I got my first listen to Megadeth and the raw magic that was contained within.
I knew nothing of Megadeth, and while my mate knew only a little more he filled in my blanks as we listened to the album that day. All of that still floods back to me whenever I put on the album today, and having been playing it pretty much non stop for the last three days at work, it has brought on a wonderfully nostalgic feeling.

The album begins with the somewhat unusual piano tinkling of "Last Rites" before crashing into the opening riff of "Loved to Death". It's raw, it's furious. The solos sometimes sound like they had been worked out on the spot, but it's good old fashioned thrash metal from the outset. The title track keeps this up, with "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!" not only being written about a hired killer, but showcasing what Megadeth is going to be from the start - interesting subject matter in the lyrics, layered with a great drum beat and bass track, scintillating guitars and Dave's distinctive vocals over the top of everything. It mightn't be a classical voice, but it isn't the screams that were heard in his early days with another band. It has definitely 'matured' for this album release. "Skull Beneath the Skin" is another great song with all of these characteristics.
When I first heard "These Boots" I thought it was a Megadeth original, which was fine but with something that made me wonder where it had evolved from. Little did I know that it was a cover version of a song sung by Nancy Sinatra, called "These Boots Are Made For Walking". The lyrics here have been... twisted... but it did explain why even back at the beginning I felt as though this songs was different from the others on the album.
You just have to love "Rattlehead", and if it isn't Dave's answer to Metallica's "Whiplash" then it would a huge coincidence. Same subject matter, same furious pace throughout the song, and the same mentioning of the band's name as a part of the song. Terrific. A great song that is just amazingly fast and performed brutally.
When I first heard "Chosen Ones", my mate implored me to listen to the lyrics, and tell him what they were and what they referred to. We were (and still are) both huge fans of Monty Python, and it didn't take long for me to recognise the first verse of the song, and where it had come from:

You doubt your strength or courage, don't come to join with me
For death surely wants you, with sharp and pointy teeth
An animal so vicious, no others fought and won
So on the fields of battle, we are the chosen ones

They are (liberally) the words spoken by Tim the Enchanter during Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and the whole song is about that scene in the movie. Brilliant. Genius. Hilarious. And perhaps, as much as I had enjoyed everything that had been played to me previously that day, it was this song that tied me to this album, that gave me a connection that enticed me to listen to this album again and again. An album always needs a hook. this one for me has more than one, but this was probably the one that first caught me.
The song that has become one of my all time favourite Megadeth songs however is "Looking Down the Cross". It is still somewhat of a mystery to me as to why this has not become an all time classic, one that is permanently in the live set list and played with venom at every gig. It really has everything - a 'plot', it starts off in a menacingly slow style with the piano and Dave's vocals, before exploding into the heart of the song with a great riff and Dave again spitting out his lyrics. It builds up all the way through, into the solo bridge, before crashing into the finale aggressively both vocally and musically. As I said, I love this song, and it should be more popularly known.
When my mate played me the final song on the album, I immediately recognised it, and said so. The music was from another song, though it missed a bit in the middle, but the lyrics were different. When I looked questioningly at him, he told me that Dave Mustaine, the leader of Megadeth, had actually been an original member of Metallica, and this song was the one Metallica had originally played until Mustaine had been fired from the band. They had then revamped it and recorded it as "The Four Horsemen". This, however, was the original - "Mechanix" - and thus duly recorded here in all its glory, at an amplified speed as well. It's great. I love it. No doubt the whole album is directed as a middle finger to his former band, but this song in particular has that historical reference.

And so this is Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!. Ever since that first lunchtime back in 1986, this album has guided me through some interesting times. It is surprising how well it holds up today. It may not be as slick as some future releases, but as a starting point in a quite brilliant career for this band, it shows where the passion and fire burned. Speed and thrash thrown together on vinyl, and while it may not be completely perfect, it is only slightly flawed in its greatness.

Rating:  Crushing the bones of the hundred folds, swinging the judgement hammer.  4.5/5

Listen to full album here