1048. Megadeth / Thirteen. 2011. 3.5/5

Following the excitement and joy of Endgame, Megadeth had found a way to climb back to the top of the tree of the old metal warhorses, and once again they had the metal world at their feet. They had recorded three successive albums that had along the way begun to rediscover the band’s true sound and engineering. Now all they had to do was to parlay that into their next release, which became the band’s 13th album entitled Th1rt3en.

Is this trying to be a knock off of Endgame? Because much of it sounds as though it wants to be, but at a different level. The return of Dave Ellefson to the fold also brought in new… well… old ideas, in the way that they took some older material that had never been fully realised. How well this worked on the album is open to opinion. While the idea of utilising the past to create a perfect future had its merit, for me it doesn’t really work here. ”Sudden Death” is the most recent of these recycled heroes, and it is a good start to the album, with a solo that sounds like pure Chris Poland. “New World Order” appeared on the Duke Nukem soundtrack and was re-recorded here in order to give it heavier sound, which I can take or leave. “Black Swan” came from the mid-2000’s and was unfinished before it was picked up for this album, while “Millennium of the Blind” was initially conceived back when Youthanasia was being recorded and has appeared on special editions of that album. While all these songs sound fine, the fact that they all came beyond the period of writing for Endgame does make it feel as though they are not of the same era.
As for the remainder of the songs it comes across as more of a clang than a bang. “Public Enemy No. 1” sounds a bit simple, as if the band are going for a ‘crowd’ song rather than a great Megadeth song. “Guns, Drugs and Money” is just so repetitive and quickly gets on your nerves rather than satisfy your love of the band. “We the People” gives off the same vibe. “Wrecker” and “Deadly Nightshade” are almost laughable in their definability, which makes it awkward when you just want a hard and heavy album without lyrical note taking being part of the problem.
Did the band rush in too quick? Is this an attempt to have a follow up to take an advantage of a good product that did well, as Endgame most certainly was? There had been an upward trend in recent albums, beginning from the bottom of the pile that was Risk and progressing since then. Each step along the way was an improvement, a return of some ideals and music veins from an earlier time. The return of Ellefson also pointed towards something good, but in the long run it misses the mark to a certain degree. While musically it sounds fine, with both Shawn Drover and Chris Broderick again proving the be excellent on their chosen instruments, I wonder if album producer Johnny K had too much influence on the writing and musical direction for someone who had not previously been involved with the band. Missing producer from recent albums Andy Sneap may also be a reason for the slight rectification of direction.

So this has a similar sound to Endgame but without whatever spark it had that really made it something special. Endgame was a massive surprise in the middle age of Megadeth. Th1rt3en is a good sounding album with similar-sounding songs, but without the uniqueness and real fire and power that came with it. The weaker songs bring this back to the pack. There is nothing inherently bad about the album, it’s just not as memorable as it could be.

Rating: “All your angels will ignore you, as your life flashes before you”. 3.5/5