For Mustaine, the moment was about closing a long chapters of his career. The band, officially set to release their self-titled album on January 23, 2026, announced that among the 11 tracks listed as the record’s farewell effort is a version of “Ride the Lightning” — a song originally released by Metallica in 1984.
Mustaine, who was a founding member and original lead guitarist of Metallica before being dismissed in 1983, holds co-writing credits on “Ride the Lightning” and other tracks from the early Metallica era.
“One of the songs is a cover song but I actually wrote it, so it’s kind of like a cover, kind of like my song.”
In several interviews, Mustaine emphasized this cover is not motivated by rivalry, but by respect and a desire to “close the circle” on his musical journey.
“It wasn’t really that I wanted to do my version. I think that we all wanted it to turn out a certain way, and for me, this was about something so much more than how a song turns out. It was about respect.”
“One thing I’ve always said is I’ve always had a tremendous respect for James’ [Hetfield] playing and Lars’ [Ulrich] songwriting. So it was cool to do this and add it to the record.”
According to Mustaine, the arrangement for the cover has been tweaked: it’s faster, recorded at a slightly lower key, and features some changed solo/tempo elements.
“We sped it up just a little bit and played around a little bit with the solo… you might hear some differences with the tempos.”
Mustaine confirmed neither James Hetfield nor Lars Ulrich had officially heard this version before its announcement.
“I was hoping that we could get his approval on this before we release the track. But when it turned out the way that it did … we just went for it.”
The Broader Context
- The album will be Megadeth’s final studio release, as Mustaine laid out in August 2025 when he announced the band’s curtain-call year.
- The final tracklist publicly revealed includes 10 main songs plus the bonus track “Ride the Lightning (Bonus Track)”.
- Mustaine framed the move as completing his career arc: from early work with Metallica, through founding Megadeth in 1983, to now ending at a moment of reflection and tribute.
“I wanted to do something to close the circle on my career right now, since it started off … I wanted to make sure that nothing is left unsaid.”
What This Means
While metal fans will read into the significance — Mustaine covering a song he helped create for Metallica on the last Megadeth album — Mustaine insists the gesture is about legacy and respect, not vengeance or rivalry. It stands as the final piece of a 40-plus-year career, recognizing the roots of his journey and the impact he had on shaping modern metal guitar.
For fans, this is less about who played what riff first or whose record sold more — it’s about closing a chapter with purpose. When the album lands January 23, 2026, expect the closing bars not just of a song, but of a story.
