Dave Mustaine just shocked the metal world.
In a recent announcement, he revealed that his final Megadeth album will include a cover of “Ride The Lightning”, the very song he helped create during his time in Metallica.
Yeah. Let that sink in.
One of the riffs that shaped early thrash.
The track that defined the “Metallica vs Megadeth” cold war.
The sound that launched two legacies.
Now it’s coming full circle.
But here’s the thing:
If Dave Mustaine records Ride The Lightning in 2025, he’s not going to play it like 1983 Mustaine.
He’s going to play it like modern Megadeth Mustaine, sharp, surgical right-hand precision, and tighter downpicks.
So I wanted to answer the question everyone is thinking:
This is a Megadeth-style reinterpretation of Ride The Lightning, played the way Mustaine would approach it right now.
Why This Moment Matters (Metallica vs Megadeth History in One Breath)
Dave Mustaine wrote and co-wrote major parts of Kill ‘Em All and influenced the early Ride The Lightning sound before being fired from Metallica in 1983.
Metallica went one way.
Mustaine built Megadeth and evolved thrash into something darker, more technical, more aggressive.
But the guitar DNA?
That comes from Dave.
Always has.
So hearing Mustaine return to Ride The Lightning is more than a bonus track.
It’s a fracture in metal history realigning.
A full circle arc.
A story that began in anger and ends in ownership.
My Arrangement: What I Changed & Why
I didn’t try to sound like Metallica. I worked on this Tyrantshredd version thinking of Holy wars and basically playing Ride The Lightning in a way that sounds like Rust in peace era Megadeth!
- Tighter palm-mutes to match Megadeth’s modern precision
- Sharper accents on the main gallop pattern
- More aggressive right-hand dominance, less swing, more bite
This is Mustaine’s rhythm guitar culture applied to a Metallica classic and the video below shows you my version of what I think it will sound like. The Tyrantshred way!
Why This Will Divide the Internet (and That’s a Good Thing)
Metallica fans and Megadeth fans have been debating this for 40 years:
Who really shaped thrash?
And Who owns the legacy?
Who carried the flame?
This song reopening the wound is exactly why it’s going viral.
Comment sections are about to look like:
“Metallica perfected the sound.”
“Megadeth refined the sound.”
“Mustaine invented the sound.”
And honestly?
I’m here for the conversation.
Let it happen.
Let the old scars bleed.
That’s metal.