The moon was full as it looked over the gathering of heavy-metal fans waiting impatiently for the arrival of Megadeth, one of heavy-metal’s leading founders. The fans gathered on Oct 26 at Fort Canning Park dressed to rock. Some were in their dirty denims, and sleeveless tees plastered with Megadeth, emphasising their devotion to the band. Others were in heavy black leather jackets in our sweltering weather while others did away with tees altogether, preferring to show a little bit more flesh.

The scene was perfect. An empty stage aching for screaming rockers, an open bar underneath the

stars for those who appreciate an extra high during the concert. Devotees were screaming frantically hoping that Dave Mustaine, lead vocalist, founder and last surviving member of the original Megadeth lineup, might hear their cries and salvage their emptiness by simply strumming his guitar. The 2 brothers- lead guitarist Glen Drover and drummer Shawn Drover, talents the world had seen for years before they joined Megadeth were also part of the assemblage. And let’s not forget bass guitarist James LoMenzo, who used to play for Slash, the ex-member of Guns & Roses, in Slash and the Snakepits. This was truly a gathering of legends.

Megadeth formed in 1983 after lead singer Mustaine was thirsty for revenge against his arch rivals and leaders of heavy-metal music, Metallica, who last performed at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in 1993.

The crowd was getting impatient. They were chanting lyrics even louder, pushing themselves further forward, hoping to be in the front line to watch the band. Violence even broke out in the crowd as some fans were involved in a fight, leaving one bleeding from the nose.

And just then, when the army of fans started to feel the rage of staring at an empty stage, the band, exploded on stage claiming ownership and charismatically strummed their guitars. It was insane! The crowd looked upon the band as though they had seen for the first time, the arrival of rock gods. The band started the night by performing “Sleepwalker”, a track from their latest album, United Abominations released in May. Fans were head-banging. Others were escorted out by police officers as they climbed over the barricades hoping to get a closer encounter with the band. Megadeth played other songs such as “Washington Is Next”, “Wake Up Dead”, “Hangar 18” and “Gears of War” only to name a few.


During the concert, Mustaine told the crowd that he didn’t believe in musicians standing in front of the fans and speaking to them during a concert. He thought it was an utter waste of their money. So he told them that he’d stop talking and start playing, unlike those musicians who were just really lame. Megadeth sang a total of 11 songs for the initial part of the night before making a brief exit out of the stage to mark the end of the concert. The fans obviously wanted more.

Their passion and fervour must have won Megadeth over, because Mustaine walked back on stage and told the crowd that they were going to perform another 6 songs, something which the band didn’t do while touring other countries in South-East Asia.

The rock band continued with “Ashes In Your Mouth”, “Never Walk Alone”, “Symphony Of Destruction”, “Trust”, “Peace Sells” and “Holy Wars”.

A fan from the hardwarezone.com forum said, “that was one helluva heavy metal weekend!!!”

Others from the fan site clearly want Megadeth to return next year to Singapore.