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103.3 The Edge and Rapids Theatre present Megadeth

by jmaloni

Press release

Wed, Sep 12th 2012 01:30 pm

Band appears with special guests on Monday, Nov. 17

Megadeth's Dave Mustaine has personally overseen a new 20th anniversary edition of the band's most popular album, 1992's double platinum-certified "Countdown to Extinction," to be released Nov. 6 by Capitol/EMI. After wrapping up their "TH1RT3EN World Tour" this fall, Megadeth will perform the acclaimed album in its entirety on their "Countdown to Extinction 20th Anniversary Tour" this November and December.

Presented in a two-CD lift-top box and digitally, "Countdown to Extinction's" new commemorative edition pairs the remastered original album with a 1992 concert, recorded live at San Francisco's Cow Palace, which has never before been released in its entirety. The concert audio has been newly remixed for this release. The physical and digital versions both include a booklet with a new liner notes essay by music journalist Kory Grow, and the box set also contains a 24-by-36-inch poster and four collectible postcards.

"Countdown to Extinction," Megadeth's fifth studio album, was recorded in Los Angeles in 1992 as rioting raged across the city in response to the Rodney King trial verdicts. American tensions weren't limited to LA, by any means, as the Gulf War was still fresh in people's minds, the state of the environment was becoming headline news, and President George H.W. Bush was seeking re-election in a heated campaign season.

Out of this turmoil, Megadeth was inspired to create "Countdown to Extinction," considered by many to be the band's best and most accessible album. The group's previous albums, including "So Far, So Good...So What!" and "Rust in Peace," included songs that tackled topics like censorship and religious bloodletting in the Middle East. But none were as polemical as the sonic missiles launched by "Countdown to Extinction." Megadeth laced the songs with acid-tongued commentary about subjects ranging from the futility of war ("Architecture of Aggression") to the senseless brutality of caged hunting ("Countdown to Extinction"). "Foreclosure of a Dream" sampled Bush's infamous "Read my lips" speech, making a statement about taxation endangering the American Dream.

Spin magazine raved that "Countdown to Extinction" "may just be the finest thrash-metal album ever made," and before long, songs like "Symphony of Destruction," "Sweating Bullets" and "Skin O' My Teeth" had entered metal's canon of essential recordings. The album shot to No. 2 on the Billboard chart (it may have hit No. 1, if not for Billy Ray Cyrus' long chart-topping reign with "Some Gave All"), and it was certified double-platinum in the U.S. within two years, with sales of more than two million copies.

Megadeth was in top form, with Mustaine, the band's then 31-year-old singer and guitarist, leading the album's assault with lyrics such as, "You know your worth when your enemies praise your architecture of aggression," not to mention his venomous rhythm guitar attack. His bandmates completed the picture, as lead guitarist Marty Friedman blazed with memorable solos, bassist David Ellefson jammed dizzying arrays of low-end thunder, and drummer Nick Menza attacked his kit. Megadeth sounded hungry, and the band was rewarded when the album earned a Grammy award nomination (Best Metal Performance) and when its title cut garnered a Genesis Award from the Humane Society for raising awareness for animal rights issues.

Find more at www.megadeth.com

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VENUE: Rapids Theatre, 1711 Main St., Niagara Falls

DATE: Monday, Nov. 17

6 P.M. DOORS, 7:30 P.M. ALL-AGES SHOW

TICKETS: $40 presale or $45 day of show

TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY, SEPT. 14, AT NOON

All Ticketmaster locations (Rapids Theatre box office; charge by phone; Record Theater - Terrapin Station)

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