So Far, So Good... So What!

If So Far, So Good... So What? doesn't get mentioned in the same reverence as the records sandwiching it, that's probably for a good reason, because this is a strange one. It's Megadeth through and through, don't get me wrong, but the band is certainly taking more chances here than one might have anticipated, with some slower, more emotional pieces to contrast against the more intense battery, another cover that feels a little too cheesy against the originals, and a couple of cuts that don't quite get a Golden Star from the teacher. Ironically, this features a few of my favorite cuts from the band, it's just that they are not all created equally. In Megadeth's defense, they were enduring half the roster being changed out...Gar Samuelson and Chris Poland dropped for their alleged drug addiction, Chuck Behler and Jeff Young signing on board to replace them, so the idea that this would be a step up the ladder like Peace Sells... was from the debut was wishful thinking at best.

Weirdly, the issues I take here are almost the inverse of those few I had on Peace Sells... That album frontloaded all of its best material, where this time I think the opposite. The first three tunes don't exactly line up for me. "Into the Lungs of Hell" is a fine, anthemic instrumental, something more ambitious than the shorter intros like "Last Rites" or "Good Mourning", but it's a little too steady and never achieves the payoff it needs, certainly not in "Set the World Afire", a solid technical Megadeth track that once more that feels like a Peace Sells... outtake that can't quite compare. As for the Sex Pistols track, I think it does fit the band's attitude even more than those on the last two albums, but clearly this is a practice that had run its course. I realize "Anarchy in the U.K." was a limited hit, and they do slightly metalize it from the original, but not enough, and I was over this one by about the age of 16. Had it been tucked later onto the track list I might be more forgiving, but this is a skip almost every time I listen through the album the last couple decades.

That said, I REALLY like the rest of So Far, So Good...So What! "Mary Jane" and "In My Darkest Hour" are wildly successful attempts at building slower, more dramatic, accessible and melodic tracks without teetering into lame ballad territory, and they feel as poignant now in 2024 as they did in 1988, the former with plenty of the thrashing in the bridge you'd hope for, the latter having some amazing harmony hooks and perhaps the best Megadeth song to break out your lighter for. Pair these up with some superb speed metal licks on "502" and "Liar" and we're getting somewhere, but I have to talk about "Hook in Mouth", a personal favorite. I love how the crashing chords set up the bass lines and moody verses, and when it busts back into the thrash rhythm guitars around :45 I swear my puberty had achieved a new level. It's a strangely subdued track with a lot of pent-up energy, an an epic latter half where Dave's vocals just ring out under the sustained chords, a real gem with a great title that also manages to tie itself into the band's mascot.

The production on this is highly atmospheric, lots of reverb, guitars not always as bold as they were on Peace Sells..., and a lot more emotion being showcased through Dave's vocals. Perhaps natural as a response to the band's personal or lineup troubles, but it feels genuine and painful nonetheless. A few of the leads are awesome, others fail to land, but there's still a strong sense of musicianship, especially the two Daves, since the other roles felt temporary and mercenary even back then. What I take away from this is much the same as the debut...it's like a magnificent, chonky EP of material with a few extras tacked on that don't really flesh it out to a properly brilliant full-length, yet there's no question that this album also possesses its own sense of timelessness. The quirkiness and variation are interesting, and this isn't the last time a Megadeth album would take risks (ha ha), but in terms of sheer consistency or quality, records like South of Heaven, Eternal Nightmare, or The New Order send this one home on a stretcher. It had its charms...a good one to play for your girlfriend if you had one back then, and the better tracks hold up, but it can hardly shine the shoes of what would follow.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com

So Far, So Good… So What is certainly one of the more unorthodox albums to come from the Megadeth camp. Outside of a general sense of thrash in the riffs and Dave’s signature snarling, this ain’t your average everyday Megadeth album. That’s for sure. Rather than the jazzier motifs of the first couple of albums, the shredding throughout the two albums that this is sandwiched between and the “I really wish I was Metallica”isms of the rest of their career, So Far finds itself wedged between its darker moods and its punkier vibes. It’s to a point that – out of their first five albums – this can be quite difficult to truly admire your first time through. At a vague level, sure – there are some cool riffs, it starts with a bang, a few songs still positively thrash and there’s even a pretty fun, decent cover song, all things considered. But the drearier riffs and overall mood definitely contrasts even with the more anthemic fare of Countdown to Extinction, never mind one of the greatest metal album duos, Peace Sells and Rust in Peace. It’s to a point that it’s fine on its own merits but can be a bit difficult to stomach when placed next to those albums, to say the least.

So when you think “grower”, you think an album that starts off around about that humbly, only for its true strengths to sink their claws further and further into you until you finally get what makes it tick. Like, you get what I described above, then it ends up being a truly dark, atmospheric, and perhaps even understated affair (not just by Megadeth standards, either) that leaves you wondering how you didn’t see it that way in the first place. An album that lifts you up to its level, in other words. But yet, So Far is an odd case of this phenomenon where the lesser songs hardly improve but the best songs shine like a golden idol in the murky depths.

Songs like “502” and “Liar” will always feel like they were rushed out the door to fill the album real quick – while they got some thrash and the punky leanings can make for a fun enough song, there also isn’t a whole lot to hold onto and “502” doesn’t entirely seem to know how to end itself. Not to mention, “Anarchy in the UK” is more of a fun novelty than anything else. Conversely, the one-two punch of “Into the Lungs of Hell” and “Set the World Afire” both combine to be an onslaught of riffs and solos, “Mary Jane” rides on this hazy stoner rock kinda of rhythm, and “In My Darkest Hour” especially stands tall as a monolith. What particularly stands out about “In My Darkest Hour” is its mood. The somber intro heading into the downtrodden mid-paced riffs sells the mood excellently, and the sped up section towards the end (particularly the solo) – chef’s kiss.

Just on the whole, there are things letting the album down. The hazier production weakening much of the rhythm section – especially compared to the more rustic production Peace Sells has and the more razor-sharp one Rust in Peace will have a couple of years later. Like I said with Destruction’s Infernal Overkill, it does highlight the strengths of the good songs as they overcome the relatively crap production with some genuinely good riffs, though it also assists “Mary Jane” in emphasizing that fuzzier vibe it’s going for, and makes “In My Darkest Hour” sound even more downtrodden. But really... I think “Hook in Mouth” is the best way to explain everything. The production lessens in the impact of the riffs, but the riffs themselves lack that spark that they had on the first two albums. It’d be easy to blame Jeff Young as his more straightforward style leaves him as no Chris Poland, but even Mustaine seems to be running on fumes here. Like he and Jeff had enough killer riffs for the first two songs and “In My Darkest Hour”, lucked out with a rattling rhythm in “Mary Jane” and then had to get something out for these other tracks. Even most of the good tracks are a bit thin on what’s in the songs as it’s more about straight-up riffing, rather than any kind of stylish motifs you’d be used to on the prior two albums (the overt jazziness of Killing is My Business and the shreddy jazz-ish stylings of Peace Sells). Nothing wrong with a no-nonsense approach, but you gotta have the riffs to back it up and they only got that in spades basically. So you end up with “Hook in Mouth” where it could’ve been a sick thrashy kind of cathartic ending, and it instead ends up a vaguely enjoyable thrashy tune. One that sounds good in the background, but bugger if anything beyond a vague memory persists once the album ends.

Its black sheep reputation has been well-documented at this point and it’s clear why that is. That being said, So Far is one of those albums whose best virtues are the ones that really sink their claws in the more you listen to it. Perhaps if it was across the whole album and not just half (or… like 4.5/8ths) of it, it would stand tall alongside Peace Sells and Rust in Peace. But as it is, it’s a very uneven album that’s as decently listenable as it is kick fucking ass.

In comparison to the two masterpieces that So Far.. is sandwiched between, it's easy to understand why this is the black sheep of the early Megadeth run. Everything from the production to the songwriting to the feeling of the band giving a shit about what they're doing, it all is a big step down from this record's predecessor, but this definitely isn't one to skip because, while not as memorable or striking, most of the tracks here do bring a lot of enjoyment. The intro Into The Lungs of Hell takes a while to really kick off, but later in the track we get a lot of the intricate and epic soloing to expect, but the playing in general is noticeable worse, no doubt because of the lineup replacement from Chris Poland to Jeff Young. Still, the riffs are convincing enough.

Set The World Afire is universally agreed as the best part of this album. It has plenty of badass riffs with one of the more explosive build-ups in the band's discography. The constant shifting in tempo and deranged guitar sweeps adds to the apocalyptic atmosphere of this song. The first ten minutes of So Far, So Good, So What is very grand and dynamics-oriented contrary to what I said earlier. After the first two tracks, the quality is pulled way down with a cover of Anarchy In The UK which is honestly mediocre, though the original is a shit song from a shit band anyway, so it's hard to fault Megadeth for the song itself, it really just doesn't have a place on a full-length Megadeth release.

Things start getting interesting again with Mary Jane and In My Darkest Hour, both of which are powerful mid-paced tracks with interesting qualities that are somewhere between unnerving and introspective. Here is where the substance picks up a little bit and the songs hold your attention more competently, but the record is again diluted by unnecessary songs like Liar and 502 which feel rushed and trashy, like an underground punk band learning how to play thrash metal.

These tracks feel under-developed and cause the record to be inconsistent; who ordered this tracklist? It would make sense if the more punkish, juvenile songs were on one side while the more substantial cuts were on the other side, but it's all twisted here and doesn't make for a very cohesive listen in its entirety. I sound like I'm complaining a lot because there are multiple tracks on here that aren't worth your time, but if you're a fan of Megadeth's more abrasive style of songwriting, you'll find songs like Hook In Mouth and Set The World Afire which are classics.

I listened through Megadeth's discography from beginning to end for the first time thanks to how I check out bands, and I was blown away by the intro to their first album (Last Rites / Loved to Deth), and while Peace Sells...But Who's Buying? is a fantastic record, I always felt that Wake up Dead should've had a bigger impact and build up. The moment I listened to the first song on this record (Into the Lungs of Hell, a wonderful instrumental), I was immediately put back on the headbanging spree in my bedroom at age 16 and it didn't stop for one moment from beginning to end (excluding tracks such as In My Darkest Hour).

As I said before, Into the Lungs of Hell is a legendary intro and immediately shows you what kind of album this is. It transitions into Set the World Afire, starting with "I don't want to set the world on fire...", with a nuclear missile falling and exploding in the background, and heading straight into that riff. Into the Lungs of Hell / Set the World Afire both have his post apocalyptic atmosphere on them that I don't think any band has been able to replicate since, and I applaud Dave and co. for this.

Next up you get the somewhat forgettable but still catchy cover of Anarchy in the U.K. by The Sex Pistols. Now, this would take place as my least favorite song on this record if it wasn't for another song (we'll get into that), but as is, it's a fine enough tune with one catchy chorus. This track is followed up with my favorite track on the album, Mary Jane. Why does this track always get overlooked? Seriously, I'd kill to hear Megadeth play this one live again. It's got one hell of a build up from the intro ("Forgive me father, for I have sinned"), to that awesome phaser solo, that heads straight into ("FORGIVE ME FATHER... I'M IN THE AESTRAL PLANE, AND I'LL NEVER BE THE SAME, NEVER NEVER NEVERRRRR!").

This track is followed up by the worst effort on the record, 502. I don't hate this song. It's not offensive and it's not awful. I can sit through it from beginning to end. It's just extremely forgettable and kind of drags, which is upsetting when you have three fantastic songs and a competent cover in a row. Now, the next track is In My Darkest Hour, and I've got to say something controversial... I never liked this one when I first heard the album. I know that this song was written after hearing about Cliff Burton's death, and Mr. Burton is sorta kinda my favorite musician under the sun, but I just couldn't get why the song was so loved. Nowadays, I respect the song and I really do like the "Time has a way of taking time, loneliness is not only felt by fools..." section of the song, but overall it's kind of stale to me.

The next song before the final track is Liar, which has a pissed off Dave Mustaine at the microphone yelling every possible worst thing he can at Chris Poland. A legendary song, though I don't have much to say about it, except for the fact that this is the first of two instances where Dave raps on a Megadeth song. The final track is one hell of a way to end an album, this track? HOOK. IN. MOUTH. I have no idea why this song is so fantastic, but it just is. That bass, those drums, and Dave's absolutely haunting vocals are just something else.

Can I also mention that this album's 2004 remaster is awful? I feel like I have to mention that.

Overall, So Far, So Good...So What! is a absolutely awesome record that really shouldn't be overlooked. While it is not my favorite Megadeth record (that goes to Rust in Peace), it's certainly one of my absolute favorites. Songs to check out are every song on this album.

I usually try to avoid reviewing full-lengths that have been reviewed by a lot of other people but at the risk of adding to the cacophony, I present my review of Megadeth’s 1988 outing “So Far So Good…So What!” “So Far So Good…So What!” was my first contact wth Megadeth at the age of 14 in the late 80s and the cover art (Vic Rattlehead…on the Moon (?) dressed like a bounty hunter from “Star Wars”?) as well as the song titles immediately intrigued me and so not soon after, I was listening to the tape (because it was a tape) in my Walkman. It was my first foray into thrash metal, which eventually led me to liking heavier and heavier forms of music. I never really bought that Megadeth could be considered one of the “Big Four of Thrash” (arguably Exodus or Overkill could’ve claimed the title more rightfully). To me, they were what they claimed they were: “The World’s State of the Art Speed Metal Band” but more often than not, they were a band that occasionally thrashed out but largely played skilled and technically proficient metal with a capital “M”. But I’m not here to ruminate on the nature of Megadeth’s branding…I’m here to do a review of their third full-length.

“So Far So Good…So What!” presents a Megadeth that is in a transitional phase in a number of ways. It is the “middle child”, so to speak, sandwiched firmly in between the debut and it’s classic follow-up, and their magnum opus “Rust In Peace”, bookended of course by their 1992 commercial breakthrough “Countdown to Extinction”. It is also the only album to feature the one-time Megadeth line-up of guitar teacher Jeff Young and and former drum tech Chuck Behler on lead guitars and drums, respectively. The production is also somewhere between the the rawness of the first 2 full-lengths and the deliberate but measured gloss of “Rust In Peace” and “Countdown…” But most importantly, there are quite a few sonic motifs that only appear on this album and never surface again anywhere on subsequent Megadeth albums. So with this makeshift suicide squad of teachers and techs joined by stalwarts Dave Mustaine and Dave “Junior” Ellefson, Megadeth set out on a mission to create Megadeth’s 3rd album in the aftermath of the load-blowing that was the year 1986 in thrash metal. So how is the actual Megadeth material on this album? Overall I can honestly describe in one word: strong.

“So Far So Good…So What!” opens with the opening one two punch of “Into the Lungs of Hell” and “Set the World Afire” and they both acquit themselves beautifully as prime Megadeth. “Into the Lungs of Hell” features some curious horns (refer to elements used once) and “Set the World Afire” has some recognizably Megadeth sweep picking in addition to a layered, growling hook. So far, so good…then there comes the “so what”: a cover of the Sex Pistols “Anarchy in the U.K.” I have a tendency to deduct points from a full-length if it has covers anyway, but the sheer obviousness of this particular cover only compounds matters further. I feel that covers are better as B-sides or standalone singles. Better covers were forthcoming from Megadeth not long after this (“No More Mr. Nice Guy”) until the album-marring Fear cover on “Dystopia”, but that’s a whole ’nother review. If they needed to pad out the album a little…another instrumental would’ve been more welcome, honestly (but maybe not as the 3rd track on the album).

“Mary Jane”, with its convoluted opening moments and the inexplicable, sampled middle part of “502” are good examples of elements that only show up once and never again on a Megadeth album, demonstrating a little bit of experimentation on Megadeth’s part, which is not at all unwelcome. This leads into the “Decline of Western Civilization II”-featured jam “In My Darkest Hour”. It’s been described as a ballad, but if this is a ballad, then so is “Diadems”. It’s more of a mid-tempo jam with an emotive opening and classic Megadeth ascending chords.

“So Far So Good…So What!” ends with diss track “Liar”, directed at gear-selling ex-guitarist Chris Poland and the PMRC-inspired “Hook In My Mouth” and that’s all they wrote. The two tracks aren’t particularly good or bad, simply there to finish up the album and little else. Considering it was 1988 and everything they do is predicated on what Metallica does, Megadeth could’ve put out a pointless, sprawling, “progressive” album with bad production like Metallica’s “…And Justice For All” of the same year, but thankfully, they didn’t. It is an economical album that serves as a placeholder between “Peace Sells…” and one of the best metal albums of all time, “Rust in Peace”. It shows a way to move forward sonically in the thrash metal scene with a combination of relentless innovation and introspective mid-tempo jams. Is it a masterpiece? Not necessarily. It is also overshadowed by releases of the same year by Crumbsuckers, Sepultura and a late-to-the party-but-thrashing hard debut by Sadus. In a lot of ways, though this is a good album, but with a little editing, “So Far So Good So What!” could’ve been an awesome EP in the vein of Kreators “Out of the Dark…” The actual material is great, but the organization of the album leaves a little to be desired. However, it does inch Megadeth out of the thrash ghetto a little bit and is a foreshadowing of greater things to come. “So Far So good So What!” might seem like a mere placeholder to Megadeth…but even Megadeth’s placeholders are better than most bands magnum opuses.

The way this album has gone down in popular memory when it comes to Megadeth's other classic releases has always been curious to me. It's probably the least highly regarded album of this era, and though Jeff Young is a great guitarist, he was only on this album and was followed up by Marty Friedman, who is so legendary that he totally eclipses Young. The end result is that you have an album that most Megadeth fans enjoy, but don't consider to be particularly remarkable. The original production on this album certainly helped cement this in, since it is neither polished like Rust In Peace or Countdown, but nor was it raw like like their debut album. It was just messy and incoherent. Fortunately this album is a rare case where a remaster genuinely improved it, and I think it showed So Far, So Good...So What? to be a truly stupendous album that marks many significant improvements and developments in Megadeth as a band.

SFSGSW starts off with the instrumental track featuring the sort of guitarwork that Megadeth is legendary for. Shredding solos and lightning fast solos treat your ears to a sample of what is to come throughout the album. The riffs feel a touch less wild and chaotic than they were on Peace Sells and Killing Is My Business, but not to their detriment. It's simply a more controlled form of heavy guitar playing, and it shows that Mustaine was perhaps getting more methodical in how he wrote songs. Songs like Liar and Set The World Afire give the listener plenty of reason to simultaneously rattle their head and wonder in awe at Young's and Mustaine's intricate soloing. I could go on, but if you know thrash metal, then you know what Megadeth guitar riffs and solos sound like. There is plenty to be found here, and in excellent quality.

The most significant development on this album is that you can hear Dave Mustaine getting a better grasp on how to use his voice. Few would accuse him of being a great singer, but his high pitched snarl has been used to great effect on many songs. On Megadeth's first two albums though, Mustaine's voice could be pretty hit or miss. Sometimes he could convey great amounts of energy (Rattlehead, Peace Sells, My Last Words), but sometimes his voice was just grating and amateurish (Wake Up Dead). On SFSGSW we get a far better and far more consistent vocal performance, with Mustaine even exploring new ground with his emotional performance on In My Darkest Hour, something that he hadn't really tried up until then. Liar has Mustaine going full force, firing off angry accusations at his former guitarist, whereas Hook In Mouth shows him pulling off a more moderate yet bombastic vocal style. I feel that this album truly doesn't get enough credit for how much Mustaine's singing improves on it, though it is not yet up to the level of quality that he would bring on Rust in Peace and Countdown to Extinction. That said, there are still a few moments where he misses the mark, like the very ending of Hook in Mouth where he gives a sort of half sung-half spoken vocal delivery, and it robs a truly great song of its momentum right as the album is coming to an end, which is a shame.

Anarchy in the UK features here as a cover, and it's...well it's definitely the low point of the album. Mustaine seems to have had odd ideas when it came to putting covers of other artists, and nowhere did it fail to succeed more than here. Previously Megadeth had covered These Boots and I Ain't Superstitious, two songs decidedly far from thrash metal. Though they're mostly unnecessary on their respective albums, they're at least fun and unique takes on those songs. Yet now when Megadeth covers a punk rock classic, something far closer to their own style, it mostly falls flat. Aside from having a different singer, it does almost nothing different or interesting with the original. I do find myself enjoying it simply because I like Anarchy in the UK, but I can't honestly describe it as a good cover.

SFSGSW does not perhaps have the same high peaks that are found on other albums from Megadeth's classic album, but with the exception of Anarchy in the UK it is remarkably consistent. Rarely do I listen to it and feel like I need to skip a track. I still prefer Rust In Peace for how it perfects Megadeth's style of thrash, and Killing is My Business for is sheer raw ferocity, but this is still an excellent serving of thrash metal that any fan should enjoy.

Pull over shithead, it's the cops

You would think that with the lineup of this album being one of the most insignificant and short lived that it wouldn't hold the creative potential and sharp hooks that it does. But by God does it ever. In fact, unlike most, I believe this to be their second greatest effort, and a superior one to Peace Sells. Gone are the suspenseful buildups that made things stand out so much. In place is the flip side, a more angsty approach with a little more technicality in the guitar department, thanks to Jeff Young. Along with this comes a side of more realistic lyricism, sending out the satanic and evil constitution that made up a decent amount of previous songs. More sophistication? Perhaps a little bit, but at the same time, there's a fair amount of chaos. The crazy lifestyle of Mustaine and co. was chaotic and reckless to the max at this point, much like David Lee Roth's character in the mentioned Van Halen track. And why would I mention this ripping ball of classic metal fury? Because nobody roamed these streets at night but them, and with all other things considered, So Far So Good So What is easily Megadeth's most punk album. The inclusion of a Sex Pistols cover is a mere coincidence, but a fitting one.

Saying that this record could pass as a crossover album is certainly too much, and it's still thrash to the max, but one thing that can't be denied is the punk attitude and angst that this one holds over any other. A greatly overlooked feature, yet a solid one. For starters, the political lyrics that would soon be a staple seep in a little bit here. The rebellious heart of the beast and the furious context of the vocal work channels this through better than anything, from the hateful hoarseness of "Hook In Mouth" (my personal favorite), to the spitting outbursts and speed of "Liar". "502" is another one that greatly resembles this, with the punky nature of the riffage and the fractious theme presented. The whiny and anarchic vocal approach is at an all time high here, which shakes it up for sure. As we all know though, this is not a punk record; it just displays a lot of influence from the genre. The pummeling drums are way too metal, and the bassy rhythms and clean structure are far too thought out, thus, it's as thrash as ever.

Production wise, this one has a gritty feel that gives it a reckless vibe while containing adhesive to hold it together in a perfectly balanced way. "In My Darkest Hour" is probably the only exception to this rule, as it's one of the more mature tracks that came from the heart, and is pieced together very carefully despite being written in one sitting. Really, that just shows the sheer talent that the boys possess. More importantly, all of this is such a mix of inspirations that there's no one direction that the record takes as a whole, but it works because of how well the tracks still flow together, utilizing different strategical mechanisms albeit containing the same attitude. The only real downfall is "Mary Jane", not because it's a bad song, but because it's clearly weaker than anything else. Plus, the chord progression, tempo, and drum patterns are almost identical to "In My Darkest Hour", and this track could have been replaced with something better. Other than this slight scratch, So Far is flawless. This version contains four bonus tracks of older mixes, which is pretty neat to hear. Honestly, I actually like the production better, and almost wish that the mix wasn't tampered with, and four cleaner versions were included as bonus tracks, keeping the old versions as the actual album. To each their own I guess.

There are, believe it or not, some people out there who think this is a bad album. Those fools can get bent. Granted, it's a smidge of a let down compared to its predecessor, which just had thrash hit single after thrash hit single, and its successor, which was the final form of power thrash (if one chooses to make such a deep classification). I would rank this on par with, maybe even a little bit higher than the debut.

The argument can certainly be made that this is more of a speed thrash album than any Megadeth album before or since. Songs like Hook In Mouth, 502 and Set The World Afire should have very little trouble convincing any skeptics of its power. Granted, it's about a 7.5 or maybe an 8 compared to the 10s of Eternal Nightmare, Beneath The Remains and Reign In Blood on the speed scale (perhaps South of Heaven, which was also released in 1988 would be about a 9 or an 8).

If nothing else, the album is seminal for one of the finest compositions Mustaine has ever produced: In My Darkest Hour. Carrying more emotional power, talent and weight than any so called Metallica ballad ever could, this song exudes perfect duality. Imagine if Disney gained the rights to make an animated musical Super Mario Bros. movie. In My Darkest Hour would be the song Bowser sings after having been utterly defeated, but is still alive and shall swear vengeance once he regains his strength (in the sequel of course, because why the fuck wouldn't that be successful, especially if this song was in it). Mustaine says he wrote this song while in tears after having been found out third hand that Cliff Burton had just died. But there is not a single whiny nanosecond in this song. THIS is how weakness and vulnerability should be displayed in heavy metal.

Of course I'd be remiss to not mention the first of many, many, many lineup changes Megadeth would have throughout their illustrious career. Jazz virtuosos Chris Poland and Gar Samuelson are gone, replaced by more conventional rockers/thrashers Jeff Young and Chuck Behler. While lacking the chops that put Megadeth ahead of the technical game in 85-87, they most certainly hold their own on this record. The finest moment of each member being Set The World Afire, with Chuck giving an Olympic performance on the songs opening salvo, and Jeff laying down a simply exquisite melodic guitar solo around 4:47 of the track. But yeah, these two are really just keeping the seat warm for Marty Friedman and Nick Menza, and I'd say they are quite capable of at least tuning their respective successor's instruments.

So Far, So Good So What is essential to any metalhead's collection. Maybe not the first Megadeth album you should buy, but don't let it slip beyond your third or fourth purchase. Hell, if you wanted to buy it before Rust In Peace, just to see the band building toward that centerpiece, that is also an acceptable reason.

So, for some perspective, it took one year to write and record the masterpiece that is "Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?" and almost two years to write and record their third album "So Far, So Good... So What!"  And what was the product of those two years?  Complete mediocrity.  I don't understand how the transition between Megadeth's two most famous albums is such a dud of an album.

It was a nice surprise when the rest of the album didn't have that horrible guitar tone that started the album out.  But it was a much less nice surprise to hear that the first track, "Into the Lungs of Hell," was three minutes of power chord progressions lead by tapping.  That's pretty underwhelming.  Cool, Dave, you can tap.  So what (pun unintended)?  So far, so bad (pun intended).

The next track is okay, starting out with a recording from The Ink Spots' "World on Fire" followed by an atomic bomb (inevitably reminding me of Fallout 3).  At times on this track, I feel like I'm listening to Whitesnake.  After this comes Megadeth's version of the Sex Pistols' "Anarchy in the UK," the shittiest Megadeth cover ever (at least their Fear cover on "Dystopia" had energy).  At least on their past two albums, they had the decency to slap their cover on the B-side, let alone track three.  I mean we've only had one real song at this point on the album because the intro was a waste!  This cover has no life to it, no alterations to the lyrics (other than saying "USA" instead of "UK") or the guitar, and no good whatsoever.  The only reason I could see them placing it here is to make a political statement.

I mentioned in the last paragraph that I feel like I'm listening to Whitesnake at times.  Yep, there's a lot of glam on here.  It' like their producer was like "Hey, could you guys be more pop-sounding in your music so we could get more money? Thanks."  And I wouldn't be surprised if that was what happened.  I mean just listen to the drums.  They are glam metal drums.  You know when you're listening to Bon Jovi and there's that terrible pop-sounding snare in the background being hit in the cymbal-snare-cymbal-snare pattern (no, not a blastbeat) at a very slow tempo?  That's how the drums on this album sound.  And the mid-paced guitar riffs don't help them in this case.  In other words, I would like a Megadeth album in which I don't have to check my phone to make sure I'm not listening to Dokken.

The most thrash metal song on here is "Set the World Afire," the one with the Ink Spots song.  Everything after that is just thrashy Whitesnake.

So what does this album have that the two before it don't?  Glam influence.  What does it not have that the others do have?  Well, for one, it doesn't have a good cover.  Also, it doesn't have many great riffs (a few can be found on "Set the World Afire," "Mary Jane," and "502").  And it's not technical.  Their past two albums were technical all over the place.  Maybe not technical as we know it today, but, for their time, it was technical.  In fact, Metallica is more technical than this album (granted, "...and Justice for All" was their most progressive album).  Some remnants of Megadeth's lost technicality can be seen midway through "Mary Jane," but the first couple minutes of this song are clogged with mediocre riffs and slow, glam-filled sections, so who would want to sift through the track in the first place?

This isn't a terrible album, but it's definitely Megadeth at their lowest point as far at their "ellipses" albums go (for those who don't know, the ellipses is the three periods).  I am very unimpressed by the whole album and can now see why I never see anyone praising this album.

Overall Rating: 69%

Originally written for themetalvoid.wordpress.com

Ah, the eternal struggle between the forces of Dave Goodstein and the Lars Ul-reich of Evil… Metallica and Megadeth fans, that is. Never quite understood why it rages on with such passion, especially for MegaDave's fans. I guess some people just identifies with romanticizing the tale of vengeance and redemption, the fact that Dave got sacked from 'tallica in such a humiliating way only to return stronger than ever and vented his every will into trying to pay back Metallica in kind… never quite achieving it really, and ironically following their footsteps in everything they attempted, even towards “selling out” by mid-90s. I mean, 60+ reviews here on the Archives between Dystopia and Hardwired… to Self-Destruct, most of them stating how Megadeth kicks Metallica's ass so hard. Talk about some of the biggest butthurt in the history of music.

I must confess, without an ounce of shame, I'm more of a Metallica fan than a Megadeth fan, even though I enjoy both bands, even some of their more recent stuff. I've seen both bands live three or more times each, and even though I have concluded that Megadeth sucks live and Metallica kicks ass, what really makes my mind when responding the extremely subjective question, “which is the best band”, it all comes down to answering another question in turn: Which band has the best 80s discography? After all, that was the decade in which both bands were trailblazing, forging extremely influential metal, and even carried that momentum into the early 90s. For me, the answer is simple: Metallica. Why? Well, because of this 1988 release, So Far, So Good… So What!. I will not delve in comparisons between this one and …and Justice for All, but if we address that issue briefly, the Metallica album helped push thrash metal into proggier, more technical territories, whereas the third Megadeth release…

Let's be honest, it isn't even a decent thrash metal record, let alone a top shelf one, especially not when taking into account the class of 1988. Likening this to History of a Time to Come, Endless War, Mallevs Maleficarvm, The Sane Asylum, or even more traditional straightforward '88 thrash like Eternal Nightmare, South of Heaven, Survive, or Violent Restitution, would be like putting a bottle of Budweiser among a collection of prized vintage wine bottles. Let's not forget this has a Sex Pistols cover, which might be amusing to hear for the first time, but ends up being just cute after that. Even though the album starts magnificently with the instrumental “Into the Lungs of Hell”, packed with incendiary solos y a great set of riffs, and it is followed by a more than decent second punch in “Set the World Afire”, it then falls flat on its butt for the most part. “Mary Jane” is a particularly weak and forgettable track, although side B opener “502” is an entertaining tale of speed racing, even with its distracting sampled mid-section, and the over-long chaotic ending.

The real jewel of this record is without a doubt Dave's heartfelt tribute to his fallen comrade Cliff, “In My Darkest Hour”. And to spike the ire of all those 'tallica-haters out there, it has the more mid-paced flavor of the original Four Horsemen than the speedier Megadeth formula. The acoustic intro, the tranquil built up, and the sped up finale with a soulful if virtuosic solo. 'Things will be better' oddly sounds quite similar to 'so let it be written' from “Creeping Death”. Perhaps it would be best to separate things, but it is impossible to not make comparisons, especially when I feel this album kinda gets over-lauded not because of its musical merits, but because of its commercial brand. The vile-spitting but dumbly written “Liar” and closer, anti-P.M.R.C. jab “Hook in Mouth” cant’ hide the fact Mustaine wasn't particularly inspired for this one in the songwriting department, as there are painfully few riffs or solos that really standout, most of them appearing within the first 8 minutes of this under-35-minute excuse for an album.

But Mustaine is not the only one to blame. The rhythmic section feels particularly standard and uneventful, Ellefson's usual pounding charisma nowhere to be found. Coat everything in mediocre production vales (somewhat made a bit more acceptable for the Capital Records reissue), and you've got yourself a subpar thrash album released in what is arguably metal's finest year, from a masterpiece per band point of view. Luckily for the world, Rust in Peace would be unleashed two years after this, probably the greatest thrash metal album of the 90s, and a top ten all timer. But the fact can't be ignored, So Far, So Good… So What! stands as one of the weakest albums released during the 80s by one of the so-called 'Big 4' of American thrash metal. And thus, a simple and unequivocal truth is revealed, fellas… Metallica Megadeth. At least, in terms of their classic legacy.

I kind of hate this album. It isn’t just that it’s sandwiched between two of the most definitive thrash albums of all time. It’s also because it’s uninspired as fuck, when it really shouldn’t have been. This is not just the weakest of Megadeth’s classic library. It’s also one of the weakest releases of ANY of the Big Four’s classic albums. I think “Fistful of Metal” might actually be the only one that’s worse than this.

There are a few songs on here that are OK, but there’s nothing especially mind-blowing. Really the only things approaching highlights are “Set the World Afire,” “In My Darkest Hour,” and “Liar.” I feel like I need to breakdown the better songs on the album so...continue on, dear reader!

“Into the Lungs of Hell” is mildly pointless, but it’s got solid riff work, so hooray, I guess. The song wasn’t exactly improved by the weird synth-horns, which are total 80’s cheeseball bullshit. So then we get into “Set the World Afire,” which is probably the best song on SFSGSW, and it feels like it’s going to set this awesome tone for the rest of the album, but then….then the band just starts sounding like it’s going through the motions. “Anarchy in the UK” is pretty whatever but it’s listenable. It also thankfully marked the end of Megadeth’s thrash covers of songs that don’t need thrash covers. “In My Darkest Hour” is a pretty good song, but needs a fuckin' trim because it's a touch too long. The next song on this album that actually feels like it catches any kind of fire is “Liar." Nice placement, Dave! You always want to hide your best songs at the end of your fucking albums! SFSGSW would have made a pretty solid EP if Megadeth would’ve just cut out all the bullshit filler (i.e. all the other songs I didn't mention).

Production values are nothing to write home about: It’s competent, everything sounds the way it should, all instruments and vocals are present and accounted for in the mix. B+ work! Good, not great. I don’t know what happened with this album, musically. Maybe the lineup had something to do with it. Everyone plays competently, but there just sounds like there was a lack of chemistry going on here that probably fucked with how good this album could have been. SFSGSW is the least essential ‘Deth record until maybe Cryptic Writings. Don't, like...avoid it or anything. Just manage your expectations if you're new to Megadeth.

After releasing the near-perfect "Peace Sells...but Who's Buying?", Megadeth returned with their third full-length album "So Far, So Good...So What!" in 1988. Musically, this album is a bit of a step back from the previous album although still better than the band's debut. This album is often seen as the weakest link of the band's four original thrash metal-era albums, and while I don't quite agree, it definitely is not on the same level as the band's second and fourth albums. What we have here could be described as almost awkward in terms of musical composition and ideas but there still is a lot of good to be heard here and the album overall is still considered a classic, even if it is the lesser album.

After the heroic intro track "Into the Lungs of Hell", "Set the World Afire" takes off furiously. This was, I'm pretty sure, the first song Mustaine wrote after his exile from Metallica. Originally entitled "Megadeath", the band eventually renamed it to its final title after changing their name from Mechanix to Megadeth, dropping the "a" in "death". This is probably the strongest song on the album and unfortunately, this caused issues for me. This left a lot of filler to be heard during the middle sections of the album. The Sex Pistols cover of "Anarchy in the U.K." just sounds awkward and forced, probably because it doesn't quite capture the atmosphere of the original. "Mary Jane" is a fairly haunting song that builds kind of cool but most of it bores the shit out of me. I realize a lot of people love this track but for me, I find it lacking and boring. The final track I find to be lackluster was "Liar". A verbal assault on Chris Poland for stealing Mustaine's gear for drug money, this song just sound generic and uninspired. I always find myself skipping it when I throw this album on. The five other tracks are pretty good most of the time, and aside from "Set the World Afire", "In My Darkest Hour" is one of the best songs Megadeth had ever written. It's the album's slower song, and a musical tribute to former Metallica bassist Cliff Burton after he died in 1986. This song begins with somber acoustic guitars and has some of the most melodic riffing on the album, which is to be expected from a "ballad" such as this.

The production on this album is probably the second dirtiest Megadeth had ever managed to pull off. It's cleaner than "Killing Is My Business..." but has a lot of grit and mess on top of it. This helps the music sound more organic and less polished. While Metallica was writing long, progressive, technically driven songs at this point in their career, Megadeth was sticking to a less complex thrash sound. It also was definitely not as well-produced. The guitar solos are as proficient as ever but it seemed that Mustaine preferred the speed metal aspect over the progressive sound. They would eventually embrace a far more technical sound on "Rust in Peace". What's strange is how this album is actually more underproduced than "Peace Sells..." was, and that album came before this one. It seems that this album was rushed and unfortunately, that was likely its downfall.

This was the only album to feature guitarist Jeff Young, as well as drummer Chuck Behler. Replacing Gar Samuelson, Behler was actually his drum technician and was immediately hired as the replacement. Unfortunately, he definitely falls short of Samuelson. We don't really have that jazzy influence Gar had and while Chuck can certainly play fast and thrashy drumlines, something just didn't feel right here. Thankfully, for the following four albums, he was replaced by the far superior Nick Menza. I'm not saying Behler was bad or anything but he had huge shoes to fill and unfortunately, he fell fairly short.

This was just an album that fell short of its precursor. That's it. It's not bad. Actually, it's pretty good. It's a solid thrash metal album with more punk elements than usual, probably due mainly to the Sex Pistols cover, but there are plenty of Megadeth albums that blow this one out of the water. Following this album, Mustaine and co. would put out "Rust in Peace", and they would take the title of "best thrash album of all time". In my opinion, of course.

In my opinion this is the most under rated Megadeth album, and one of their best. It's hard to say which albums make the top three, because in Megadeth's long career they have consistently created some of the finest musical pieces of artwork of any genre; however, this one cannot be denied, and it is certainly an essential part of the band's golden years of thrash. Sometimes regarded as a rushed and immature follow up to Peace Sells, it was actually a testament to the strength of Dave & Dave as a writing and performance team at the time, and a sign of their ability to keep up with any other band out there by standing on their own two feet.

‪So Far So Good So What is easily overlooked for a few reasons, and I believe one of them is due to the fact that this album had the line up that I consider the 'here today gone tomorrow' line up. You know those two guys who you might not recognize, care about, or even consider in the same league as the other outstanding musicians who have played with Dave & Dave. Of course I am talking about Jeff Young and Chuck Behler. Both were picked up amidst the hassle of firing Chris Poland and the late Gar Samuelson, two admired legends who will go down in history thanks to ‪their contributions to Peace Sells, But Whose Buying as guitarist and drummer respectively. It's hard to recapture the energy from such a seminal album, and both Young and Behler were really pressured to do so when they jumped into the new roles. Unfortunately due to a combination of reasons, Young and Behler were gone immediately after the So Far So Good So What tour ended. Their faces and part in the band may best be remembered for being in the documentary ‪Decline Of Western Civilization II, otherwise unless you're a close fan of the band you may not even notice who they are or what part they played in Megadeth for a year. Let us also not forget that the talents of Behler and Young hit a pretty high standard. Of course they weren't able to really leave any creative footprints on the band due to the fact that they were picked up in the middle of the album's recording period, and they were gone before another album went in the works, but they kept up and performed strongly on each track.

Now as for the album itself, in my opinion it's a masterpiece that really could not have been a better follow up to Peace Sells, especially given the conditions that the band were working with. A lot of reviews done at the time of this album's release hailed it as a transformational epitome of thrash metal, and ‪hailed it as the beginning of Mustaine's longevity as an artist. The album also had the commercial success to back up those words, with hundreds of thousands of units being sold in its first month alone, and it would go on to be a platinum record for the band. I think the critical praise it had in 1988 still holds true today, although many industry experts call this one a juvenile album in retrospective. I think calling it juvenile is a half truth, or maybe a quarter truth, because there are certainly some words I have about the "Anarchy In The U.K" cover, but that track was really an example of the times. Few thrash metal bands were not pressured to put a recognized rock track into the mix when they were releasing new albums, and almost all of those covers were embarrassing.

"Mary Jane" is still a fan favorite after 27 years, and "In My Darkest Hour" is one of the greatest heavy metal songs ever written. From front to back So Far So Good So What is an adrenaline fueled frenzy of speed and aggression coming from one of the darkest if not the darkest period of this band's history. The drugs were everywhere, and probably at no point was the thrash metal scene as competitive as it was between '87 and '89. Dave knew that he had to make an album that would stand out. There was no time to relax and just take it in after the success of Peace Sells. If he released anything short of the most killer album out there, Megadeth would have taken a backseat to bands like Exodus, Slayer, Overkill, Testament, Kreator, Sodom, Anthrax, and of course that other band... Metallica. If So Far So Good wasn't a genuine M60 hail of bullets out of the gates, then Megadeth may have become one of the countless other cult bands that released one or two great albums and then disappeared. I do think that pressure played a part in the band's creative process and the rush it took to hurry this album out of the recording studio, but to Megadeth's strength, they had two of the greatest musicians in the industry and a very strong creative team behind the warhorse. Ellefson and Mustaine could come up with a magnum opus on demand, and they did. No one, and I mean no one in the business have the collaborative gift that they shared and still share today. Again, I think there are some truths to the criticism that is attached to this album, but to focus on them is like complaining about a girlfriend who loses her keys a lot but is otherwise a perfect match and usually a killer lay.

If this album had a vagina, I would fuck it every day of my life for a lifetime. On the other hand if the riffs on this album were a sexual activity, I would be able to stay alone forever. "502," "Hook In Mouth," "Liar," "Set The World Afire," and of course you could not forget the fan favorite instrumental "Into The Lungs Of Hell," all set a higher precedent for what was expected in Megadeth's territory of raw thrash metal. Was Megadeth ever stronger than this? Again, it's hard to say, because Megadeth has constantly shown to be a band that succeeds with multiple transitions, but I don't think that Megadeth could have been any stronger for where their focus was at that point as a purely fucked up thrash metal band. Each track drips with nasty grooves and contempt, and lyrically either A) cuts right to the chase of a self-destructive world in an intellectual way that provides examples of where we're heading as society, or B) inspires a self awareness of individual destructive behaviors that were all but universal in the extreme metal scene at the time ex: "502," a song about drunk driving, and "Mary Jane," a track that clearly suggests an individual who has fried their brain in an attempt to escape from reality by means of drugs.

The depth of this band's catalog is unlike anything else out there, and dismissing So Far So Good So What's place in that catalog is simply repulsive. In contradiction to the claims that this was an immature follow up to Peace Sells, So Far So Good has a lot of lyrically matured themes that hadn't fully evolved into the fold yet on their second album. The scathing social criticisms of "Hook In Mouth" and apocalyptic revelations so abundantly clear on "Set The World Afire" would go on to be enduring assets to the band's career with each album that followed after. They're a huge step forward from the title track of Peace Sells. I couldn't say that the album is as influential as Peace Sells or Rust In Peace, but I think that it is just as important. In fact So Far So Good So What may have been the most critical album in Megadeth's career. They came out of a really dark shadow that hung over them in an uncertain drug fueled period that usually destroys a band, and followed up the thrash metal masterpieces of '86 with one of the best thrash metal albums ever recorded.

Now without further adieu, I leave you with one of my favorite lines in metal;

"No survivors, set the world afire!"

The moment you set your eyes on 'So Far, So Good...So What?', you know there's something wrong with it. You don't really want to touch it, or you feel a little nervous about listening to it, or maybe there's a little fear thrown in there too. For me, it's the cover, as it so often is. That's a fucked up front cover for an album, not just because you know that dummy is wearing a uniform from a museum, which always smell stale and earthy and terrifying for no particular reason, but also because the Earth is appearing over his right shoulder, so we have to assume he's on the moon, which I can't explain at all. For grammar hounds, there's also the uncapitalised album title written in a primary school font that seems to say "Class 4A, presentation week...enjoy yourself". For those familiar with Megadeth, this album regrettably doesn't have any of the signature artwork, though that is supposed to be Vic Rattlehead...not that he's very easy to distinguish. The song titles are a warning too: there's a number ('502'), a woman's name ('Mary Jane'), a cover (Sex Pistols' 'Anarchy in the U.K.'), and an instrumental. For an 8 song album, that doesn't bode well.

We don't quite end up with bargain bin Megadeth, but this is the closest they came in the 80s. The first song on the album that I look forward to is 'Mary Jane', the fourth song. And fuck, that one's brilliant. The introduction is 20 seconds of everything getting thrown around - narration, lead fragments, time changes - and then it settles down into a mid-paced melodic riff and it's perfect from then on. Dave Mustaine manages to deliver coherent and emotional lyrics about a witch and her persecution, including the great line "If I know I'm going crazy, I must not be insane". The lead work is beautiful here too. The next song that I really like is 'Liar', the seventh, which has plenty of energy and spunk, then I also like 'Hook in Mouth' for lyrics and instrumental ideas. I'm not great at maths, but that seems to be three out of eight.

I'm being very critical, but that's what one should be about this album. Dave Mustaine only turned out 6 proper songs, one of which is lazy (that's '502'), and the general quality isn't there to make all of those songs great. 'Set the World Afire' isn't a bad song at all, but sometimes when I listen to the riffs I feel frustrated, because some of them do so little, just chugging or moving on simple patterns. It's an old song, one of the band's first, and at times that's what it sounds like, as if it hasn't been updated since 1983. 'In My Darkest Hour' suffers too, whatever status that song has achieved: acoustic opening aside, the first half meanders and drifts without enough to hold onto, except Mustaine's sometimes-good-sometimes-not vocals, until it picks up in the second half. Really, for a thrash band, this album contains too many parts that are worthless or boring or poorly executed. It's a slow thrash album too, and clocking in at under 35 minutes, brings it very close to having too little content.

Also, I'm sitting here with the remastered version, and there's almost no power in the instruments. The rhythm guitar tone is thin and has little impact at all on some songs, which is why Dave Ellefson's bass plays such an important part on a song like 'Hook in Mouth', where he is more than audible - he's further up the mix than the drums - for its entire length. The medium-paced chuggers must have a strong tone to make them work: they don't, so the lead-driven 'Mary Jane' fares better, as well as the quicker second half of the album. The lead tone is pretty good, yet some of the more technical and high-pitched solos (on the opening instrumental and 'Set the World Afire') sound lke they are disintegrating as they are played, like a damaged spaceship re-entering the Earth's atmosphere. Everything mentioned thus far is a whole lot better than the drums, which are so flat and in the background that the songs aren't driven by them at all, and bass ends up as the main rhythmic presence.

However, having trashed just about everything from this album (I didn't mention it, but the order of the songs is shit too), Megadeth are redeemed by a little something called attitude. If the Sex Pistols cover wasn't there we might not guess, but the punk spirit dominates this album almost from start to finish and gives some credibility to the ragged, half-arsed songwriting and instrumental performances. The snottiness of 'Liar' and '502' only works in this context: put one of those songs on 'Peace Sells' or 'Rust in Peace' and it would be derided, though there is something crazy and cock-eyed about this album that just about keeps them alive. I'm annoyed that I have to say it like this, but, as lazy and poorly composed as this album is, it manages to do something different from the typical thrash template and also stands alone in Megadeth's history. However, it's not a good album, with only a few great songs, and not every Megadeth fan will enjoy the experience.

Every band releases something that doesn't live up to expectations eventually. Some bands do it repeatedly and some bands jump into a downward spiral. Luckily for Megadeth while it didn't live up to expectations this time around it was still pretty solid.

Dave's singing isn't as aggressive as Killing is My Business. Still full of energy and enthusiasm. He's very charismatic with his vocals. He has a limited range in his singing but the vocal parts in the songs don't require anything amazing, this teamed with his charisma still make his vocals a staple for the band.

The guitar work is pretty solid for the most part. Very fast, very calculted, very driving on the riffing, the riffs aren't very memorable though which is odd as I usually remember riffs very well. Its missing the level of melody that was present before however and this doesn't quite live up to expectation. The melody/technical mixture was also very crucial to Megadeth's sound so it doesn't sound quite as strong without it. The solos still pack the melodic/technical shredding punch and remain as highlights of the songs. Into the Lungs of Hell is one of the strongest tracks and is mostly just soloing.

Dave Ellefson is a solid bass player. He keeps up with the other boys really well. Fast and technical and at times throwing in stuff that's more attention grabbing then what his buddies on the guitar are doing. He mostly rounds out the sound though which is a pity compared to his past. The drummer is a new guy I believe, all the jazz elements from KIMB are completely gone now. He also isn't nearly as technical relying more on pure force and pounding, he sure likes his double pedal as many metal drummers do. He plays fast.

Standout tracks: Into the Lungs of Hell, the cover of Anarchy in the U.K. and In My Darkest Hour

Production goes a long way in music, regardless of what people say to the contrary. To be honest, the music itself is only slightly superior to that of the debut. Most likely, the technical aspect is actually lower. Having said all of this, the combination of better production and songwriting is enough in the end to give it a twelve point advantage.

The best points of this album would start with the production. I think this is the first Megadeth album where the remaster isn't necessary. Most of what is worth hearing is fairly intelligible the first time around. The next would have to be the songwriting. This isn't brilliant, but the better songs on here are worthy of having been written by Mustaine. I have to say the song 502 has always appealed to me. Coming from a small time where people often act out of boredom, this registers with me on a personal level. I also enjoy the riffing on Lungs. Most metal instrumentals strike me as a waste of time, but this carries itself quite nicely.

The bass is very audible, but he doesn't seem to do as much of interest on this album, as on Peace Sells. The guitar work isn't bad, but it's a step below the previous album, and a little more than that below the succeeding album. Mustaine's rhythms are mostly good, but on songs like the cover and Mary Jane, it goes limp. The soloing is also somewhat below par. Poland and Friedman each brought talent and unique aspects of their talent to bear, while Jeff Young may as well not be there. The same can be said of Chuck, who lacks both Gar's jazzy technique and Nick's power. Set the World Afire is an example of a song that I think could have been a pretty good song with better all-around instrumentation. After a while, it just starts to drag. Friedman's playing, for example, would have sufficed to keep it from drooping so badly. Some people have attributed an angry feel to this album, but I'm unconvinced. Hook in Mouth, good song, is the only really aggressive song on here, and it's the very last one.

A weak point of this album is really how much Mustaine predominates. I'm a person who doesn't enjoy Van Halen, and part of it is just how much one man drives it. Most music, to me, can't function this way. Ellefson isn't contributing as much as he later would, and the others added nothing. Yes, he had driven the previous album, but he still had quality musicians to feed off of. This feels like he drained himself to exhaustion. The cover was a poor idea on Mustaine's part, even if it was to honor a legend. Mary Jane also really goes nowhere. Good Morning turned into Black Friday, this just continued to suck for four minutes.

I'd say I'm looking at Megadeth's fourth best album, yeah I do believe Countdown is better. Compared to the debut, it has a similar number of awful songs, but it has one extra good one. The production also isn't killing the weaker ones like it did on the debut. Similar to my debut suggestion, I'd advise taking the top four songs and just forgetting the rest.

So Far So Good is something of an anomaly in the Megadeth discography. This album, unlike much of the rest of their albums, does not either flat out suck nor is it an instant classic. Instead, what we have here is an album sandwiched in between the two undisputed classics Peace Sells and Rust In Peace that got rather over looked when it was first released in 1988. This is a release that is also very mixed, with some fantastic tracks among some real stinkers.

What this album definitely is, without any question whatsoever, is a Megadeth album. All the traits that defined the albums that came before and the album that would follow are there. The frantic lead work scattered throughout the album. The demented vocals that, despite being terrible and hilarious to listen to, somehow manage to fit the music. The technical riff work is there, the sarcastic lyrics, and even the final cover song to be featured on a main album (minus bonus tracks on later releases) in their cover of The Sex Pistols controversial song Anarchy In The U.K.

Kicking things off with the balls out instrumental Into The Lungs Of Hell, we are immediately treated to a Megadeth classic. This is an absolutely amazing instrumental that gives off a completely apocalyptic feel to it that very few instrumental-only songs can ever hope to accomplish. This leads right into Set The World Afire, a song many people seem to really enjoy, but i could never get into. From the atomic bomb dropping through to the end of the song, this is a straight thrash song, that only Megadeth could put out, but just comes off feeling extremely stale. It is apparent here that the ingenious writing present on Peace Sells was just missing from parts of this album, despite some killer drumming throughout this particular song. The first few guitar riffs are just stale and played too many times to the point they become boring, and the bass is as bland as can be. The vocals are nice, the riffs once the verse starts are nice enough, and the lyrics to this song are great, but overall it is one of the weaker songs early Megadeth put out.

The cover song, Anarchy in The U.K. is considerably better than the Sex Pistols version, but still not a great song. Mary Jane, however is one of the better songs on the album, with strong, crushing riffs to it, beautifully written lead work, and a fun feel to it that the rest of the first half of the album is devoid of. The guitars to this songs are perfectly written, being both catchy and heavy enough, with Dave's vocals being surprisingly good throughout this song. This was the perfect song to pick the album back up for the second half of the album.

502 has some extremely fast riffing that brings back memories of Killing Is My Business, but this is merely the tip of the iceberg of the best moments of this album, as it feels somewhat like a filler song, that is just there to speed the album up again. Still a decent enough song, though, and definately worth a listen or two. The two songs that follow, In My Darkest Hour and Liar, are two absolutely incredible songs. The former is a song about Dave's fallen comrade Cliff Burton, often mistaken as a suicide promoting song, and is one of the most moving songs in music history. This is how a song should be written, equal parts heavy and emotional, despite the majority of it moving at a very slow pace. The lyrics to this song are just beyond description, being absolutely heart shattering, and conveying the thoughts of a broken man. This is the absolute definition of perfection.

Liar is one of the more hated songs from this album, and i could never understand why. The lyrics are utterly hilarious, speaking of Megadeth's former lead guitar player, who allegedly stole Dave's guitars. The final verse of this song is essentially just one long rant, culminating with the immortal "to your maker, off you go... your a liar, you fucking liar". This song is one of the most balls to the walls, pissed off thrash songs ever recorded, with intense, fast riffing, crazy vocals, and great drumming. The hate for this song is something i honestly will never understand.

Hook In Mouth is half a great song, being very bland and dull for the first verse, but once it kicks in, it hits the listener with the impact of a freight train, bringing crushing riffs and one of the angriest vocal performances from Dave you will ever hear. This song is a song i never enjoy thoroughly, but always skip to when it kicks in, because that is the only segment of this song worth listening to. It is alright as a way to close the album, although this spot would better suit Liar.

This album is definitely a mixed bag of an album, with the first half of it being rather poor when stacked up against what came before and afterwards. Moments like the first half of Hook In Mouth, and the cover of Anarchy In The U.K. and the intro to Set The World Afire really do drag this album down to the abyss. However, the musicianship throughout much of the album is absolutely perfect, the lyrics are as sarcastic and angry as ever, and Dave is on top of his game, vocally, on this album. This is a solid enough release, and definitely does not deserve the hate it receives, but has a few disappointing moments that keep it away from the upper echelons of the Megadeth discography.

The late 1980’s were thrash heaven. Ground was being broken everywhere; landmark and genre-defining classics were falling out of the sky. Metallica and Slayer were gods, Dark Angel was brutalizing ears and Kreator were pumping out twisted riffs that made your neck ache and your brain explode. It was raining thrash classics and Megadeth’s So Far, So Good, So What! was no exception.

Kicking off with the instrumental intro ‘Into the Lungs of Hell’, So Far, So Good, So What! immediately grabs you by the face and lets you know that Megadeth means business. Once it finishes, you hear the dropping of a nuclear bomb before being kicked in the face by the first riff of the mighty ‘Set the World Afire’. This album is packed with not just Megadeth classics but thrash classics. Even the weaker tracks on this record (and that’s arguable) like ‘Mary Jane’ and ‘502’ will make you bang your head and feel the hairs on the back of your neck stand up as metal pumps through your veins. The most famous song from the album, ‘In My Darkest Hour’, is Megadeth’s answer to Metallica’s ‘Welcome Home (Sanitarium)’. It’s not as good as that song, but it’s really close. A beautiful mid-paced tune that explodes into hyper drive as Mustaine sings “Please God, send me on my way!” The closer—and a personal favorite—‘Hook in Mouth’ is a fist-pumping thrash bash with a main riff that is a perfect example of why thrash metal is so awesome. If you aren’t screaming “YOU SAY YOU’VE GOT THE ANSWERS WELL WHO ASKED YOU ANYWAY!?” and grinning at the signature Mustaine snarl, then I don’t know what to tell you. You might be slipping into a coma and going to a dimension where metal doesn’t want you. The only thing that prevents this album from getting a perfect rating from me is the cover of ‘Anarchy in the U.K.’. It’s not that it’s a terrible cover or anything, but it really should have been included as a bonus track or maybe a b-side to a single as it feels out of place on the record.

One of the biggest appeals of this record for me is that which seems to drive some people away from it: the production. In the 1990’s Megadeth would go on to more crisp, clean and polished productions. But not on this record. Fuck no. This production is dark, dirty, gritty and fits the music perfectly. The production, combined with the attitude of this record and where Mustaine was in his life at this point, makes it the darkest, angriest, most drug-laced and in my opinion best album that Megadeth ever made. Peace Sells…But Who’s Buying? had a gritty production job itself, but not like this. This record makes you think of nights on streets where you really wouldn’t want to be. It also makes helps to make this record the monster that it is.

If you’re a newbie to the metal world and are curious about Megadeth, you’re safe in picking up any of the first four albums but this would be my first recommendation. That’s right. I’ll take this over the overrated Rust in Peace any day. Now, don’t think for a second that I don’t think that album’s awesome, but the production was cleaner and the riffs weren’t as mean. The riffs on So Far, So Good, So What! are fucking mean. I myself have been listening to this album for over 15 years and I’ll never get tired of it. It’s an absolute classic in every sense of the word and deserves way more respect than it’s gotten over the years. You, as a metal fan, are doing yourself a disservice by not having heard it. If you are someone who dismissed it long ago, you’re missing out. Big time.

The years around 1988 were definitely a truly bad period for Megadeth. It was a time of intense uncertainty and instability. Dave Mustaine was subjected to his mistress of white death, surrendered to the grasp of his spiritual wreckage. He seemed to asphyxiate in the arms of his genius so sinful and reckless. To say it in simple words, he was up to his neck into drug use. Therefore, it’s not strange that the main element of this album seems to be confusion. Everything they managed to create so far is on the verge of collapsing.

Poland and Samuelson are out of the band and newcomers Young and Behler have taken their place. It was an unlucky move especially now that the band had began to look so steady and firm. At some parts these two new members seem to be completely out of space and are inferior to their predecessors. Mustaine, no matter how much heroin he has used or how much alcohol he has consumed, he still seems as the penis that masturbates. There are though difficulties, in making the sperm find the target. He has some ideas but they are so dry and colorless. As a result, the songs are clearly minor to those of Peace Sells… balancing between good intention and undoable realization.

All these might sound like poetic but they only state that things are really bad. Megadeth have not sold their ideals and beliefs. They don’t claim that they never were a heavy metal band neither do they play pop music to climb the charts, no. So Far, So Good… is by all means a metal album. It has got heavy guitars and drums and some fast tempos familiar of their style. Bun nothing really sticks to your mind. From all the solos of the album there is not even one that got me with my pants down. There is an obvious lack of inspiration and you may believe that they did this album only because they had to. Let’s put a riff here, a chorus there and a simple solo just to get the work done and go home. Even Dave Ellefson who has always been a serious musician has been drifted by the tide.

There are a few songs that I like very much such as Set The World Afire or Hook in Mouth which are classic Megadeth compositions. They have sharp guitars and catchy riffs and some nice breaks that make them quite interesting and pleasant to hear. They possess this certain feeling and attitude I’m looking for in a Megadeth song and they manage to stand above average. No, in fact they are pretty damn good. But that’s not enough to save the day when they are surrounded by mediocre, dull compositions like 502, Liar or the awful, unacceptable for the band, Mary Jane crap. Yes, I said it before, they are heavy songs that come from a metal band but how can you compare them with the killers they delivered in the previous release and not be disappointed? Well, I was anyway! As for Anarchy In The U.K., the cover they chose this time, I don’t disagree totally since they took a punk song and passed it through a metal filter, turning it for the better.

Maybe I am being kind of strict with this album but it is Megadeth we are talking about, not a common heavy metal band that could get a credit for trying to do something good. When you listen to a Megadeth release you expect metal blasters, dynamic songs that blast you away and not fillers with some good stuff here and there. I’m sorry to say it but this is not what I would suggest for you to buy unless you are a die-hard fan of them and everything they do look like masterpieces to you. Mustaine and co. fell many steps behind with this atrocity.

Megadeth are a band many of you will be familiar with, and rightly so. Personally, they are my favourite metal band, ever. However, it was only recently I really discovered this little gem. Sandwiched between the legendary Peace Sells and Rust In Peace and, hence, so far before the more radio-friendly sounds of Youthanasia and Cryptic Writings, its quite easy to forget this masterpiece.

However, in my opinion it embodies the raw spirit of Megadeth far better than even my album of preference (the brilliant Rust In Peace). It blasts out brutal riffs, fantastic solos and the usual high standard of lyrics Mustaine spits out, while keeping the listener hanging on every note.

The dramatic, incredible opener "Into The Lungs Of Hell" sets off the album with a level of class most instrumentals can only dream of. I'll admit I'm not usually a fan of instrumentals, but Into The Lungs Of Hell is, put simply, incredible. Setting the tone for an album can be difficult, but it draws the listener into the mood of the album, while not sounding like an overture or medley.

Set The World Afire follows suit with astonishing panache, maintaining the power and drive of the introduction, while not sounding samey or repetitive. However, the next song, a cover of The Sex Pistols' Anarchy In The UK is a source of contention - personally I like it, and covers one of the most important songs in British music history with flare and respect to the original. They really make it their own without leaving the Pistols' version redundant. Sure, its a bit silly for an American metal band in the late '80s to cover a British punk song from the '70s, and many Pistols purists will think it an unthinkable idea. But hey, it works. As does just about every song on this album.

There's no pauses for thought for the simple fact that, with Dave Mustaine at the wheel, you don't need any. There is plenty of lyrical depth and power to be found, without a moment's rest in the assault on the ears. In particular 502 and Hook In Mouth are fine examples of this, with In My Hour Of Need spitting more resentment than just about any other song to an ex-lover could even contemplate. The album encapsulates everything Megadeth was, is and should be about.

However, in saying that, it is by no means flawless. Although each song has its own flavour and power, it lacks the diversity, energy and inventiveness of the two albums they'll be remembered for. Despite all the power of Hook In Mouth, there is no beautifully psychotic rant on a par with Rust In Peace...Polaris or Peace Sells. Furthermore, the album is simply too damn short. Hook In Mouth comes to a close and you're waiting for the next assault on your eardrums. But it, frustratingly, never comes. However, when one of the few floors to an album is it being too short, you know the quality's high. And very high it is - this is head and shoulders above some of Megadeth's other albums and would a fine candidate for legendary album number 3.

All in all So Far, So Good, So What? is a classic that no Megadeth fan should be without, and a damn fine introduction for anyone interested in one of the most important thrash bands in metal history.

This is a pretty underrated classic of Megadeth's catalog, and considering all the turmoil the band was going through at the time, I'm surprised it doesn't sound any worse. It nearly rivals Killing Is My Business in terms of sheer sonic ugliness, but not so when you get the remaster, where all the various layers are revealed rather crisply.

Overall, the sound here is rather progressive. By that, I mean that there are quite a few layered guitar sounds. "Mary Jane" and "In My Darkest Hour" are the best examples of this. In fact, "Mary Jane" has to be the creepiest damn thing Megadeth has ever written, sounding heavily influenced by Mercyful Fate, and Mustaine sounds like he's literally going insane. Excellent! Great solo on this one, too! The opening melody is downright haunting, as is the acoustic sections of "In My Darkest Hour."

Still, there's a lot of straight up shredding on here. "Set the World Afire" is a fercious maelstrom of angry riffs, guaranteed to tear your flesh off like a nuclear explosion...damn, it really evokes images of an apocalypse! "502" and "Liar" are both shredfests with maniacal, threatening vocals to match the voracious riffing. Mustaine's soloing is downright lethal, and Jeff Young is no slouch either. The only weak link is Chuck Behler, who though adequete, really doesn't offer anything of note, especailly when sandwiched between the godly Gar Samuelson and Nick Menza. Even worse, the cymbals were recorded seperately from the drums, leaving an irritating pause that makes them sound like a drum machine...that really kills a lot of the energy of the ablum.

I don't care for the Sex Pistols cover at all. It's punky, jolly feel disturbs the overall dark and threatening atmosphere of the album. Mustaine still sounds nasty in his vocal snarling, though.

If this came out before Peace Sells, it would no doubt enjoy a more esteemed position, but this era and album were a transitional period that didn't last. For the next album, Mustaine honed his agression and remained sober to create the finest piece of thrash ever...

With all of the problems facing both Dave Mustaine personally and his then still young thrash project MegaDeth, there is a somewhat peculiar sense of irony to the album “So far, so good, so what?”, both in its title and the consistent yet varied subject matter contained in its eight various chapters. The musical dimensions from track to track contrast quite starkly, combining Mustaine’s unique blend of epic songwriting and raw thrash attitude with lyrical themes spanning several issues relevant both to Dave personally and society in general at the time.

Coming off a brief stint as a three piece outfit for their slot on the movie soundtrack “Shocker”, MegaDeth had a rather large task of matching the expectations created by their early career peak “Peace Sells” with a near completely revamped line-up. Jeff Young is worthy of the position that he holds on this album and does a good enough job when assuming lead duties, but between Poland and Friedman it is really difficult to wow the core-MegaDeth fan, and compared to them his style is not terribly distinctive. Chuck Behler manages to make a hell of a racket on the kit on several of the faster tracks on here, check out “Hook in Mouth” and “502” in particular to see what I mean.

The album opens in with a curve ball quite similar to the one found on Deth’s debut, only manifesting itself in a rather inspired military march complete with accompanying brass instruments. “Through the Lungs of Hell” functions as a sort of extended multi-movement epic prelude to “Set the World Afire”, which is among the more powerful speed metal songs on here. The riff development is quite impressive as the first minute and a half of music are loaded with winning ideas, all of them hard edged, all of them memorable. The vocal delivery showcases Mustaine at his most crisp and precise, lacking any misplaced or overtly raw throat anomalies that were occasionally found on earlier songs.

Much of the other speed tracks on here are shorter and simpler, drawing upon the fewer riffs and fragmented solos approach of earlier releases. “Liar” features the roughest vocal delivery, appropriately so as Mustaine has opted to rip apart former band mate Chris Poland for stealing from him. “502” is an anthem for high speed driving that makes Sammy Hagar’s “I can’t drive 55” sound like the theme music to Driving Miss Daisy. But the true goods are delivered on the riff monster “Hook in Mouth”, where Dave is at his socio-politically conscious best as he accurately depicts one of the most hideous enemies of freedom of speech Tipper Gore.

Where things really get interesting is on the slower tracks, which showcase Dave’s varied approach to songwriting probably better than any other release has. “Mary Jane” has a dream like atmosphere to it, contrasting a series of gloomy lead riffs with a set of mellow clean guitar drones. Mustaine’s vocal delivery is colored by both a sense of fear and excitement, leading one to believe that he is either in the midst of a drug trip or experiencing some sort of supernatural occurrence. “In my darkest hour” is quite a morose yet sorrowful elegy to former friend and band mater Cliff Burton, featuring a gloomy acoustic intro as well as a somewhat modified version of the main riff of “Jump in the Fire”.

For those aspiring thrash fans who have yet to purchase this particular MegaDeth opus, it is among the better ones put out by them, despite the turmoil surrounding the band at the time and the inconsistency of its line-up. All of the original songs found within, as well as the rather well modified Sex Pistols cover, are shinning examples of Mustaine’s genius and resilience. The re-mastered version includes 4 alternative mixes of some of the songs that give some insight as to how the original product sounded; a definite must for the sake of past perspective. This is something of a swansong for MegaDeth in many ways, and to this day continues to be underrated by core-fan and casual listeners alike.

Everything about this album shows that it's nothing more than an average release. From the terrible production to the temporary line-up, this album looked like it wasn't anything special. The fact that it lies between arguably Megadeth's two greatest records (Rust In Peace and Peace Sells....But Who's Buying?) doesn't help solidify its presence as a top notch record.

However, despite all of the negative critics and the poor ratings, this is one of Megadeth's most underrated and best records. Dave Mustaine enters the studio having replaced fusion guitarist Chris Poland with a classically trained guitarist since the age of six. A man by the name of Jeff Young. Another roster change was made when Gar Samuelson was fired for apparent substance abuse and replaced by his drum tech Chuck Behler.

With the new line-up and the creative juices flowing, Dave Mustaine wrote some of Megadeth's greatest songs for this record. From the opening track, the instrumental "Into the Lungs of Hell" which features fast-paced, palm muted riffs and improvised soloing, to the closing track written about music censorship "Hook In Mouth", the album delivers a rollercoaster ride of emotion. The album also features a cover of The Sex Pistols song "Anarchy In The U.K." which provides a nice break from the serious thrash of songs before and after the cover.

One of the more notable songs on the record, and perhaps one of Megadeth's best songs "In My Darkest Hour" showcases over 6 minutes of the perfect blend of emotion and thrash. This song was written for fallen Metallica bassist and friend of Dave's, Cliff Burton (R.I.P.). "In My Darkest Hour" deserves to be considered an elite track with the likes of "Hangar 18", "Symphony Of Destruction", and their MTV hit "Peace Sells". However due to poor initial reception of the record, the song is vastly over looked.

However with the 2004 remasters done by Dave Mustaine, the record can polish some of the rough patches that diminished the quality and initial appreciation. The record provides many great songs and is a lost classic. With all that said, this is a must have for any fan of thrash. I gave the album an 85 because of its production. Even with the 2004 remasters, some of the tracks had to be altered. Which means leaving the original tracks in their current (and sub-par produced) state.

Favorite Track: In My Darkest Hour
Least Favorite: Into The Lungs of Hell (a top notch track, however it is too short!)

While this is not quite as good as the first two Megadeth albums, it still beats the pants off of most everything that followed. Dave Mustaine could still write killer riffs, vicious leads, and some of the nastiest and most sarcastic lyrics ("Liar" and "Hook In Mouth" come to mind immediately) out there; Dave Ellefson still was cranking out some badass bass work with sharp tone that didn't just follow a mindless 8th-note pattern into the ground or follow the guitars. This, for me anyway, was the last gasp of Megadeth as a vital and powerful band in the international metal scene.

New recruits Jeff Young and Chuck Behler did a competent job, but ultimately were not as inspired as their predecessors, Chris Poland and Gar Samuelson. Young's leads were chaotic and scattershot, not cohesive or terribly memorable, and Behler's drumming was unimaginative. A shame, because the booming drum sound really dominates and deserved a better drum performance. They hold back this album from really killing in the long run.

There are still some magnificent moments on this album nonetheless, such as opener "Into The Lungs Of Hell", an excellent instrumental; the moody and creepy tandem of "Mary Jane" and "In My Darkest Hour"; the thrash/stomp monster, "Hook In Mouth"; the scalding "Liar". But the cover of "Anarchy in the UK" is weak and entirely too fast and comes off as weaker and more foo-foo than the original, a right nut-kicker of a song to this day even nearly 20 years after the fact. Even Steve Jones' appearance on this song is tacit and perfunctory at best. You can tell that the drugs and drinking were taking effect at long last and it was making the music suffer.

Paul Lani's production favors the drums, as mentioned, and while this is good, the guitars are thin in comparison. The bass still sounds good, razor-sharp and clean like vintage Chris Squire, though, and this is a plus in a world where the 4-string wrangler is usually buried beneath the guitars. Mustaine himself is in fine form vocally, his customary high-pitched squawk/snarl approach not changing at all as he rattles off his barbed lyrics with contempt and vitriol. But still, this album comes off as not as fiendishly creative and energetic as the first two in the long run; I can detect a tiredness and ennui creeping in beneath the surface. Perhaps they were realizing that Metallica had outdone them in the popularity/influence sweepstakes and the seeds of their selling out were starting to bloom...

Everything that follows this LP, as mentioned, is weak and unworthy of the Megadeth name. Don't bother with anything after this one, the last gasp of the "true" Megadeth.

Megadeth became one of the most powerful thrash bands in the 1980's and early 1990's after they released a barrage of successful records including "Peace Sells...But Whose Buying?" and the masterful "Rust In Peace," yet the album placed between these two masterpieces is the most forgotten and underrated of Megadeth's career. Many people forget about "So Far, So Good...So What!" because it followed these two important albums, yet I consider it the best release out of Megadeth's first four records. The year was 1988 and Megadeth's need to make some metal was combined with high dosages of testosterone to create an album that had balls the size of Jupiter; that LP was "So Far, So Good...So What!"

In terms of the music, this is a straight up thrash record with some nice hints of speed metal and melody. If there's one thing that Megadeth did different on this album, it was the added quantity of melody and technicality. "Mary Jane," "Set The World Afire," and "Liar" have some semi-melodic thrash riffs that make them stand out from the standard thrash song. "502" is a relentless burst of technical thrash as Dave Mustaine and Jeff Young hit a storm of notes during the song's chorus. "Mary Jane" also falls under the complex category because of the various riffs Mustaine and Young sway in and out of. Bands that are looking to cover a non-metal song should take Megadeth's cover of "Anarchy In The UK" as a prime model; Megadeth takes the Sex Pistols classic and warps into a tornado of speed and thrash riffs with some incredible leads.

Lyrically and vocally speaking, this is one of Megadeth's best efforts. Mustaine takes a stab at censorship on "Hook In Mouth" by mocking its flaws and procedures, yet he manages to sound both intelligent and angry. Mustaine's suicidal ode to the late Metallica bassist Cliff Burton on "In My Darkest Hour" is one of the most famed metal lyrics because of its dark mood and depressive lyrics. "Mary Jane" appears to be about weed at hindsight, but it's actually a tale about witchcraft. Dave Mustaine certainly isn't the best singer in the metal world, but his voice is perfect for this album. Dave's raspy voice slices right into the heart of these songs with an aggressive and hostile tone. His voice can get rather humorous at times, but he does a great allaround job singing on "So Far, So Good...So What!"

There is some controversy about this LP because it mainly consists of material that was left out of the first Megadeth records. "Set The World Afire" is rumored to be the first song Dave Mustaine wrote after he was ejected from Metallica. "Into The Lungs Of Hell," "Mary Jane" and "Hook In Mouth" were also written well before this recording, yet they are all the strong songs and undisputed Megadeth classics.

I personally think "So Far, So Good...So What!" is one Megadeth's best efforts. Everything that defines Megadeth's musicianship is present and it won't let you down. "So Far, So Good...So What!" may not be the most recognized Megadeth release, but it's certainly one of their best. Pick this one up!

This review was written for: http://www.Thrashpit.com

I’ve always been very impressed with this album, even from the very first listen. Something about it just makes it instantly accessible, perhaps more so than any other Megadeth release. And while it never garnered the same attention as Peace Sells before it or Rust in Peace after it, it has all the classic elements that let it stand just as tall as those two albums, if not taller.

SFSGSW is my favorite Megadeth album, primarily because of the strength of the individual songs. The album lacks the general consistency of mood on Peace Sells and Rust in Peace, but every track is a classic in its own right. Few Megadeth songs hit as hard as the instrumental opener, “Into the Lungs of Hell.” The overlapping clean and distorted tones for the intro create an otherworldly tone and a great atmosphere, one that soon spirals into the chaos of the driving speed riffing and killer lead guitar. The album doesn’t let up from there. Powerful and technical riffs, Megadeth’s most predominant appeal, are the only riffs to be found here. If you prefer watered down groove rhythms or power chord abuse look elsewhere, as this album won’t cater to your needs. Everything about the guitars kill on this album, especially the lead. Mustaine’s soloing keeps getting better and more technical without losing a sense of melody, evident on just about every song here.

There’s plenty of variety on the album as well. Several songs are straight up thrash numbers, such as “Set the World Afire” and the manic “502.” The Sex Pistols cover “Anarchy in the UK” is a prime example of metalification of classic punk. “In My Darkest Hour” provides a mellower edge reminiscent of “Looking Down the Cross.” “Mary Jane” and “Liar” kick ass in the mid-paced department. Basically, there’s no filler here. It’s all powerful, memorable, thrash fucking metal.

I have no issues with the original release, but Dave Mustaine’s need to re-master all the band’s back catalogue really fucked up the reincarnation of this one. Killing is my Business got the celebrity treatment for the re-master, so why didn’t this one? The new mix erases the raw quality of the original to make room for a cleaner more modern sound. The vocals sound worse for some reason and some minor aspects were changed, most notably the creative car stereo effect in the middle of “502,” for some reason horribly botched on the re-release.

If you can find it, hunt down the original release. It’s free of the problems of the re-issue. Either way, I highly recommend this album to any metal fan willing to hear its glory.

It's no secret that this album was a weak attempt by Megadeth. For starters, nearly half of the album consists of old, rehashed material from Megadeth's earliest days gigging in small clubs. Of course, I'm talking about songs like: Into the Lungs of Hell, Hook in Mouth, Mary Jane, and Set the World Afire. If the fact that Dave Mustaine (A regular song writing machine) used so many tracks that originally didn't make the cut on their previous albums doesn't tell you that he was burnt out from drugs and touring, a few of the songs that he did write for the album should. I've always thought of a studio album as being an outlet for the best material that a band can manage to write and perform. With that said, the majority of the track "502" is made up of one of the worst choruses of all time, a few foolish samples, and a drum solo (If you can even call it that) that honestly leaves me confused. Now that I think of it, picking apart the song "502" isn't at all necessary because the lyrics to the song are posted on this site. With that in mind, all that really needs to be said now is that those same lyrics speak for themselves. The track "Liar" is another mystery to me. This is the kind of song that a band puts on a demo. ...And even then the song would only be included because of the severe lack of better ones. For someone considered to be as socially aware and quick witted as Dave Mustaine was thought to be around this time period, I'm surprised that he even had the nerve to put this song in. To begin with, I'm not very wild about using space on an album simply to make fun of a former band member for stealing equipment. It's just not in good taste in my opinion. Yes, it's arguable that Dave Mustaine and his larger than life "Take no Shit!" attitude could (And possibly still can) cleanly pull of a song of that nature. But the lyrics that he wrote for this song certainly don't do him and his attitude any justice. Most of these lyrics are the kind of things that people scream out of car windows at each other on a freeway. The only difference from this and screaming out a window is that when Dave Mustaine sings his version, it's much harder to understand. As long as I'm on the topic of uninspired music, I might as well say a thing or two about Megadeth's cover of "Anarchy in the UK. To begin with, none of the members of the band even wanted to cover this song. So far with the theme of this album, obvious lack of caring on yet another track doesn't do any good to anyone. I'll be honest when i say that I've never liked this song. But for what Megadeth (The two Dave's in this instance) are capable of doing in that "rebellion" sound of metal, they obviously decided to sit this one out. When I listen to this song, I don't hear a hint of anyone screaming for justice or trying to break free from the cycles of society. Especially not in the fashion that Megadeth showed the world on the album Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? What I'm hearing is four musicians going through the motions on the music and vocals of the original song, and adding in new components that really can't even dent the bland performance that has already set the tone. On top of all that, they decided to get an original member of the Sex Pistols to sing backup vocals. My views on covers songs probably shouldn't be discussed here, but why the hell would you want to make this song sound more like the original? Especially the vocal aspect of it. Vocals are one of the great things that Dave Mustaine has always been able to alter however he wants, making the song more meaningful and more of an interesting cover.

Another of the many flaws that plague this album is the lack of musical chemistry between the band members. I'm not at all opposed to musicians bringing their own (or finding a new) unique sound to the table and spreading all around in the music. It usually makes things more interesting and has proven to work very well in a lot of metal bands. However, this generally safe approach doesn't work very well on this album. My best guess as to why this is, is that a constant sound never really surfaces. By constant sound, I mean one general and basic sound that can be played on alot with no real surprise. What's nice about this constant sound or familiar atmosphere is that the band can introduce it, abandon it to venture off into other different sounds to explore with, and then easily jump right back into that base of sound that was already established. (The band Death does used that concept very well on a few of their albums) The lack of chemistry probably wouldn't be such a problem if Jeff Young didn't have such an odd guitar style. Whenever he plays a solo on the album, it seems that when he finishes the band has gone off into new territory making it feel like an awkward jump has just been made; Like Young's solos act as a bridge of some sort. If that was the case, he did a pretty bad job of preparing and composing those solos in my opinion. It's hard to judge Dave Mustaine on his riff and solo composition since such a large portion of them were created years before this album came out. (I'm assuming that he had progressed skill wise in those years) The ones that he did write seem to suite the general feel of the song pretty well. Nothing special, but nothing horrible. David Ellefson really doesn't have much presence at all on this album. It's hard to say if that's a good or bad thing. But for the sake of what it sounds like already with two guitarists on completely different pages, I'm going to guess that it's not an issue. An interesting subject that comes up on this album is Chuck Behler, the drummer. I constantly read about people complaining that he underplayed, and is largely responsible for the messy sound of the album. Brace yourself, but I think his drumming is one of the few logical and musically fitting aspects of this album. If he would have tried to break out and make any kind of a presence felt for a noticeable part of the album, the entire thing would have completely crashed and burned in my opinion. Percussion is the backbone of any metal band. If he would have strayed off and played anything other than the basic sturdy beats that he chose, it would have been under thought music played in a chaotic manner. Morbid Angel has showed the world several times what that sounds like.

For all the bitching that I just did, anyone reading this is probably wondering why I didn't give the album an awful rating percentage. Through all the shit and disappointment, there are some things that I like about this album. The album has almost no unity, but if you take it song by song, each one isn't really terrible and can actually work well with listening to compliment a specific mood. And sure, Dave Mustaine chose to use some older tracks. It's noticeable that these tracks are old and a little out of date for what was accomplished on the previous two albums. But I've grown to accept that. It's kind of nice to hear another round of the semi-raw thrash with Dave Mustaine's twist. This music doesn't really have that pre-warn-new aggressive sound that the first two albums had, but the simplistic and fun nature of the music is still there. I had to look pretty deep past the obvious flaws of this album to find that music that I love. This is one of those albums that really can only be enjoyed to its fullest by a Megadeth fan that knows the band's catalogue in and out. Knowing what they were probably capable of isn't a nice thought, but this is what they turned out and I guess it's OK.