Dave Mustaine is best known to many as the dude who got booted from Metallica because he drank even more than the rest of the guys in a band once dubbed “Alcoholica.”
But since his 1983 firing from the world’s most famous metal band, he’s done pretty well for himself, selling millions of records fronting thrash-metal heroes Megadeth.
He’s continued to have some ups and downs, but at Gigantour at the Bank of America Pavilion Friday night, he proved he’s in top form, burning through an hour’s worth of material from Megadeth’s catalog.
Mustaine is a great metal frontman and an extremely underrated guitar demigod when he’s at his best. Playing a black Flying V, he showed off his impressive chops with ear-shredding solos and monster riffs.
While many young groups immitate and pay homage to ’80s hair bands, Megadeth are a living, breathing testament to the power of pure metal. And they’ve rarely, if ever, sounded better than they did Friday night, ripping into such classics as “Skin O’ My Teeth” and“In My Darkest Hour.” New material was equally power-packed, especially “United Abominations,” a scathing indictment of the United Nations’ foreign policies.
More than aptly setting the stage for Megadeth were surprise chart darlings Lamb of God, whose latest disc, “Sacrament,” opened many eyes in the industry when it debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard chart last month. A punch-to-the-gut metal band in the vein of Pantera, LOG ignited a fretboard frenzy that crushed those packed tightly into the front of the half-full Pavilion.
“Walk With Me Through Hell” from “Sacrament” was unbridled intensity with its intricate breakdowns and pounding groove. With a massive wall of sound behind them and a frantic light show, LOG delivered a nonstop hour-long onslaught.
The crowd was more than happy to oblige vocalist Randy Blythe’s request to erupt into a circle mosh pit that gave credence to New England’s reputation as a hardcore epicenter.
Blythe offered up his take on why his band’s latest disc charted so high, saying, “It shows we don’t want any more Britney Spears. We want some real music.” The band then broke into a fist-pumping version of “Now You’ve Got Something to Die For,” from 2004’s “Ashes of the Wake.”
The speed-core barrage continued before they finished with a vicious one-two punch of the anthemic new single, “Redneck,” and “Black Label,” from their disc “New American Gospel.”
In its second year, the Gigantour, which was started by Mustaine, also included early sets from old-school thrashers Overkill and Swedish metal bands Arch Enemy and Opeth.

By Dave Wedge
Boston Herald Chief Enterprise Reporter

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