Mustaine advocated for Megadeth to re-create tracks from Metallica's No Life 'Til Leather demo, Ellefson, the former bassist, asserts.
In 2018, former Megadeth lead guitarist, Dave Mustaine, expressed a desire to have Megadeth re-record Metallica's No Life 'Til Leather demo. This revelation was made by Mustaine's former bandmate, David Ellefson, on his podcast, The David Ellefson Show.
The motivation behind this proposed project was rooted in a royalty and songwriting credit dispute involving Mustaine. Metallica had planned a deluxe reissue of the No Life 'Til Leather demo for release between 2015 and 2017, but it was put on hold after Mustaine objected to changes in the songwriting credits that would have given Lars Ulrich a portion of royalties Mustaine believed were rightfully his. The disputed tracks included “Mechanix,” “Jump In The Fire,” “Phantom Lord,” and “Metal Militia,” songs Mustaine claims writing credits on according to the liner notes of Metallica’s debut album Kill ’Em All.
Ellefson was not in favour of re-recording the demo with Megadeth, particularly since the band was focusing on producing new material, such as their 2022 album The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!. Ellefson expressed his disapproval of revisiting old material instead of working on new songs, and this disagreement was a contributing factor to the tensions within the band prior to Ellefson’s departure in 2021.
Unfortunately, this plan to re-record the demo never materialized, primarily due to Ellefson’s resistance and broader conflicts, including Mustaine’s ongoing legal and royalty struggles related to his time with Metallica. The deluxe reissue project itself was ultimately abandoned by Metallica.
As of now, it's unclear if Mustaine still plans to re-record No Life 'Til Leather with Megadeth, or if there are any new developments regarding this project. Megadeth is currently working on a new album, with a tentative 2025 release date, and James Lo Menzo is now on bass.
[1] VH1's Behind The Music (2001) [2] Lars Ulrich's 2016 interview [3] Dave Mustaine's 2017 statement [4] David Ellefson's podcast (2021)
- Dave Mustaine, the former lead guitarist of Megadeth, aspired to have Megadeth re-record Metallica's 'No Life 'Til Leather' demo, a desire he shared in VH1's Behind The Music (2001).
- Lars Ulrich, in his 2016 interview, spoke about the royalty and songwriting credit dispute that caused Mustaine to object to Metallica's planned deluxe reissue of 'No Life 'Til Leather' demo.
- The bassist in the band during this time, David Ellefson, voiced his disapproval of re-recording the demo with Megadeth on his podcast in 2021.
- The drummer from Metallica, Lars Ulrich, would have been slated to receive a portion of royalties that Mustaine believed were rightfully his, as revealed in Dave Mustaine's 2017 statement.
- The members of Megadeth are currently focusing on producing new material, having released an EP titled 'The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!' in 2022.
- In addition to the band's ongoing live performances, they are working on a new album for a tentative 2025 release, with James Lo Menzo on bass.
- The entertainment world is eagerly awaiting new developments regarding Mustaine's plans to re-record 'No Life 'Til Leather' with Megadeth or any potential changes to this project.
