Band
Megadeth
Title
Live In Buenos Aires
Type
DVD
Company
Image Entertainment
YOR
2007
Style
Thrash
Popular Reviews
Megadeth - Live In Buenos Aires (DVD) - 2007 - Image Entertainment
Track Listing1. Blackmail the Universe 2. Set the World Afire 3. Wake the Dead 4. In My Darkest Hour 5. She Wolf 6. Reckoning Day 7. A Tout Le Monde 8. Hangar 18 & Return of Hangar 18 9. I'll Be There 10. Tornado of Souls 11. Trust 12. Something That I'm Not 13. Kick the Chair 14. Coming Home 15. Symphony of Destruction 16. Peace Sells 17. Holy Wars 18. Symphony of Destruction (Alternate) |
I've never had the opportunity to catch Megadeth live in person. I've always wanted to and may yet this summer on their tour with Machine Head and Heaven & Hell, but until then I have a handful of live DVDs to hold me over. "Live In Buenos Aires" is the newest 'Deth DVD to hit store shelves, released by the rather diverse distro Image Entertainment. It is interesting to see that Roadrunner Records, the band's new label home, wasn't behind this release. I assume that Roadrunner is reserving their thunder for the new record, "United Abominations", set for a Spring '07 release. While we are speaking of thunder let me briefly say that I am stealing some of MM staffer 1Evil1's thunder by reviewing his favorite band's material (the man actually owns sweaty underpants from Dave Mustaine that he bought on Ebay). Anyhoo, moving on....
Mustaine and company are apparently huge in South America, with what looks to be an entire city in attendance here. Watching this remarkable audience reminds me of those classic Iron Maiden clips of Bruce belting out numbers to thousands and thousands of fans across a city of people. This is exactly like that as the stage and backdrop are situated right in the heart of the city, with skyscrapers and other large buildings setting to the rear of the crowd. Between the stage and those buildings is an entire sea of fans, each singing along with the songs and even humming the guitar parts. It is simply amazing to watch their reaction to the band's entrance and early riffs to classic 'Deth tunes. Buenos Aires is the Megadeth capital of the world.
This show was captured live on October 9th 2005. It is a pro-shot DVD with tons of camera angles accessing view points of just about anything you would like to see at a concert. With the invasion of thousands of fans the viewer at home still feels rather intimate with the band due to the abundance of closely cropped camera shots. We get plenty of Dave's face, some shots of Shawn Drover's massive kit, the constipated concentration stare of Glenn Drover, and a few short shots of James McDonough. Through shot after shot we see this legendary band come alive with an energetic set of classic 'Deth cuts and a few tunes that I don't hear often when playing the group's studio records.
This is the first visible footage I've seen of Dave Mustaine with his new mates Shawn and Glenn Drover. I've always been a fan of Eidolon and it is great to see these two talented musicians partaking in the Megadeth heritage. I think the two work perfectly with Dave on stage and I'll be anxious to hear the three collaborate on the new studio album. Of interest is the appearance of McDonough, who ended his relationship with the band in early 2006. I loved McDonough in Iced Earth and he looks adequate enough on stage with Dave. I would assume that backstage relations led to his firing. McDonough is a raging beast here, hulking over his bass just to the right of Dave and occasionally running across to do some jamming with the Drovers. The group run through the mainstays like "Hangar 18" (and "Return"), "Holy Wars", "Peace Sells", and "Symphony Of Destruction". The band take on two of my favorites from "Youthanasia", "A Tout Le Monde" (simply eerie on stage) and "Reckoning Day". Two cuts from their last record appear with "Blackmail The Universe" and "Kick The Chair", with the latter amped up heavier than the studio version. Glenn Drover does some really cool tradeoffs with Dave on stage, reminding me of the famous Smith/Murray combo of Maiden's twin guitar chamber. Glenn is razor sharp on his leads, almost taking some of Dave's thunder and showcasing a bit of neo-classical edge to his tuning. Some odd cuts are thrown in including "I'll Be There" and "Coming Home", which in my opinion could have been replaced with stronger songs. In between a few songs we see some interview footage and some shots of Dave and Glenn playing acoustic in a park. Wow!
The Bottom Line - A fantastic DVD that should please any of Megadeth's faithful.
--EC 3.18.07