For those all about to rock, Gigantour will make you think. In its second year on the road, the traveling festival is once again providing fans with intelligent metal.
The brainchild of Megadeth front man Dave Mustaine, Gigantour is more than just a festival of metal bands. It's a demonstration in musicianship.
"Gigantour's not so much a festival as it is a spirit," explained Mustaine in an interview with the Tribune from Hollywood, where he's currently recording tracks for an upcoming Megadeth album. "It's a way of life and it's a way to capture what heavy metal stands for. I'm really proud to be in this genre."
Mustaine, who is in charge of every aspect of the festival, something he considers an honor more than a burden, said he can't wait to get out there and help eliminate the stigma attached to the genre.
"There's over 100 men and women that are out there every day that are under my wing," Mustaine said of the Gigantour staff.
"As a little guitar player at 13 years old, sitting in my bedroom, strumming along songs to a guitar tab book, I never thought that this would happen. Never thought in a million years."
Time is on the guitarist's side as he is in the best shape of his life, which also comes as a surprise to Mustaine.
"I was telling my manager just yesterday that the thought of me living to be 45 is insane. I'll be 45 this month," he said. "But, I look great. I still feel young. I'm talking about my physique, not my head."
Learning lessons from last year's inaugural stint with the tour, Mustaine made improvements this year.
"With a woman who becomes pregnant, if she exercises and takes care of herself and uses Vitamin E cream and massages her skin, she won't get stretch marks," he explained. "If she doesn't give a darn about what's going on and just lets it all hang out, doesn't exercise, she's gonna have stretch marks. Those stretch marks are forever. In business, stretch marks are bad for the infrastructure. So, you wanna grow at a slow pace and make sure everything's done properly."
Originally scheduled for release on Halloween, the new Megadeth album, "United Abominations," was delayed to early 2007 when it became clear the album couldn't be completed while the tour was being organized.
"We thought we'd get the record done in time for the tour, but we just didn't have the time," Mustaine said, adding that he was working from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. in the studio in the week prior to the start of Gigantour. "I'm still working on the record right now. I'm in the studio right this second."
Having to record the album while putting the final touches on organizing the festival isn't as cumbersome as it seems, according to Mustaine.
"How difficult is it? This is my job and this is what I know and this is what I do," said Mustaine. "This is what I love. I'm the luckiest man in the world."
Known for his highly political lyrics and unbelievably fast guitar work, Mustaine says the new album is going to be special.
"For me, simply stated, it would be a return to form because I'm playing the stuff that I want to play," he said. "(I'm) kind of relaxing on the vocal performances and going back to my old style of curling my lip up and snarling a little bit."
Ja sehr schön das hört sich positiv an...
This will be Megadeth's first album with Roadrunner Records, which has Mustaine excited.
"I'm really digging the writing process. I'm really digging the involvement of the record company," he explained.
With a reputation as being hard to manage, Mustaine showed Roadrunner that he isn't the bad guy people sometimes make him out to be.
"I'm really stoked because they didn't think that I was gonna be open to any suggestions about stuff," he explained. "I'm not the mean, bad guy everyone thinks I am (but) if you hurt me, I'm gonna hurt you back twice as bad. I'm not difficult. I'm demanding. I want the absolute best and that's why I want Gigantour to be so brilliant for the fans."
Mustaine's prerequisite for bands who participate in the festival always boils down to the ability to lay down intense guitar solos. Bringing in Lamb of God, Opeth, Arch Enemy and Overkill for the tour fills that.
"Obviously I think they're very talented or I wouldn't have allowed them to be a part of Gigantour," Mustaine said. "If the bands aren't talented and they're not good people and they're not ... doing it for the right reasons, they're not gonna be on Gigantour."
One of the big draws of the tour, which began in Boise, Idaho, on Sept. 6, are the fall dates. Most festivals run through the summer, but Gigantour hits the road when the air is cool and the leaves are changing.
"Everybody's getting ready to go back to school, they're all making new friendships and it's like 'hey, you know what, dude, you're a metal fan, I'm a metal fan, Gigantour's coming, let's go,' " Mustaine said.
"It's not a real dark, negative, dangerous festival. Full on metal. Full on good time. It's not like some of the festivals that are really scary and the girls come there looking like Morticia Addams. Who I thought was actually kind of sexy."
Mustaine plans on keeping the tour going long after he has decided to stop playing music.
"The bottom line is that I just wanted to do something before the interest in Dave Mustaine ends and my career is over," he said. "I wanted to pass the torch to the next generation and I also wanted to give something back to the fans who have supported me over the years. That's why the talent is incredible."
Reach Patrick Douglas by e-mail at patjessdouglas@netescape.net.
