Megadeth

Megadeth seems to be the hen that lays the golden eggs for Capitol Records – except, of course, the bird has already flown the coop. But that is not stopping Capitol from releasing yet another compilation featuring the eggs they already own. Anthology: Set the World Afire is a 2-CD set chockfull of hits and non-album releases by one of the strongest thrash bands around. Though, this being a Capitol release, the timeline ends at 1999 and Risk, the last album released on the label.

So what you have here is an almost chronological line-up of cuts all the way from Megadeth’s 1985 debut Killing is My Business”¦ And Business is Good (”˜Mechanix’ and ”˜Rattlehead’) to 1999’s Risk (”˜Insomnia’ and ”˜Prince of Darkness’). Tracks from the band’s last three albums – The World Needs a Hero (2001), The System Has Failed (2004) and United Abominations (2007) – are excluded. The only exception is ”˜Dread and the Fugitive Mind,’ which first appeared on 2000’s Capitol Punishment compilation as a then-unreleased track and later found its way onto The World Needs a Hero.

There are only two reasons why anyone should pick up Anthology. The first is the convenience factor – you can get the best of Megadeth (well, most of it, anyway), without having to go through more than two CDs. The second is that you are looking to get introduced to this pioneering band. If you are a droogie, then you don’t need this.