David Ellefson, fresh off the release of his first-ever solo vocal performance with Dieth’s new single ‘Walk With Me Forever,’ was in the recent episode of the ‘Scars And Guitars’ podcast for an interview, where he talked about his time with Megadeth. During the chat, the bassist claimed that Dave Mustaine formed the band out of a ‘grudge.’
Explaining how he and the vocalist saw Metallica in different lights, Ellefson said:
“There was a lot of things, a lot of the narrative in that band that I never agreed with. A lot of that band was started on a grudge and a hardship of the firing [of Mustaine] from Metallica. That was never my story. I was always a Metallica fan, and I became friends with those guys. I have nothing but gratitude for that group and those gentlemen for what they’ve done for all of us, and I think they deserve the biggest applause.”
He described how he avoided conflict within the group by adding:
“So it was hard to be in a band that always had this saltiness around that whole narrative because it was never my narrative. So I went along to get along, but now I don’t have to do that. And now I can be on my own path. These are my words; it’s my story now. And maybe the events that happened a couple of years ago, I needed to have my own story to tell.”
Referring to his dismissal from Megadeth, the bassist’s words continued:
“‘Cause when you quit a band, everyone’s pissed at you; they hate you: ‘Oh, fuck you. You quit. You quit my favorite band.’ But when you get tossed out… And I’m not looking for the sympathy card. You don’t have to feel sorry for me; you don’t have to do any of that. But it’s interesting that I guess, the way it happened… it went down in a way that it was certainly visible enough and on a level that… It was sort of, like, okay, well, what’s gonna happen next? And I just tried to be faithful to just following my heart, following the path.”
In a previous chat with Brazil’s Heavy Talk, Ellefson discussed his departure from the band in greater detail. He recalled receiving the dismissal news on the phone and said he was neither warned nor given a chance to explain himself after the sex video scandal.
Then, comparing his and Mustaine’s situations, The Lucid member added:
“Look, at some point, the damage was done. So you move on. We’re all human, and it is what it is. You can’t lament it. I’ve watched how he’s treated his dismissal from Metallica, still b*tching about it 40 years later, and I think it looks f*cking pathetic. And it’s, like, ‘You know what? Fix your sh*t and move on.’ And that’s how I’ve chosen to deal with it: fix your sh*t and move on.”
On the other hand, in a recent interview with Guitar World, the Megadeth frontman claimed that he had no problems with Metallica anymore and even asked for a reunion:
“I have not heard Metallica’s latest record. But there was a time around 20 years ago when we were not being friendly toward each other when I couldn’t listen to their music when it came on the radio. But none of that bothers me anymore, and it’s not why I haven’t heard the record, especially after the Big 4 thing that we did. I really think we should do that again.”
Looking ahead, despite Mustaine’s openness for a reunion with his former band through a Big 4 show, separate touring schedules make it unlikely in the near future, according to Anthrax’s Scott Ian.
Meanwhile, David Ellefson’s band Dieth has three festival shows set for July and August. He also has four Australian performances with Kings Of Thrash in July.