Countdown to Extinction

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Countdown to Extinction
Studio album by Megadeth
Released July 14, 1992
Recorded Between January 6 and April 28, 1992
Genre Heavy metal, hard rock, thrash metal
Length 48:27
66:29 (Remaster)
Label Capitol
Producer Max Norman, Dave Mustaine
Megadeth chronology
Rust in Peace
(1990)		 Countdown to Extinction
(1992)		 Youthanasia
(1994)
Singles from Countdown to Extinction
  1. "Symphony of Destruction"
    Released: 1992
  2. "Foreclosure of a Dream"
    Released: 1992
  3. "Sweating Bullets"
    Released: 1993
  4. "Skin o' My Teeth"
    Released: 1993

Countdown to Extinction is the fifth studio album by the American heavy metal band Megadeth. It was released on July 14, 1992 through Capitol Records. Countdown to Extinction is Megadeth's best-selling album, eventually achieving double platinum status. The album also produced the band's most successful hit singles, "Symphony of Destruction", "Sweating Bullets", "Skin O' My Teeth" and "Foreclosure of a Dream", videos were made for all singles and also for "High Speed Dirt".

Countdown to Extinction was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 1993 Grammy Awards and the title track of the album won the Humane Society's Genesis Award, making Megadeth the only heavy metal band to be given this honor.

Contents

[edit] Production and marketing

Countdown to Extinction was the second album featuring the Dave Mustaine/Dave Ellefson/Nick Menza/Marty Friedman line-up. It was produced by Mustaine and Max Norman at The Enterprise in Burbank, California. It was pre-produced by Ryan Greene.

The band's change in musical style meant that many songs on the album follow a more traditional hard rock structure, with verses and choruses (unlike many of the band's previous albums). The album is the band's most commercially successful album to date.

[edit] Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 4/5 stars[1]
Entertainment Weekly A−[2]
Sputnik Music 4/5 stars[3]
Wiki letter w.svg This table needs to be expanded using prose. See the guideline for more information.

In October 2011, the album was ranked number six on Guitar World magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1992.[4]

[edit] Lyrical themes

Like its predecessor, many of the songs on the album have political and military undertones. For example, "Symphony of Destruction" is a song about military dictators, "Architecture of Aggression" focuses on the military-industrial complex, and "Ashes in Your Mouth" concentrates on the negative aftermaths of war ("sweet taste of vindication, it turns to ashes in your mouth"). In a similar vein, "Psychotron" details a merciless cyborg killing machine of the same name, and is based on the Marvel comic book character Deathlok. Other political songs include "Captive Honour", a song about prison and the consequences of crime, "Countdown to Extinction", a song about canned hunts (which many believed was a jab at Metallica frontman James Hetfield and his love for hunting), and "Foreclosure of a Dream", a song that looks at rise and fall of political and economic ideologies, which also includes the infamous 1988 "Read my lips" quote by George H. W. Bush (and on a more personal level, about Ellefson's parents who allegedly lost their jobs under the Reagan Administration). The title song "Countdown To Extinction" also won Megadeth the Humane Society of the United States "Genesis Award" for its dealings with issues of animal welfare.

The rest of the songs' undertones are more spread around. "Skin o' My Teeth" is about Mustaine's numerous attempts at suicide but "just couldn't get the fucking job done" as Mustaine said during a 1992 concert. "Sweating Bullets" has been referred to be about schizophrenia. Before the song is performed, Mustaine tells the audience it's about schizophrenia and has described it as a song "about me... and me." "This Was My Life" refers to a failing relationship where that despite wanting to kill your spouse, you'll be sent to the electric chair regardless for your actions. The slow melodic section at the end of "This Was My Life" is the same chord progression as Mustaine's contribution to the breakdown section in the middle of his former band Metallica's "Phantom Lord" from Kill 'Em All. "High Speed Dirt" is about a skydiver falling to his/her death.

[edit] Cover versions and usage

Cover versions

Video games

[edit] Reissues

In August, 2004, Capitol Records released a remastered version for ordinary compact disc playback systems, with four bonus tracks.

According to the 2004 remastered version liner notes, Mustaine was upset with the album only reaching number two on the charts (behind Billy Ray Cyrus), and thus set out to make a number one album.

In June, 2006, two audiophile remasters of the album were released, an Ultradisc II Gold CD version by the Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, and a 180 gram vinyl 2LP version, both mixed by Dave Mustaine.

[edit] Track listing

No. Title Lyrics Music Length
1. "Skin o' My Teeth"   Dave Mustaine Mustaine 3:14
2. "Symphony of Destruction"   Mustaine Mustaine 4:03
3. "Architecture of Aggression"   Mustaine Mustaine, Dave Ellefson 3:35
4. "Foreclosure of a Dream"   Mustaine, Ellefson Mustaine 4:16
5. "Sweating Bullets" (5:27 on the 2004 rerelease) Mustaine Mustaine 5:03
6. "This Was My Life"   Mustaine Mustaine 3:43
7. "Countdown to Extinction"   Mustaine, Ellefson, Nick Menza Mustaine, Marty Friedman 4:19
8. "High Speed Dirt" (4:21 on the 2004 rerelease) Mustaine, Ellefson Mustaine 4:13
9. "Psychotron"   Mustaine Mustaine 4:42
10. "Captive Honour"   Mustaine, Ellefson Mustaine, Friedman, Menza 4:15
11. "Ashes in Your Mouth"   Mustaine Mustaine, Friedman, Ellefson, Menza 6:11
Total length:
 47:34
Japanese bonus tracks (1992)
No. Title Lyrics Music Length
12. "Breakpoint" (TOCP-7164, Japan) Mustaine, Ellefson, Menza Mustaine, Ellefson, Menza 3:28
13. "Go To Hell" (TOCP-7164, Japan) Mustaine, Friedman, Ellefson, Menza Mustaine, Friedman, Ellefson, Menza 4:37

[citation needed]

2004 bonus tracks
No. Title Lyrics Music Length
12. "Crown of Worms"   Mustaine, Sean Harris Mustaine 3:18
13. "Countdown to Extinction" (Demo) Mustaine, Ellefson, Menza Mustaine, Friedman 3:55
14. "Symphony of Destruction" (Demo) Mustaine Mustaine 5:30
15. "Psychotron" (Demo) Mustaine Mustaine 5:28
Live at the Cow Palace (1993)
No. Title Lyrics Music Length
1. "Holy Wars...The Punishment Due"   Mustaine Mustaine 6:58
2. "Sweating Bullets"   Mustaine Mustaine 4:46
3. "In My Darkest Hour"   Mustaine, Ellefson Mustaine 6:06
4. "Symphony of Destruction"   Mustaine Mustaine 3:52
5. "Peace Sells"   Mustaine Mustaine 4:10
6. "Anarchy in the U.K."   Johnny Rotten, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock, Paul Cook Rotten, Jones, Matlock, Cook 4:08

[edit] Personnel

Megadeth
Production
2004 Remix and Remaster
  • Produced by Dave Mustaine
  • Mixed by Ralph Patlan and Dave Mustaine
  • Engineered by Ralph Patlan with Lance Dean
  • Edited by Lance Dean and Scott "Sarge" Harrison with Bo Caldwell
  • Mastered by Tom Baker

[edit] In popular culture

Parts of the opening lyrics of Captive Honour ("Kill a man and you're a murderer, kill many and you're a conqueror, kill them all, you're a god") are in fact a quote from the French biologist and philosopher Jean Rostand ("On tue un homme, on est un assassin. On en tue des millions, on est un conquérant. On les tue tous, on est Dieu").

[edit] Charts

Album
Year Chart Position
1992 US Billboard 200 2
UK Album Charts 5
Australian Album Charts 14
Austrian Album Charts 12
Canadian Album Charts 25
German Album Charts 18
Japanese Album Charts 6
Swedish Album Charts 10
Swiss Record Charts 16
Singles
Year Single Chart Position
1992 "Foreclosure of a Dream" US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 30
"Symphony of Destruction" US Billboard Hot 100 71
US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 29
UK Singles Chart 15
1993 "Skin O' My Teeth" UK Singles Chart 13
"Sweating Bullets" US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks 27
UK Singles Chart 26

[edit] RIAA Certifications

Date Certification
September 9, 1992 Platinum [5]
December 13, 1994 2x Platinum [5]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Allmusic Review
  2. ^ Countdown to Extinction: Music Review:Entertainment Weekly
  3. ^ Sputnik Music Review
  4. ^ Grassi, Tony. "Photo Gallery: The Top 10 Guitar Albums of 1992". GuitarWorld.com. http://www.guitarworld.com/photo-gallery-top-10-guitar-albums-1992. Retrieved 2011-10-24. 
  5. ^ a b "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=peace%20sells&artist=megadeth&format=&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2010&sort=CertificationDate&perPage=25. Retrieved August 9, 2010. 

[edit] External links

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