DAVE MUSTAINE starts recording vocals as MEGADETH’s 17th studio album nears completion

Summary

• Dave Mustaine starts recording vocals for Megadeth’s 17th album; project nearing completion.
• First full studio album with Teemu Mäntysaari on guitar and James LoMenzo on bass.
• European tour with Disturbed kicks off in September across multiple countries.

The next Megadeth record has been crawling toward completion for months. Since the release of The Sick, The Dying… and the Dead! back in 2022, work on its successor has quietly advanced.

Dave Mustaine himself recently tossed fans a bone with a new social media update that suggests the finish line is finally within sight.

The post shows Mustaine standing at a mic, apparently in the middle of laying down vocals for what will become the band’s 17th studio album. His caption kept things short: “Vocals started. It won’t be long, now!”

Vocals started. It won’t be long, now!#megadeth #album17 pic.twitter.com/xL8lF546nU

— Dave Mustaine (@DaveMustaine) June 10, 2025

Given how recording usually works, vocals coming in means most of the heavy lifting instrumentally is already wrapped. Drums, guitars, and bass generally hit the tape first.

The vocals often arrive last to avoid wasting time if anything needs to shift musically.

This upcoming album brings some personnel changes to the Megadeth machine. It will mark the recording debut of guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari, who stepped in after Kiko Loureiro exited the lineup back in 2023.

On bass, James LoMenzo finally gets to put his stamp on a full studio album after replacing David Ellefson, who left in the wake of that embarrassing scandal nobody’s forgotten.

While the band continues wrapping up the album, their live schedule isn’t exactly empty.

Megadeth will be tagging along with Disturbed for a European tour kicking off this fall. The full list of cities and venues is already locked in, with the first date set for late September.

Get Megadeth Tickets Here.

Megadeth 2025 European Tour Dates

• September 28 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Royal Arena
• October 1 - Dusseldorf, Germany - PSD Bank Dome
• October 3 - Stuttgart, Germany - Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle
• October 4 - Zurich, Switzerland - Hallenstadion
• October 6 - Budapest, Hungary - Arena
• October 7 - Prague, Czech Republic - O2 Arena
• October 10 - Krakow, Poland - Tauron Arena
• October 12 - Paris, France - Zenith
• October 14 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Ziggo Dome
• October 15 - Brussels, Belgium - Forest National Arena
• October 17 - Munich, Germany - Olympiahalle
• October 18 - Berlin, Germany - Velodrome
• October 20 - Birmingham, UK - Utilita Arena
• October 22 - Dublin, Ireland - 3Arena
• October 24 - Manchester, UK - AO Arena
• October 26 - London, UK - The O2
• October 28 - Glasgow, UK - OVO Hydro

Recording vocals means this thing is finally breathing. Whether it delivers anything fans haven’t already heard over the last few decades, that’s another story.

Mustaine certainly knows how to keep the machine moving, even if the gears creak a bit louder each time.

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