Dragonforce’s Herman Li on Dave Mustaine Losing His S*** at a Roadie Mid-Show: “In His Defense, That’s Super Annoying!”
Earlier this year, Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine was filmed losing his shit at one of Judas Priest’s roadies mid-show. The guy was doing a line check while Megadeth was playing, and the ex-Metallica guitarist was chuffed that such a “pathetic, amateur piece of shit” (his actual words) would interrupt Megadeth’s show. Now, Dragonforce guitarist Herman Li has come out in defense of Mustaine, saying that while Dave might have gone a little too far, it’s really annoying to hear someone soundchecking while you’re playing.
Here’s what Herman said in a reaction video to Dave’s onstage freak-out, via Dragonforce’s YouTube:
“I’ve gotta defend Dave Mustaine on this one, in some way. Look, I’ve done a lot of festivals — not as much as him — but it’s super annoying when you’re playing the show and you hear the other stage next door, just doing the line check. You’re supposed to have a silent line check. You’re not supposed to have an amp blasting next door that you can hear while you’re playing…It’d become pretty annoying. You’re doing a show, it takes you out of the game, you start making mistakes…
“Judas Priest are obviously higher up on the bill than Megadeth, because they’re playing afterwards. They’re probably thinking, Well, we’re the headliner. Or maybe they were late — they couldn’t soundcheck earlier. Usually, the headliner soundchecks earlier in the day, because they’re the headliner. But with the flight cancellations and delays happening these days around the world, especially in Europe this touring season, they probably didn’t get there on time, and they said, Well, we’re the headliner, we gotta go…
“In defense of Dave, that’s super annoying! I know you’re a headliner, but I’m doing a show right now! I need to play! If I play shit because some guy’s blasting guitar on the side, it’s not fair, and it’s not something you should be doing, especially at that level.
“He probably shouldn’t have flipped that guy off in front, and gotten the fans to talk shit about him, but God, c’mon! We’re musicians, when we’re in the moment, we react.”
I understand Herman’s position on this, and I’d argue that he has more relevant insight into something like this than I do, because he’s played a bunch of huge festivals, and I haven’t. I’m just a metal fan who can write.
But I still disagree. First of all, the talent shitting on the crew is always a terrible look. It’s the same as being mean to waiters of valets — don’t act like you’re any better than anyone else because they’re support staff. Second, if an opening act, no matter how big, had done this to one of Megadeth’s crew members at a festival, Mustaine would’ve lost his mind about it. He would’ve refused to play any bills with those guys on it, ever again.
I think Li is acknowledging Dave Mustaine the musician, but maybe not Dave Mustaine The Person He’s Repeatedly Shown Us He Is.
Anyway, watch the whole video below:
