David Ellefson Says Kings of Thrash Are “Creating a New Sound” Despite Mostly Covering Megadeth

In case you weren’t aware, Kings of Thrash is a new band led by former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson and former guitarist Jeff Young. They mostly cover old Megadeth tunes—you can even hear it on their live album, which isn’t very good. The band says they don’t want to be just a cover band, though, and are working on new material, which Ellefson discussed with Metal Wani.

 “As we look it now, they’re probably gonna be one-off singles rather than a full-length album. And that, of course, could change, depending on how it goes in the studio. The studio has a mind of its own. So we’ll know more in a couple of weeks.”

Kings of Thrash wouldn’t be the first artist to talk about focusing on singles in recent years, if that’s the route they decide to take. When asked if the new music would follow the old-school thrash style Ellefson and Young are known for, Ellefson suggested that other rock music could be an influence.

“It’s interesting. Because Jeff and I… He’s a Van Halen fan, as am I. He’s a Randy Rhoads fan, as am I. A lot of my writing, even in Megadeth, So Far, So Good… So What! into the ’90s, was a lot of my participation, some of this stuff kind of swings into those areas, which I like. I think it’s pretty cool. I think Jeff and I are creating something — we’re creating a new sound. It doesn’t have to be four songs of blistering assault. It can be musical.

“It’s interesting connecting with Jeff all these years later, ’cause he’s had his own experiences musically and in life; I’ve had mine. And now we intersect all these years later. It’s like a family reunion — it’s, like, ‘Tell me about your life. Where have you been? What have you done? Who have you seen?’ So I think that’s the musical intersection that we’re having as well right now.”

Kings of Thrash played a song called “Bridges Burned” on tour and it sounds a lot like thrash to me, but you can judge for yourself.