Killing Is My Business... And Business is Good | Revenge Against Metallica Act 1

Introduction

I won't bore you with the story of Dave Mustaine and Metallica. You all know. And what you also know, is that Thrashing was and always will be Dave Mustaine's business. And business is pretty amazing. This album is one of the single best debut albums of all time. VH1 placed it above Kill Em All for a reason. But it's time to dissect why? Why is this album regarded higher than KEA, and Show No Mercy, and Bonded By Blood, and Fistf- Well actually that album sucks so that's obvious. Without further ado, the story of Megadeth begins.

Analysis

I'm actually going to start from the top down this time. I'll save the production for a bit later, so the vocals are where I'll begin. Mustaine's vocals have always been an acquired taste, I've grown to love them but I know most do not. All I can say is that they're at some of their best here. In terms of guitar as well, Mustaine kills it on this album. Fantastic riffs all around and great solos to boot. Poland does admirably, but he doesn't have much room to shine on this album.

Dave Ellefson provides some pretty catchy basswork as well, y'know, stuff you can tap your foot to. But in that regard: Gar Samuelson. The man that completely steels the spotlight on this album with his complex, jazzy drums and grooves. Seriously, if there's one part of this album that will get stuck in your head, it's the jazzier parts in songs like the title track.

Track by Track

The album begins with "Last Rites/Loved To Deth". A furious Thrash rampage fueled by Mustaine's riffs and Ellefson's bass. There is no better way to open a Thrash album than a soft buildup followed by pure rage in my opinion. And that's followed by "Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!", a jazzy track led by Samuelson and Ellefson in one of the catchiest grooves to ever grace Thrash Metal. The lyrics are about The Punisher as well, which fits perfectly in an album like this.

That is then succeeded by "The Skull Beneath The Skin", a Megadeth classic and my second favorite off the album. Leading this track are Samuelson and Mustaine and Poland, with both the drums and guitars combining into a Thrash song that put all the other bands to shame at the time. Following that on the original release of the album is "These Boots", a cover of "These Boots Were Made For Walking" by Nancy Sinatra/Lee Hazelwood. It's okay and for once gives Poland a chance to show off his jazziness, but it's only listenable on the original release of the album. The later pressings of the original mix omit it entirely, and the remixes push it to the end of the album, only for it to be messed with in different ways, but I'll get to that later.

After that is "Rattlehead". A love letter to fans of the band at the time, it plays as a heavy metal anthem akin to "Whiplash" (Metallica) and "Bonded By Blood" (Exodus). It's also one of the faster songs on the album as such, and places a focus more on the guitars with constant interplay between the two. Then comes my favorite on the album: "Chosen Ones". It's strange to see such a Countdown To Extinction-esque track on their first album, but with Gar Samuelson there it works to an extent Countdown could only hope to. It's got an extremely catchy groove, one of the few defined chorus' on the album, and Mustaine's vocals work great on it.

"Looking Down The Cross" by comparison is just okay. It's a perfectly fine song, but compared to the two before it and the first three songs on the record, it doesn't strike as much of a chord with me. "Mechanix" on the other hand, oh my. Yeah, the lyrics are silly, but instrumentally it destroys Four Horseman, and just kicks so much ass. One of their most well-known for a reason.

Ranking:

1. "Chosen Ones".
2. "The Skull Beneath The Skin".
3. "Mechanix".
4. "Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!".
5. "Last Rites/Loved To Deth".
6. "Rattlehead".
7. Original Mix of "These Boots".
8. "Looking Down The Cross".
9. Later mixes of "These Boots".

Mixes

If there's one thing early Megadeth albums are known for, it's the situation going on with the remixes. Let's start from the beginning, the 1985 Original. It sounds great on Vinyl, and pretty good on cassette, but the CD releases I've listened to sound pretty bad. Strange because ripping my vinyl directly to a CD sounds better than my actual CD. It's a nice, raw mix overall and works due to the songwriting.

The 2002 mix is the one to go for on CD. It sounds great on it, and is one of the better 2000s remixes. Some songs sound way better here than on the original, though others sound noticeably worse. Specifically, "These Boots". Every lyrical alteration from Dave is bleeped out and it rapes the song.

The 2018 mix then, is the best of both worlds. Every song sounds its best here, especially the vinyl release, though it's also the one to go for digitally. As for "These Boots", it's tuned down to allow for rerecorded vocals. It's fine, but the og mix rules all in that regard. That said, I do think that Final Kill is the best version of the album, and I absolutely recommend it.

Conclusion

All in all, KIMB is a fantastic album. I think the reason it's remembered even more fondly than KEA or SNM is because it's more than just a Thrash album. There's jazz and blues and even a few funky parts here and there. KIMB has this desire to constantly challenge the listener's expectations with innovative songwriting and technicality beyond what anyone had seen before. Because of that, KIMB wasn't immediately made obsolete in the way KEA and SNM were by their successors, but it has endured the test of time stronger than nearly any metal debut album. For that reason alone, the album gets an 8/10 from me.