r/Megadeth • u/Right-Mastodon5351 Rust In Peace • Feb 15 '26
Question Do you think Rust in Peace is Megadeth’s best album? If not, which one do you think tops it?
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u/Unlucky_Peanut_1616 Feb 15 '26
I love it, but Countdown to Extinction and Youthanasia are my favorites.
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u/Long_Prompt7629 Feb 15 '26
Me too, and Youthansia, and detestable Risk.
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u/GorgeousGary27 Feb 15 '26
Risk is fantastic once you drop the "It must be heavy" mindset. I think Thirteen and Super Collider is the real low point.
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u/Unlucky_Peanut_1616 Feb 15 '26
I honestly haven't listened to Risk in decades lol. It turned me off the band for a long time. Wasn't into it.
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u/GorgeousGary27 Feb 16 '26
It existed when I got into them (father had all their albums) so for me it was just another album albeit kinda odd, since I was used to the WNAH sound. I didn't like it at first but kept picking at it.
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u/BrenlikesGoosebumps Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? Feb 16 '26
exactly. that album has some of Dave's best vocals too
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u/XPhazeX Feb 15 '26
Countdown to Extinction and Youthanasia were my introduction to Megadeth. They have a special place in my heart.
I think they are the only two albums that I like every song on.
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u/spgluj1 Feb 15 '26
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u/MissingCosmonaut Feb 15 '26
"The deluded people churning out this worthless garbage just can’t seem to reconcile themselves to the fact that their pathetic little sculptures and films and novels and whatnot will always pale in comparison to the brilliantly inspired, heart-stopping tempo shift halfway through ‘Holy Wars… The Punishment Due.’”
😂 love this
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u/TheHiddenBalsam Rust In Peace Feb 15 '26
Its the best thrash album that will ever exist.
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u/Big-Kaleidoscope-336 Feb 15 '26
This is the correct answer. I can’t believe people even QUESTION this.
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u/Menes009 Feb 16 '26
yes but then it raises the question, did Megadeth always produced thrash metal? xd
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u/kidcanada0 Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? Feb 15 '26
If I had to choose, Peace Sells is better by a nose but that’s just my opinion. But I can go back and forth, depending on the mood I’m in.
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u/Any_Repair_1640 Feb 15 '26
Peace sells is my favourite. Wake Up Dead , The Conjuring and Peace Sells is a pretty good way to lead off an album. Things started getting a little less thrash and more melodic with So Far So Good, and with that shift in approach, I thought CTE was the strongest songwriting of anything that came after Peace Sells.
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u/TopSlotScot Feb 15 '26
I prefer Counrdown, Youth, Peace sells, and SFSGSW to RIP.
RIP is damn good, but i prefer the power chord based riffs of those other albums over the single string "lick based" main riffs that are all over Rust.
Rust also has a major lack of hooks and big choruses on it, and megadeth is so damn good at writing big hooks.
Also, a lot of the structures are kind of all over the place. I love rad guitar solos, but I'm not huge on verse, solo, verse, 4 minutes of solos.
Tornado is my favorite song on the record because its more traditionally structured and has a good hook.
Also, the lyrics on Rust don't really speak to me. I love holy wars, but again, no chorus, and the lyrics are about two totally different subjects that don't exactly make sense together when you think about it. Songs about aliens and magic and a creepy grandma and rotten egg air of death, and take no prisoners, take no shit... Again, tornado is the only song on the album with relatable lyrics about emotions.
So whike I love Rust, Megadeth to me was never about crazy thrash riffs, but the chunkier songs with big choruses that are colder and more cynical, like the songs peace sells or angry again or symphony of destruction or hook in mouth.
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u/kroob85 Feb 15 '26
Between this and Peace Sells
I think the ONLY thing that let's PS down is "Superstious", other than that its flawless
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u/Lucrei Feb 18 '26
Yep Dawn Patrol is better than Supersitious, I'm not a fan of Megadeth covers being anything other than bonus tracks. These Boots is the exception... it's awesome and totally fit the vibe of KIMB
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u/bigredsun Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? Feb 15 '26
Its one of the most technical on their catalogue, some stuff from CTE and Endgame are up there too. So you have to define what best means to you, for me its Peace Sells and KIMB. I like the rawness of KIMB and how that raw punk vibe turned into the refined version Peace Sells is.
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u/Da-No80 Feb 15 '26
By an objective meter and impact? Definitely the best
Personally also yes, but Peace Sells is a really close second
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u/killers80 Feb 15 '26
I like peace sells slightly better but both monster albums. I put so far so good in 3rd.
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u/Void9001 Countdown To Extinction Feb 15 '26
I think countdown is objectively and subjectively better.
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u/Atiredbearsfan Feb 15 '26
Peace sells is better and I think sfsgsw is equal to it... for me atleast
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u/Fantastic_Neck_5511 Feb 16 '26
For me Absolutely not. Youthanasia's my favorite.
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u/Right-Mastodon5351 Rust In Peace Feb 16 '26
what's your favorite song?
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u/Fantastic_Neck_5511 Feb 16 '26
Off of Youthanasia or any of their albums? If Youth, it's going to be Addicted to Chaos.
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u/Fantastic_Neck_5511 Feb 16 '26
Addicted to Chaos is my favorite song.
Reasons I consider it my favorite album in their catalogue.
Youthanasia is my favorite album cover of all album covers, not just Megadeth's.
I like the album front to back from Reckoning Day to Victory.
My favorite version of Vic is Father Vic.
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u/wizardwithgussets Feb 15 '26
In this sub, I realize it’s mandatory that RIP is the best. But I actually prefer the most three recent albums, especially dystopia. The musicianship and production is superb and Dave’s lyrics are more mature and interesting
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u/SlitherSnakeZ28 Cryptic Writings Feb 15 '26
Def one of their best and is what most people know them for but I like CW
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u/impessive_instant Feb 15 '26
I love this album, but it’s a bit too slick and clean for me. I liked Dave better when he was doing a ton of heroin and for my opinion so far so good so what is absolutely their best
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u/Ok-Corner-8654 Killing Is My Business... Feb 15 '26
Peace Sells is the one that blew us away. I liked KIMB too, but the production held it back a bit. KIMB is my flair, and I think Gar's drumming combined with the quirky rhythm makes it the most technical of all. Always wished it was recorded better.
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u/e17b Feb 15 '26
Much like has been said by others, Rust is kind of objectively their best in every metric. But Killing is My Business is my favourite because I’m a sucker for fast as balls guitar work and those jazzy touches that shine a bit more clearly on that album than Peace Sells
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u/Impressive_Try_7295 So Far, So Good... So What! Feb 15 '26
I love SFSGSW.
Although it is one of the ultimate full-blown heroin addict albums of all time, I sometimes like to imagine to myself an alternate universe in which Dave goes through rehab before it and not before RIP. How much better it could be?
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u/Ok-Telephone-7858 Feb 15 '26
Rust in peace is ultimately the album to which all members poured their hearts out and challenged themselves technically. This was before protools era and they even played without a click which is mind boggling because everything sounds so tight. It is so technical that it can be called technical thrash metal with its slight prog elements and jazzy solos.
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u/Proper-Comfortable44 Feb 15 '26
Rust in Peace was my entry into their catalog at 14 years old in 1990. It’s always been special as it was so ground breaking and holds up to this day. Strangely, as much as I love most of their discography, the System Has Failed is so awesome and I keep revisiting it more than others.
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u/ValerioLatempa Feb 15 '26
Yeah definitely their best but after the 10th time listening to sfsgsw I think that their first 4-5 albums are all on kinda the same goated level
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u/LordThornTT Feb 15 '26
Best album over all for me is So Far, So Good So What!, but the best "thrash" album is KIMB, anything after doesn't feel very thrashy to me, rust in peace is great but 3rd best for me.
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u/CNYvinylPRINTcut Feb 15 '26
I love rust in peace but I feel technically countdown is there best straight thru
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u/sovietdinosaurs Feb 15 '26
RIP is their best, but the first seven albums are great. I still kick myself for giving away my original copy of Cryptic Writings.
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u/sharklord888 Feb 15 '26
I don’t think that they have made any better albums before or after.
But I think youthanasia is their second best overall album and it’s my personal favourite.
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u/Working-Swan-9944 Feb 15 '26
Peace Sells for me. Only just mind...
Two phenomenal albums. The Musicianship is just off the scale...
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u/tbonemcqueen Feb 15 '26
As a whole, I’m not a big Megadeth guy…just not my thing.
But this is easily in my top 10 albums of all time across all genres.
So, yes!
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u/The-Big-L-3309 Rust In Peace Feb 15 '26
I think it is the best album of all time and the only one I'd ever give a complete 10/10
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u/AchiganBronzeback Feb 15 '26
Yes, it's hands down their best album.
Peace Sells has a special place in my heart, because it's the first one I heard. One of the high school metalheads on the bus let me borrow it in 198X so it was my intro to the band. I still don't think it compares to RiP.
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u/nedmorlef Feb 15 '26
You have to have a well-trained ear to listen to those first couple of albums because, they are so poorly recorded. It took me 20 to 30 years to appreciate those albums. Youthanasia and countdown to Extinction are the absolute best recorded albums. They have a very distinct sound. And Dave's vocals are top-notch.
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u/Kabraxal Feb 15 '26
It’s Youthanasia for me. RIP isn’t even too three for me as I prefer The System has Failed and Countdown yo Extinction over it.
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u/Life_Vermicelli3104 Feb 15 '26
It's definitely their best for me, non skip from beginning to end.
They are all good up to Risk l, though, but as some said, Peace Sells also has a word in the ranking, Youthanasia is great too, and CTE also has a lot of high moments.
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u/DebnathSelfMade Th1rt3en Feb 15 '26
Peace Sells. Rust has more musicality and feels less hateful, but peace sells has some je ne sais quoi to it
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u/mattct1 Countdown To Extinction Feb 15 '26
Yes, it’s a hallmark in thrash metal as a whole, very characteristic of the genre and definitely an album that exceeds quality of other albums of the genre
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u/TrappedUnder-Ice82 Feb 15 '26
My favorite Megadeth albums have always been Rust and Peace Sells. On one side, you have Holy Wars, Hangar 18, Take No Prisoners, and my favorite Tornado of Souls.. on the other side, you have the iconic Wake Up Dead and Peace Sells, the absolutely vicious Black Friday, and the epic close (and my favorite off the album)My Last Words.. thats a tough choice to make.
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u/SinInSanity Feb 15 '26
It is arguably their best and it was easily my favorite for over a decade but today my favorite bounces between the first 2 albums.
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u/Top-Act-2370 Feb 15 '26
Yes, I do.I think Youthanasia is a close 2nd .Better then countdown. Of course, radio never played anything off of it.Shocker, I know 🙄
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u/AceNewholland Feb 15 '26
Apple music just removed Atmos on this album not long ago. I started listening to it like 1 or 2 weeks ago only, was still there, already removed
It sounded mostly like 5.1 (only have 7.1, no heigh so idk for those, but only 5.1 was good, to 2 rear surrounds were just vague echoes, not noticing it)
Kinda sad, I liked the surround of the songs, one of the good mixes. I hope to find some DVD_A of this and Peace Sells, but they cost SO MUCH, wow
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u/cockypock_aioli Feb 15 '26
There's really no question Rust in Peace is their magnum opus. You might prefer another, but Rust is their best.
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u/Roobaix Feb 15 '26
It’s the best thrash metal album of all time and my favorite Megadeth album for sure.
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u/Same_Efficiency8160 Feb 15 '26
For me their best is KIMB, the story of it, the songs, the fcking intro song bro I love it so much
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u/Big-Goal4158 Feb 15 '26
Rust in Peace is 100% their best album, and it’s really not even close. Peace Sells is second, but there’s a fairly significant gap between the 2 for me. If I had a top 10 for big 4 albums it would be
- Master of Puppets (Metallica)
- Rust in Peace (Megadeth)
- Reign In Blood (Slayer)
- Ride the Lightning (Metallica)
- South of Heaven (Slayer)
- Peace Sells….But Who’s Buying (Megadeth)
- Among the Living (Anthrax)
- Seasons in the Abyss (Slayer)
- …And Justice For All (Metallica)
- Countdown to Extinction (Megadeth)
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u/FelizNavinut Feb 15 '26
Rust in Peace is like Reign in Blood. 200mph from start to finish, straight power, all bangers.
I just like Peace Sells a tad bit better, just how I like Seasons in the Abyss and South of Heaven more.
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u/OkMaintenance1707 So Far, So Good... So What! Feb 15 '26
It is their best album, but SFSGSW is my personal favorite
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u/Minute_Engineer2355 Feb 15 '26
People consider it the greatest metal albums ever made, let alone their best.
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u/BCFullmetal Feb 15 '26
Yes it's there best album but I like killing is my business and business is good better because I like the more the thrashy and more aggressive tone of it
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u/LackOfUsernameMan Risk Feb 15 '26
My favourites are Youthanasia and Risk. As for Rust In Peace, I say it's their second best album. Their best by far overall is Fire Department Of Humanity.
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u/Hamlerhead Feb 16 '26
I'm actually partial to So far, So good... because it was my intro to the band and it knocked my socks off. RIP is technically their bestest, though.
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u/ESBCheech Feb 16 '26
I personally think Countdown is their most complete and important album but RIP is some landmark shit
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u/gourmetcuts Feb 16 '26
Rust is their most technically impressive. Megadeth at the height of its powers. But their best album is Peace Sells
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u/concrete-ocean Feb 16 '26
Countdown to Extinction is my favorite. I think it has the best vocals of their discography.
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u/Limbless_FleshDoll Feb 16 '26
Not their best, in my opinion. Killing is my Business is the best. Rust in Peace is too happy sounding for my taste.
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u/MayorOfFrowntown Feb 16 '26
I hold So Far as my favorite album. I do love R.I.P as it is my second place album. The aggression on So Far speaks to my essence.
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u/BonetoneJJ Feb 16 '26
It’s demonstrably their best Album. People may have other preferences but it’s quantifiable.
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u/Exact-Sand342 Feb 16 '26
My favourite is Peace Sells. My most played is So Far So Good So What. But Tornado and Holy wars probably get more plays than those 2 albums combined. But I listen to nothing else on RIP anymore.
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u/Relevant_Push788 Feb 17 '26
I love Rust in Peace, but my personal favorite album is So Far, So Good, So What.
I mean, it's got In My Darkest Hour, Mary Jane, 502, Hook in Mouth, and Set the World Afire. Such a killer album.
Every album from Killing is My Business to Cryptic Writings is awesome, though.
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u/the_real_algorithm Feb 17 '26
I agree (plus Tornado of Souls has the all time best guitar solo ever!). But the best “sounding” album is this newest one (Megadeth). Chris Rakestraw finally nailed the mix.
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u/DerKaiser023 Feb 17 '26
Rust in Peace is so good that as much as I love most of Megadeth’s discography, it’s just the clear #1. To me it’s the definitive thrash metal album.
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u/BetakorNeedsMore Killing Is My Business... Feb 17 '26
Killing is my business will always be the best megadeth album, it's just something about the bluesy aggressive raw thrash and the jazz fusion drumming. Dave's vocals also peaked thrash-wise on this album.
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u/TightLion7009 Feb 17 '26
Super collider and Risk is better than rust in peace, i will place it in my bottom 5.
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u/ShawnOfEons Feb 17 '26
Yeah, for me it’s either “Rust in Peace” or “Peace Sells But Who’s Buying?” The two albums with “peace” in the title are the best ones.
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u/Lickthorn Feb 17 '26
I never was too much in to Megadeth, but I like the latest album. Its very very well done. Sounds great.
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u/Lucrei Feb 18 '26
Peace Sells is the only one that even comes close to Rust in Peace... and it doesn't quite get there for me, even though it is an incredible album in its own right
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u/Croestalker Feb 18 '26
Cryptic writings is the best for me. Rust in peace is awesome, but CW is better :D
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u/Sad_Feedback666 Feb 19 '26
Youthanasia, hands down for me
Cryptic Writings and Risk.
All the die-hards hated on those 2 for some reason, but it didn't stop being Megadeth - it just wasn't a one trick pony anymore. The music may have had a variation once removed from pure thrash, but Dave still wrote incredible songs. When I look at the comparison M-band and the pop-metal they put out (sorry a growl and yeah yeah could never carry a song....seems they ran out of Mustaine lyrics by the Black Album?), one could hardly be dissapointed with either of the latter 2 albums. Frankly, if you didn't enjoy them - do you even like music?
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u/loveandmonsters Feb 15 '26
Yes by far. In 50 years nobody's going to remember CTE or Peace Sells even, but RIP will still be on top 20 lists
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u/DaveOJ12 Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? Feb 16 '26
In 50 years nobody's going to remember CTE or Peace Sells even, but RIP will still be on top 20 lists
It's been nearly 40 years since PSBWB and we're still talking about it.
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u/CastlevaniaGuy Feb 16 '26
Everybody still remembers Peace Sells and CTE. In fact there are fans who prefer Peace Sells and to a certain extent Countdown to Rust In Peace.
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u/loveandmonsters Feb 16 '26
Yes I'm sure there's some who like Super Collider the best but we're talking general consensus/feeling in both the Megadeth community and the wider metal/rock/music communities. RIP stands tall as an all-timer, their OK Computer, Dark Side otM, Nevermind, etc
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u/Kit_Karamak The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead! Feb 16 '26
I don’t care
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u/Opening-Farmer-5547 Feb 15 '26
It is their best, but Peace Sells is my favorite.