Risk

About

"Risk" is the eighth studio album by American heavy metal band Megadeth. It was released on August 31, 1999, by Capitol Record. The album is the band's last release on the label. It is the first Megadeth album since 1990 to feature a lineup change. It marks the studio debut of drummer Jimmy DeGrasso and the final appearance of longtime guitarist Marty Friedman, who left the band the following year. The album was intended to achieve a breakthrough on alternative rock radio. It received a mixed response from critics and fans due to its significant departure from the band's traditional thrash metal sound. This reaction led the band to return to a heavier style on their next album "The World Needs a Hero". Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine later attributed the album's commercial performance to its release under the "Megadeth" name. He stated that "if anybody else's name was on 'Risk', it would have sold". The album debuted at number 16 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 74,000 copies in its first week. Like other Megadeth studio albums released by Capitol, "Risk" was remixed and remastered in 2004, with several bonus tracks added and a different cover artwork. Risk followed the band's 1997 album "Cryptic Writings", which had sold 850,000 copies according to Nielsen SoundScan and received praise from rock radio programmer. Capitol Records vice president of marketing Rob Gordon expressed optimism that the new album would generate multiple tracks for rock radio, similar to the previous release. The album's title originated from a comment by Dave Mustaine's former Metallica bandmate Lars Ulrich, who suggested that Mustaine take more risks with his music. Mustaine has also cited Marty Friedman's interest in exploring pop sensibilities as an influence. In contrast, drummer Jimmy DeGrasso expressed a desire to record a heavier album. Bassist David Ellefson recalled that the band's manager, Bud Prager, encouraged the group to create something that would stand out from their contemporarie. The resulting experimentation led to divided opinion, with some listeners and critics disapproving of the new sound and image while others were more receptive to the change. Megadeth chose to work again with producer Dann Huff in Nashville, having been satisfied with the results on "Cryptic Writings". Songwriting began immediately after the tour supporting that album and took five to six week. Recording sessions started in January 1999 and lasted four month. Mixing took place from April 23 to May 21 at Masterfonics in Nashville, Tennessee. The original American edition was released as an enhanced CD containing a brief documentary on the album's making. Some European editions included a bonus "No Risk Disk" with one track from each of the band's previous six major-label album. The Japanese edition featured a bonus track, an instrumental cover of the theme from the video game "Duke Nukem 3D". The 2004 remixed and remastered version added three bonus tracks consisting of alternate mixes and featured new cover artwork depicting a scene from the music video for "Insomnia". Vic Rattlehead appears on the mousetrap in the remastered cover, unlike the original. Several tracks have slightly altered durations on the remaster, most notably "I'll Be There", which is extended by 53 second. "Risk" is the second Megadeth album, after "Cryptic Writings", not to feature the band's classic logo on the front cover, although the logo appears on the remastered edition. Three singles were released from the album: "Crush 'Em", "Breadline", and "Insomnia". All three were accompanied by music video. "Crush 'Em" was also featured in the 1999 film "Universal Soldier: The Return". Dave Mustaine originally wrote the song with the intention of it becoming a sports anthem for arena. It has since been played during NHL games and professional wrestling event. Critics offered varied opinions on individual track. Jeff Treppel described the opening track "Insomnia" as one of the best Megadeth songs of the past 15 year, noting its swirling Middle Eastern string, crunching guitar riff, and Mustaine's intense lyric. He characterized "Ecstasy" as a grunge ballad that sounded like a reject from "Cryptic Writings" and had mixed feelings about "Seven", describing "The Doctor Is Calling" as aiming for creepy but landing on cheesy. Jimmy DeGrasso considered "The Doctor Is Calling" and "Prince of Darkness" to be heavy songs with dark lyric. David Ellefson called "Breadline" and "Wanderlust" melodic with modern-sounding groove. Neil Arnold from Metal Forces described "Breadline" as one of the band's most melodic and commercial track, while naming "Wanderlust" and "I'll Be There" as two of their most underrated song. All three singles charted on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart, with "Crush 'Em" and "Breadline" reaching the top 10. "Breadline" was also released as its own EP in Japan, including multiple versions of the track and remixes of other songs from "Risk" and the band's catalog. After leaving Megadeth, Marty Friedman covered "Breadline" on his solo album "Future Addict". The album received a mixed response from music critic. AllMusic reviewer Steve Huey gave a sympathetic review to the 2004 remixed and remastered edition, noting that it had aged gracefully compared to Metallica's "Load" and "ReLoad", though he felt the band had lost some of its edge. Entertainment Weekly's Laura Morgan compared "Insomnia" to the Broken-era sound of Nine Inch Nails and awarded the album a B minu, while criticizing Mustaine's vocal. The New Rolling Stone Album Guide gave it three stars out of five, stating that the album had its moment. Sputnikmusic's Mike Stagno found the first few tracks to have a harder edge and described some softer tracks as standout, though he noted that some emotion came across as cheesy. Amy Sciarretto of CMJ New Music Report viewed the album as a logical stylistic progression from "Cryptic Writings", with Mustaine's biting lyrics and power riffs toned down as the band moved away from thrash metal. Steven Wells of NME gave the album a 0 out of 10, calling it corporate mock rock and comparing it to the retro stylings of Travis and Kula Shaker. In a retrospective review, Jeff Treppel of Decibel called "Risk" Megadeth's most adventurous record and described it as a decent hard rock album that should not have been released under the Megadeth name. Dave Mustaine has described "Risk" as a great record that should not have carried the band's name, repeating that it would have sold better under a different moniker. He has also called "Crush 'Em" one of the dumbest songs the band ever recorded. In a 2018 interview, Mustaine explained that the album resulted from him accommodating Marty Friedman's desire for a more alternative sound, which led the band to slow down progressively. He reiterated that the album would have performed well under another name but that fans expected a Megadeth record. Mustaine stated he does not regret making the album or "Crush 'Em", as he had wanted to keep Friedman and Nick Menza in the band. He has also praised "Wanderlust" as one of the best songs he has written, noting its country rock influence. .

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