Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine has never hid how he feels about his former Metallica bandmates. While it seems like Mustaine and James Hetfield are on good terms these days, the topic comes up quite a bit. Though according to Mustaine, it's only because people are constantly asking him.
In an interview with Rock Antenne, Mustaine claims that constantly getting asked about Metallica in interviews gives the impression that he keeps bringing them up instead of just answering a question. Which is a fair assessment… though surely interviewers only ask Mustaine about Metallica because they know there's a good quote in there somewhere, right?
"Well, I don't really talk about my time with Metallica," said Mustaine as transcribed by Blabbermouth. "I don't bring it up. So if someone brings it up, I'll answer the question, but I usually don't bother doing that. 'Cause I think in a way that kind of gives the impression that I need to talk about them in order for me to feel good about myself. And I don't — I don't.
"I feel good about who I am just 'cause I feel good about who I am. It has nothing to do with bands that I've played in in the past. And if it was, I would say of the three bands that I was in that I enjoyed Panic and Megadeth more than I did in Metallica because we did argue a lot."
Mustaine later added that he's cool with his past and is trying to find the happier things in life.
"I loved playing with those guys, but it was meant for a season. And I look back on that time with a lot of fondness. I used to not, because I was still hurt from losing my job, but now I know, basically, that things happen for a reason, no matter what they are, and whether I was still in that group or not, that was outta my hands.
"And once I accept those things… Acceptance is the key to all of my problems today. If there's something happening in my life and I can't change it, and I spend my time wasting energy and effort to try and change something I cannot change, man, you're gonna go nuts. So I've chosen to find the happier things in life."
