Megadeth have dropped the third single from their final studio album – and it’s an old-school, throwback thrash romp that serves as a celebration of the electric guitar.
Titled Let There Be Shred, the new track is the latest preview that Dave Mustaine and co have shared ahead of the arrival of their last-ever record, which is set to land in January.
The self-titled LP was announced in August this year. At the time, it was also confirmed that a global farewell tour would follow, after which Mustaine will draw the curtain on his 40-year-plus career with Megadeth.
But, as had already been made clear with previous singles I Don’t Care and Tipping Point, the band is going out with a bang.
Naturally, there’s already an air of festivity around Megadeth and what the record represents. But it’s being helped along by some truly whirlwind playing from Mustaine’s latest – and last – guitar foil, Teemu Mäntysaari.
If you name a song Let There Be Shred, you need to deliver the goods. Mäntysaari – making his Megadeth studio debut after replacing Kiko Loureiro – does just that, and then some.
Swapping his Ibanez for a custom Gibson Explorer that will no doubt set the signature guitar rumor mill into gear, the Finnish virtuoso plays like a man possessed, ripping through a tome of otherworldly lead lines, which culminate in a death-defying solo.
Mustaine has his own solo, too, in a form of quasi-guitar duel against his young protégé. It was all done by design, as Mustaine explains to Guitar World.
“Teemu is such an exceptional talent that he really lit a fire in me for my playing,” Mustaine says of Let There Be Shred in the upcoming issue of GW. “We were joking around and constantly talking about how we have to make this record absolutely shred and that we needed to put a lot of solos in it. I think we accomplished that.
“A pretty unique thing about Let There Be Shred – in terms of the guitar duels Teemu and I were doing – is that he would do all the shred stuff, and I’d do all the hippie stuff. I thought that was really fun, based on what the lyrics were about, because it was supposed to be a guitar challenge.”
Speaking of lyrics, they deserve some love, too: “Guitars are all screaming / They squeal with delight / Clawing fretboards away / At the speed of light.” Oh, and did we mention the music video has Dave Mustaine doing karate?
Mäntysaari is clearly relishing his painfully short period with Megadeth, and leaving his own mark on the band’s catalog with his contributions here. It’s a shame we’re only getting one Megadeth album with him, truth be told.
“This one was written with a big grin and a lot of love for loud amps, fast fingers, and all of you who live for that feeling,” he wrote in a comment below the music video. “If it made you smile, headbang, or air-shred even once, then mission accomplished. Thank you for letting us do what we love – now turn it up and let there be shred!”
At the time of Megadeth’s farewell announcement, Mustaine thanked fans and took the opportunity to look back on the impact he’s had on the wider thrash world.
“Don't be mad, don't be sad, be happy for us all, come celebrate with me these next few years,” he said. “We started a musical style, we started a revolution, we changed the guitar world and how it's played, and we changed the world.”
Megadeth will arrive via Mustaine’s Tradecraft imprint in partnership with BLKIIBLK on January 23, 2026. Visit Megadeth’s website to preorder.
Dave Mustaine's full interview with Guitar World will features the new issue, which will be available from Magazines Direct on December 30.
