Customer Reviews

So Far So Good So What

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is Megadeth's 3rd, and in my opinion most under appreciated album. As most Megadeth fans know, the album "Rust in Peace" was critiqued very positively for its complexity and composition. Why the heck did it take them that long!? They should have listened to "So Far SO Good So What!?"! First of all, and I may be biased, but this album is VERY complex coming from a guitar players point of view. Its an ALMOST perfect blend of speed, thrash, mainstream solo, kick em' in the face type of record. It REALLY gets you pumped. Especially "Into the lungs of hell", the first song, man its an awesome musical feat for Mustaine and former guitarist Jeff Young. The song gives me Goosebumps. And every song has SOME part in it that makes you want to either headbang, or go pick up a guitar and shred! So for a serious Mega fan, this is SO the album for you.

So Far, So Good, So What is my favourite of Megadeth's first three albums. A lot of people say that Peace Sells is the pinnacle of Megadeths career; that album has never really cut it for me.

It is on this album that Megadeth really begin to show promise which would eventually lead to them recording some classic albums such as Rust in Peace, Countdown to Extinction and Crytic Writings.

My favourite tracks on this particular album are Anarchy In The U.K. a brillant cover of the Sex Pistols classic,Mary Jane with great guitar work from Dave, In My Darkest Hour one of Megadeths best ever songs and Hook in Mouth a fantastic piece both lyrically and musically. The weak point on the album is probably the song 502, although it could be said it is far stronger than some earlier released material and some of the songs the band have done in recent years.

Whatever about the weak points this is a fine album and proves that there was life in Megadeth before Marty Friedman's arrival.

For awhile, this was my favorite Megadeth album, due in part to nostalgic reasons (it was my first Megadeth album). I love the way this one sounds, it's got great production, and some great songs. Jeff Young is overlooked as a great guitarist. I love everything about this one -- even the cover (front and back!). Recommended.

This is one great album by Megadeth, it opens with the evil firey instrumental "Into The Lungs Of Hell", since in hell there is no limit to the fire and brimstone you will see!! "Set The World Afire" is another great firey metal anthem, and since I'm Fire Godd I've often thought of setting a little fire to the world myself!!! For "In My Darkest Hour" you can feel Dave Mustaine's anguish in the singing, since in the darkness, there is no fire and flames, and man I'd be down too!!! The rest of the album has that evil brimstone feel to it as well, do not pass this album up, its a tribal fire right of passage!!!

A terrific Megadeth album, with Lungs to hell-one of the best intrumentals of all time great name for it too, then set the world afire isnt this a sweet song. Anarchy terrific freaky wity guitar and vocals, a terrific cover. Mary Jane-pretty cool tune really strange lyrics though. 502 this is a killer song, high fast and very raw. My darkest hour a megadeth classic and may be the best song on the album very deep, gloomy, sad, and dark. Liar-very fast and vicous tune i luv the chorus how he sings it at the end. Then Hook in Mouth-a great song to end the album indeed, this is pure metal at its finest. Fans on metal should add this too thr collection enjoy, this is one of the best.

This along with Peace Sells and Rust In Peace, this is one of the 3 must-haves out of Megadeth's career. This is Megadeth's most punk-like album. It is still thrash though just with a punk flavor. It also has the best Megadeth song of all time "Hook In Mouth". If they played Hook In Mouth instead of the Star-Spangled Banner in schools America would be a better country!

The most underrated thrash metal album of all time opens with a whirling, precipitous instrumental that truly creates the sensation of plummeting helplessly Into the Lungs of Hell. Set the World Afire, although not a particularly catchy tune, is a showcase of shredding, dissonant riffs. Anarchy in the U.S.A. exemplifies how Megadeth, bestowed with proficient musicians no matter what the line-up, eclipses the original anytime they cover a song. Mary Jane is a haunting track replete with melodrammatic emotion, a paragon of what a metal song should be. One of the week points of the album is the lackluster chorus of 502, while the rest of the song runs smoothly and evokes quite well a sense of speeding recklessly down the highway. Although the beginning of In My Darkest Hour is reminiscent of For Whom the Bell Tolls, the more dynamic and sincere Megadeth ballad will make you forget the Metallica hit. While seemingly incomplete, Liar is nevertheless a worthwhile listen and maliciously fun. Although not as impressive as So Far, So Good...So What!'s grandiose overture, the final track, Hook in Mouth, closes the album on a nevertheless high note by combining catchy lyrics with a spine-chilling guitar solo. Megadeth's third release is certainly not without its foibles. Flaws in production have left the drums in the lurch. Due to the departure of the skilled jazz musicians Chris Poland and Gar Samuelson, the groove that characterized the band's first two records has diminished. Yet, So Far... So Good... So What! is saturated with raw innovation and nimble guitar virtuosismo, which make it one of the best thrash albums of all time.

I heard this album the first time in 1988 when a friend let me borrow the tape during study hall. At the time my knowledge of heavy metal was extremely limited. The only two metal bands I listened to were Anthrax (whom I still enjoy) and Metallica (whom I wish would either break up or return to the underground - like that's gonna happen). I was very impressed by the bunker-buster guitar riffs, the jaw-dropping guitar solos, the out of nowhere tempo changes, and the evil lyrics.

Well, times have changed. In the 13 years since my tastes, especially in metal, have broadened and improved significantly. SFSGSW is still a technically impressive album. Even though the technicality is no match for a group like Dream Theater or Spiral Architect, you have to consider the album came out in 1988. Only a handful of bands like Metallica and Watchtower were putting out stuff with this degree of musicianship.

But unlike the albums from Dream Theater or Metallica, SFSGSW lacks a crucial ingredient: song quality. "Into the Lungs of Hell" had all the potential in the world to being a great instrumental, yet it seemed to end when the band - or rather Dave - got bored with it. Is it any wonder why you never hear this instrumental mentioned in the same sentence with Metallica's "Orion" or Edgar Winter's "Frankenstein"? "Anarchy in the U.K." is a tepid remake that should have been left alone. It is almost as bad as their 1986 version of "I Ain't Superstitious". "Mary Jane" and "In My Darkest Hour" are otherwise great songs that are marred by Dave's efforts to (GASP!) sing. Mustaine is a good lyricist, a great guitarist, and an exceptional composer; but he sure as heck ain't no singer. "502" is well... filler at best. "Hook and Mouth" has to be one of the worst sung songs ever in the vast realm of metal. However, the biggest affront of them all is "Liar". It is little more than a mean-spirited, hypocritical diatribe against former Megadave guitarist Chris Poland, who was reportedly fired for pawning the band's equipment in order to buy drugs. You'd have thought that being fired from Metallica for substance abuse reasons would have humbled Mustaine. Think again.

Don't get me wrong, there are some shining moments on SFSGSW. The guitar solos and riffs by Mustaine and Jeff Young kick major hindquarters. Chuck Behler lays down some solid drumming that compliments David Ellefson's flawless basslines. It is a shame to see that these gifted musicians were hampered by their immaturity and lack of chemistry. And there is one perfect song on the album: "Set the World Afire." It ranks right up there with Metallica's "Fight Fire With Fire" and Black Sabbath's "Electric Funeral" as great nuclear war anthems. If as much effort were placed into the rest of SFSGSW, we may have been left with another Reign in Blood, Among the Living, or maybe even another Master of Puppets in terms of greatness. But it's SFSGSW. And we're stuck with it.

Overall rating: 2.75 stars.

This is the 4th best Megadeth album just behind PSBWB, RIP, and CTE. This is the only Megadeth album without one weak trak. I love it an it anoys me to see an average customer rating of only 4 stars. This is a 5 star album buy it if you like Metal.

How come this album gets as much crap as it does? What's with you people giving this thing less than 5 stars? This album is a thrash landmark! It has really fast songs like "Into the Lungs of Hell" and "Set the World Afire." Then it also has the excellent songs like, "In My Darkest Hour," "Mary Jane," and "Hook In Mouth." Hell, all of the songs on this album are great! They are fast and aggressive! Jeff young is a highly underrated guitarist. He does some rip-roaring shredding in this album! Dave Mustaine sounds like he's angry in this album and that's also what makes it great. This is pure thrash agression and the most underrated thrash album of all time! As for you people who are giving this album [...], you are missing out on a masterpiece of work. Get this album now! You won't be disappointed!