I flip-flop between this one and RIP as my favorite Megadeth album. This album was a huge step forward from KIMB in just about every way. Great production, much improved songwriting, even better musicianship, this record has it all.

It's also a bit of a bummer that this lineup didn't stick around longer as it was probably the best one. Then again this is Megadeth and continuing lineup changes are just about the only constant with this band.

I also recently had the chance to finally listen to the remixed/remastered/bastardized version. I hadn't done so before because of some of the negative comments I'd heard about the newer versions. I must say that I too found the newer version to be totally inferior to the original in just about every way.

A true metal masterpiece and IMO the most complex 'Deth album yet. It was the lyrical content of Peace Sells that got me interested in writing lyrics in the first place. Mustaine has been the biggest influence on me both musically and lyrically and this album is bar none the cornerstone of Thrash IMO.

Peace Sells is a masterpiece and maybe my favorite Megadeth release (this or Rust In Peace). I always loved the lyrics to Peace Sells. Not a weak tune in the bunch. This is a must have for any metal fan.

The amount of growth from their debut to this album was jaw dropping. I was a huge Metallica fan but thanks to 'Peace Sells..." I started to prefer Megadeth.

The songs had hooks but where also heavy bruisers. The opening number 'Wake Up Dead' is one of my favorite opening tracks of any album I own. And to this day when I listen to this song I can still picture the video clearly in my mind.

Chris Poland most be the most underrated guitarist in metal, his leads and solos on this album are incredible and IMO would influence Dimebag's playing. Mustaine has grown as both as a songwriter and lyricist, as evident by the sarcasm of the title tracks lyrics.

'The Conjuring' has one of the coolest drum fills I had heard up to that point. I also felt that Megadeth's version of 'I Aint Superstitous' was paying homage more to the Jeff Beck version than to the original Howlin' Wolf version. Either way very cool cover tune and I was going to say that 'Rust In Peace' is my favorite Megadeth album but after listening to this CD today I may have to change my opinion.

I agree that Chris Poland is underrated but I've never liked his tone.

I also think Junior (David Ellefson) is the most underrated metal bassist IMHO.

It's really hard to come up with the appropriate words for Peace Sells, it's one of those records that was an instant classic. The growth of the band between KIMB and this one is pretty amazing, they were very tight.

Wake Up Dead is one of my favorite thrash songs of all-time, easy. I love the long instrumental sections. One kick ass memorable riff after another and another.

The Conjuring sounds like nobody else on the planet. Gar is just frigging MONSTROUS on this song, this rhythm section was one of the finest in metal. Poland really shines here. I actually like his guitar tone, because it's so different it stands out from Dave's work, it creates a great dynamic. The riff at the 2:56 mark is awesome.

Peace Sells is Peace Sells. Great bassline, great lyrics, a very cohesive tune.

Devil's Island is a personal favorite of mine. Just a truly GREAT thrash song, a killer example of mixing melody with the mayhem.

Good Mourning/Black Friday - DeathCult nailed it with this song, a classic Megadeth tune and also one of my favorites. Alot of the jazz influence can be heard in the intro section...then Dave unleashes one of his most memorable songs. This is the song I used to play over and over. The guitar solos in this song are OFF THE HOOK.

Bad Omen - One of the most impressive arrangments on the album. From a spooky intro, to mid-tempo groove then all out thrash. It's a crime this lineup didn't stay together longer.

I Ain't Superstitious...not as amusing as These Boots, but I liked it when I was 16. The stuff Poland is playing is awesome.

My Last Words is another great example of Dave mixing memorable melodies into his thrash stew, another Deth classic.

Peace Sells is definitely one of the best metal albums of the 80's, it hasn't aged a day. An absolute monster.

Ahh,Peace Sells.Does it get any better than this thrash masterpiece?I must say it doesnt.My Favorite Deth by far.As someone else already mentioned it was the soundtrack to my life in my teens.Lots of great dual harmonizing leads that you didnt hear alot back in 86.Its just a Great Album, Period.

Dave rocks cause he's got red hair !

I saw the video for Sweating Bullets a few weeks ago and my wife walking in, looked at Mustaine on the tv, and said, "He has very pretty hair."

I like Peace Sells. Far from my favorite Megdaeth, but it's a great thrash album.

And that's all I have to say about that.

So, So Good...So What! (Released November 1988)

By 1987 at the end of the Peace Sells tour, Megadeth had basically fallen apart at the seams with Dave's firing of both Chris Poland and Gar Samuelson due to drug use (though he himself had enough heroin in his veins at the time to kill a horse) among other things, but immediately hired Jeff Young and Chuck Behler (Poland and Samuelson's guitar and drum techs) to take their place. The result of rampant drug use and a shitstorm of drama and inner turmoil, So Far, So Good...So What! often gets overlooked and named one of Deth's lesser albums but I say it's just as good as the others. Gone are Poland and Samuelson's jazz influences, and the latters complex drum commentary and the head exploding mind boggling dual solos and leads traded between Mustaine and Poland, but instead of totally crashing and burning you get basically just a straight ahead thrash album in Mega Dave's image. Jeff Young however is quite adept at playing guitar, and when Dave actually lets him get in a solo he does quite well, theres just nothing too amazing about it. The same can be said of Chuck Behler, he plays his instrument well but he's really just there to back up the band as opposed to Samuelson who could really drive songs harder. Also, as a result of Dave's drug use you get a real dark emotional, yet pissed off thrash record thats pretty schizophrenic in some of it's lyrical jumps between songs, but its still a GREAT album and one of my personal favorite Deth albums. About the only complaint to really be given about it is the production isn't quite up to par with the drums sounding especially flat, but its easy enough to overlook in the face of some EXCELLENT tracks.

Starting off with the great instrumental Into The Lungs Of Hell Dave shows right off that they're back and they mean business. With a pretty strong very uptempo drum backing and some nice riffs thrown out by Young, Dave more or less uses it as a showcase to through out technical sounding solos on after another (sonically sounding like a precursor to Rust In Piece actually). This song also establishes a lot of power and a driving feeling continued throughout.

Set The World On Fire starts off with a great machine gun like riff and immediately continues on with the power and established by the albums opener. With an awesome steamhammer riff laid down that threatens to crush your head from all sides as well as some more absolutely kick ass solos kicked out. The lyrics on this track are great too actually describing Megadeth and a nuclear holocaust, this song was actually written earlier in their career but not recorded till this album, damn shame cause I would've liked to hear what the earlier line up would do with this. Another classic deth tune!

And then we come to whats the worst song on the album a cover of the Sex Pistols Anarchy In The U.K. (will bands please stop covering this smurf poo already?!). Despite my general distaste for the original song Deth actually does a pretty good job taking it and thrashing it up with some neat solos added in, but really its a take it or leave it deal.

Then comes a complete jump in pace as we go from that cover to one of the best songs on the album Mary Jane. Starting off with a creepy intro with an a demonic sounding voice. Jumping into a ass kicker of a riff and some great guitar work with that tech/classical tinge delivered on top of a pretty punchy drum beat (with some nice fills delivered actually, though the drum sound isn't the best in the world). Ellefson's bass sounds incredibly heavy like a bolt of lead on this song too. The main riff to the song has a crunching riff that just demands you headbang to it. This track also has a very dark feel to it which just inhances it further. Along with some great lyrics about a ghost, just goes to show this new line up of Megadudes were here to thrash ass. My favorite song from the album actually.

502 comes out at you like a freight train initially with a chugging riff that jumps from the first verse into an even harder hitting midsection which just drives you where you cant sit still during it. With a face melting solo tossed in, it just demands you mosh.

In My Darkest Hour is the albums epic. Starting off with a dark sounding, but quite melodic opening it quickly explodes into the albums main riff which is some great dark plodding thrash that matches the vocals perfectly, and slowly growz in intensity as the song goes along with the rhythm section thundering along and some great menacing sounding guitar fills over top of that riff. Kicking it into high gear towards the end another speedy solo (just further establishing Dave doesn't really need that second lead) and ending with the same dark plod it began with, just a complete classic song, you NEED to hear this one.

Liar is just a total teeth kicker and one of my favorite Deth songs. The complete polar opposite of In My Darkest Hour pretty much in every way possible from the hate filled lyrics (directed toward Poland over his stealing of equipment) to the fast paced crunch of the guitar. Theres also a real cool echo effect used on guitar during one of the verses that I really dig. Total fuckin thrash throughout really, GREAT track, just grab your buddy and start doin the blender.

Hook In Mouth is a great way to close the album. Lyrically a big middle finger to censorship and the hypocrisy of it all, its got one of the most awesome riffs on the album and a solo in the middle that sounds like its coming for you. A great way to end a great album

Notes:

In My Darkest Hour was written for Cliff Burton and Liar was written for Chris Poland.

Both Mary Jane and Anarchy In The U.K. Were released as singles with a video being made for the latter.

SO FAR, SO GOOD, SO WHAT was the first Deth album I bought my own copy of (as was the custom at the time, I had dubbed tapes of the other two from friends, as I was a broke teenager who could only afford so many cassettes)... I remember my buddy Glenn and I skipping out of school to go to the mall on our lunch break so we could both pick up the tape at Sam Goody (remember Sam Goody? Haha). We then returned to school with all the windows down abso-frickin-lutely BLASTING that album as we pulled back into the student parking lot. The album's abrasive, obnoxious nature pretty much matched our personalities at that time. Haha.

Anyway, I loved that album and still do, though a lot of Megadeth fans seem to rank it near the bottom of the pile. As DC mentioned, drug use was rampant in the band at this time so it's probably some sort of miracle that this album got made at all.

What I always found ironic about this short lived lineup is that when they appeared in the film "The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years," Megadeth came off as the most intelligent and 'together' band in the movie (when compared to the multitudes of clueless hair-metal fluffers that made up most of the rest of the cast, anyway)... but this version of Megadeth disintegrated soon after the film was released due to massive drug use.

Still a great record and one that continues to get mucho spins from me. My fave tracks are "Mary Jane," "Hook In Mouth" and "Liar."

Another great release from the Dave Mustaine Project. This one, while not as good as Peace Sells or the monster release to come next, a good album none the less. In My Darkest Hour is the stand out track on this one - hook in mouth is another great song.

The Sex Pistols cover - interesting Megadeth take, but the original is much better.

The only pre-Rust album I don't have yet.

So Far So Good... So What was a bit of a disappointment to me at the time after the awesome Peace Sells. It's certainly a more straightforward record musically than the previous disc and the musicianship of the replacement band members was definitely a step down.

With that being said, I've always loved the opening two tracks as well as In My Darkest Hour and Hook In Mouth. The rest of the album ranges from the pretty weak to decent. Thankfully better records were still to come.

At first I used to dismiss this album a lot (except for Hook In Mouth), but I have grown to like this album a lot and the only stinker is the Sex Pistols cover. I just wished Dave would have remembered his lyrics on Hook In Mouth when he remastered the Megadeth catalog, "a little man with a big eraser changing history."

Probably my favorite thrash album of all time, and I actually think that Jeff Young is a far better guitarist than Chris Poland was. "Set the World Afire" was the song that got me into Megadeth, and it's still a classic. I never understood why people don't like the cover of "Anarchy in the UK". I think it's pretty good.

10/10

So Far,So Good...So What is what I think of when someone says underrated.It doesnt usually get the kudos that other Deth albums get but it is far from a bad album.It does have a Darker feel to it than the others.My favorite track would be In My Darkest Hour.I could really relate to that song back in the day.

While this is near the bottom of the list of "deth albums for me it's still got some killer songs. And I totally agree with DC about 502, that riff is face melting and I thought I was the only one who knew that.

SFSGSW is another fantastic Megadeth release, though it does belie some of the inner turmoil the band was going through at the time. It's an almost schizophrenic record, but that adds even more character to the album.

Into The Lungs Of Hell/Set The World Afire is pretty much everything you had come to expect from Megadeth...top of the line technical thrash. The new band members fit into the grand scheme nicely, even though individually their contributions aren't as significant as the Poland/Samuelson lineup.

The Sex Pistols cover always seemed like "time filler" to me, since the album is a little short on songs anyway.

Mary Jane is my favorite song here, there really wasn't any other thrash bands attempting something like this at the time. The interesting free-tempo introduction sounds like a jazzy holdover from the previous lineup...before settling comfortably into a great mid-pace groove. The arrangement of this song is really off-kilter, but in a fantastically great kind of way. The turnaround section is great before the fast section kicks in (though I would love to have heard the previous lineup do this song).

502 is a mean little dittie, though I've never felt the sound effects mid-section of the car crash really fits...it's more distracting than anything else.

The final trio of songs are very impressive. Darkest Hour was a great crossover track and helped expose them to a larger audience. The ending salvo of Liar & Hook In Mouth is just sheer brutal fun!

There's nothing really wrong with this album, other than the impression that it was thrown together a little hastily. Being sandwiched between two classics hasn't helped it's stature over the years either.

Another solid release from the Megadeth boys but I have to agree that Jeff Young and Chuck Behler were nowhere the musicians that Poland and Gars where.

Listening to this album so many years later, it is surprising how well this album holds up, just one solid song after another. I have always loved 'In My Darkest Hour' and it was not til years later did I realize this was a tribute to Cliff Burton, which was surprising to me, since the lyrics seemed to be about a guy who feels he has nothing to live for thanks to some b!tchy woman. This album also serves as a time capsule when certain Senate housewives actually viewed rock music as a real threat, as Megadeth would discuss in their song 'Hook In Mouth'

The one misstep is the cover of the Sex Pistols 'Anarchy In the U. K.' , I am huge Sex Pistols fan and a fan of this song but it was not song that was meant to be a thrash metal anthem IMO, of course after hearing Motley Crue's version of this song, I had a change of heart and decided that in comparison the Megadeth was a work of true genius.

I've always liked the middle section of "502" where Alice Cooper's "Under My Wheels" plays in the background.

This is my favorite Megadeth release, bar none. I have so many great/bad memories swirling around this album. If I were to look at my entire music collection, I'd say this album and maybe GnR's Appetite are probably the most listened to in my entire collection. And yet I still can't recite the fast parts in 'Liar'.