MEGADETH have announced the end is near — with a final album and global farewell tour planned for 2026.
The iconic Thrashers formally revealed their retirement plans on August 14th, with founding vocalist-guitarist Dave Mustaine sending out a message to fans that he’s ready to hang up MEGADETH after more than 40 years on the frontlines of Metal.
“There’s so many musicians that have come to the end of their career, whether accidental or intentional. Most of them don’t get to go out on their own terms on top, and that’s where I’m at in my life right now,” Mustaine said in a statement. “I have traveled the world and have made millions upon millions of fans and the hardest part of all of this is saying goodbye to them.”
While details are developing, Mustaine has added that 2026 will find the long-running band delivering their seventeenth studio full-length, and that they’ll be undertaking one last, multi-year world tour to cap their epic career.
“We can’t wait for you to hear this album and see us on tour. If there was ever a perfect time for us to put out a new album, it’s now. If there was ever a perfect time to tour the world, it’s now. This is also a perfect time for us to tell you that it’s our last studio album. We’ve made a lot of friends over the years and I hope to see all of you on our global farewell tour.”
He continued: “Don’t be mad, don’t be sad, be happy for us all, come celebrate with me these next few years. We have done something together that’s truly wonderful and will probably never happen again. We started a musical style, we started a revolution, we changed the guitar world and how it’s played, and we changed the world. The bands I played in have influenced the world. I love you all for it. Thank you for everything.”
Details are still forthcoming, but Mustaine’s personal announcement arrived in conjunction with a teaser vid for the LP and tour starring the band’s beloved mascot, Vic Rattlehead, who raised his voice to note that MEGADETH’s reign will be “ending in fire”. Rattlehead also suggested that the global farewell tour begins “when the New Year rises.”
“Stay loud, stay tuned and meet me on the frontlines,” the animated skeleton added.
Outside of the fact that it’ll drop sometime in 2026, not too much else has been confirmed about the next MEGADETH album. That said, they did unveil the cover art to the as-yet untitled LP: a stark illustration of a sartorially blazing Rattlehead.
Mustaine is also expected to deliver a new memoir sometime next year, though the full details on the book have likewise yet to be delivered.
