During a recent interview with Real Music With Gary Stuckey, ex-Megadeth bassist David Ellefson shared that “You find out who your friends are and you find out who your friends aren’t pretty fucking quick when the shit hits the fan.” It has been a little over a year since Ellefson was kicked out of Megadeth, and he was not happy with how that process went.
Since leaving the band, Ellefson has started a new super heavy project called DIETH. At one point during their conversation, the interviewer and Ellefson discuss the band’s new song “In The Hall Of The Hanging Serpents”; the interviewer also mentions that he noticed a message on the back of Ellefson’s bass (in the music video for “In The Hall Of The Hanging Serpents”). Said message bluntly states, “Fuck you.”
The interviewer than asks if this message is directed at the “serpents” that Ellefson and the band are talking about in this new song. Replying to this question, the ex-Megadeth bassist shares the following:
“It sure was. You find out who your friends are and you find out who your friends aren’t pretty fucking quick when the shit hits the fan. ‘Cause everybody wants to be around you when you’re picking up your Grammy.
“Look, life is – You’re never on top all the time. Your life ebbs and flows, your career ebbs and flows — all of that. I’ve been fortunate enough to be a career musician and I’ve had to go with the ebbs and flows of the good, the bad and the otherwise, sometimes from within, sometimes from without.”
David Ellefson went on to add:
“In the early ’90s, just when we thought everything was going awesome, Seattle music showed up. No one saw that coming. So there’s all kinds of internal and external forces at work, and I think the trick is to be galvanized to be able to withstand the storms and come out the other side and still keep rocking.”
What do you make of Ellefson’s comments? Back in June, Megadeth singer and guitarist Dave Mustaine spoke to David being let-go from the band – link to that story can be found below.
You can also find the whole conversation featuring Ellefson on Real Music With Gary Stuckey below.
‘It was hard on me letting him go’: Dave Mustaine Reflects On David Ellefson’s Exit From Megadeth
Listen: Ex-Megadeth Bassist David Ellefson Has Announced A New Band Called DIETH
David Ellefson: “I Was Just Kicked to the SIde of the Road” by Megadeth