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In-person interview with Chris Broderick of Megadeth

December 13th 2009, House Of Blues, Las Vegas NV

Andrew: On this tour you've been touring the smaller markets. How has it been in terms of the crowd response?
Chris: Its been great, you know. One of the places that I psyched is Billings, Montana where it was almost like going somewhere where they don't really get many live concerts, because they were fanatical, almost fanatical to a point about the show and it was awesome. But you get the feeling that they really don't get a lot of acts. There were other places like Florida where a lot of bands don't travel down there because its just not economical to bring your crew, to bring all the rigging and stuff like that to travel that far down there. So it was good to get to those places for people that have supported us for so long.

Andrew: This tour you've been playing some of the new songs, songs that you recorded yourself for the first time. Has it been easier than previous tours to play your own songs for a change?
Chris: Yes and no. I identify with them may be a little bit more because they are my compositions but at the same time I personally think they are pretty demanding, so its always like going into an Olympic contest and seeing if you can come out with the gold. I'll put it that way.

Andrew: What is your opinion on the support bands you've been taking out on this tour?
Chris: Honestly I really like Arcanium. They're a really cool bunch of people and I like the style of music that they are doing. Warbringer is fairly new on here. They definitely carry the thrash torch, so its pretty cool to hear that. Its so resurgent in such a younger band, you know. And of course we had Suicide Silence on, they are not playing tonight but I had a huge respect for them since they were doing their own kind of thing and definitely turning it up to 11. They are definitely heavy and the drummer was really good. So I have respect for them. Of course, Machine Head is just awesome. I was sad to see them go. They are a great live band.

Andrew: I don't think many people out there in the line know that Suicide Silence are not playing tonight! What happened there?
Chris: I don't really know. I don't know the full story, so I would rather not say because I could say something that is absolutely incorrect.

Andrew: Dave Mustaine keeps saying in his interviews that you are the best guitarist ever to have played in Megadeth. What is going through your mind when he says stuff like that?
Chris: Two things, one is that its so awesome that he would say something like that and the second thing is oh crap I have to live up to that. So its humbling and at the same time I guess its very encouraging in a sense. But ultimately its for you guys, the fans to decide and hopefully you feel the same!

Andrew: We've seen pictures of your new Endgame guitar. Whose idea was that?
Chris: It was mine. You know, I definitely wanted to do an Endgame guitar and first we thought of just putting the album cover on the guitar but it just didn't look right. I mean, from a distance you couldn't really tell what was going on with the guitar. So that [the new design] I thought was a much better image to use than the Endgame artwork. That guitar never goes out of tune. I play it for the whole show.

Andrew: How different will the tour with Slayer and Testament will be in terms of the set list and your preparation for it?
Chris: The big thing is going to be that the production level is going to go up. I just think that the set list will change a little bit. We're going to have alternating set lists. Whereas with this tour, we were alternating songs in, just trying them out to see what people like and what people didn't like and then when we found the set list that we have right now, we kind of just started sticking with it because it seemed to work really well. So the next tour will be an alternating A-B-C set list kind of thing.

Andrew: Does that also mean that you will be rotating headline spots for that tour?
Chris: I honestly don't know. I know it's a co-headlining tour, but I don't know who is going to be playing last spot on the bill. It may alternate, it may not. I don't know.

Andrew: You guys are signing CDs on this tour after shows. I believe it's the first time you are doing this with Megadeth. How does that feel?
Chris: It feels really good because now people are presenting me something to sign that I'm a part of, and that's huge for me. So I just appreciate it and all the fans that support it.

Andrew: How was the gig in India last year and how was your experience there?
Chris: Its good that every gig is always kind of different. India was so cool. For me it was one of the highlights just because I toured South America, I played Europe a number of times but India was just so different. I was kind of searching for that. I wanted that. When we got to the venue they had this, I don't even know what it would be called, it was like a traditional Indian dance show for us, as we walk in to the backstage area. Then they chopped the top off some fruit that had coconut juice or something like that. So they went over the top, and the fans were awesome and all of that. So that was great. The only problem with India and some places in South America or something like that, is that the backline gear is always usually a bit of a hassle because its not usually well maintained or something like that. I know that our techs are always having a nightmare trying to make sure that its up and running. I remember we were touring somewhere in South America and we were playing outside, and it was raining. We were walking up to the stage, which was a built stage. The power cable running to the stage was actually physically like they had spliced the wires, in the rain, with tape! They had them taped together in the rain and stuff and it was just like, really?? Are we going to play this?? There were some of the other things I can't mention, but it was definitely interesting when we played, and it was a good show. Nobody died of being shocked or anything like that!

Andrew: Couple of questions coming from the Megafanclub now. A guy who goes by the name Megajeff wants to ask, how do you maintain a healthy life-style and stay in shape when Megadeth is on the road, travelling to different countries, losing sleep and adjusting to foreign foods? While on the road do you keep a diet and work out schedule to keep in shape?
Chris: Well obviously right here I have my brownie health food right there (laughs) and you know I sit on my ass like 15 hours a day and do nothing. No, but I work out almost obsessively for two hours a day and even if there is no gym or anything like that, one of my favorite things to do is to go to a hotel stairwell and just run stairs. I bring cables with me to do hotel workouts or even on-the-bus workouts. So I do that and as far as eating healthy, I am getting there but I don't eat as well as I could.

Andrew: Of all the great Megadeth guitarists there have been [Jeff Young, Chris Poland, Marty Friedman, Al Pitrelli And Glenn Drover] which styles were the most challenging to learn?
Chris: I mean, they are all challenging in their own way. I would say the most foreign style was actually Poland because he has all these chromatic passing tones within pentatonics and that's always an area that I have kind of strayed away from, until now. His was challenging in the sense that it was most fundamentally different from what I do. Friedman, his stuff is challenging because he just has this corky vibe in his rhythm sense and stuff like that. Obviously he has got some technique behind his playing too. Drover has got some good technique. When I play 'Washington Is Next' I always make sure that I go over that solo a couple of times before we play it on stage. So that is another technical solo to do. So they are all different in their own way. Its been eye opening for me too [learning their styles] because it only makes me a better player to expand my palette by learning that stuff.

Andrew: Thanks a lot for your time, Chris. We hope that you bring out something special for the last show of this tour!
Chris: Alright! I will do my best.