INTERVIEW: Bassist David Ellefson to release cover tunes that inspired him in his younger years
Photo: Thom Hazaert and David Ellefson are set to release No Cover under the Ellefson name. Photo courtesy of Melody Myers / Provided by press rep with permission.
David Ellefson, the hard-rocking bassist of Megadeth, has been staying busy with his creativity during these historic times. Although his main gig with ‘Deth hit some roadblocks in 2020 (their summer tour has been postponed to 2021), he has found renewed energy with his solo effort, simply titled Ellefson.
Last year the bassist released his much-anticipated memoir, More Life With Deth, a follow-up to his successful book from a few years ago. He co-wrote the new autobiography with Thom Hazaert, and the two made a positive connection, so much so that Hazaert is now vocalist and co-producer of Ellefson’s solo band. Together they released Sleeping Giants, and now they are gearing up for the Nov. 20 release of a covers album called No Cover. Spring 2021 promises their first full-length studio album of original material.
The cover album became an idea “early this year when things started shutting down in March,” Ellefson said in a recent phone interview. “By June, we knew tours were off the calendar. … And Thom and I formulated a plan.”
The idea of a covers album started to develop, and the two started thinking about possible tracks to record (their thinking would lead to 18 tunes). There are some precious gems on No Cover, including “Freewheel Burning” by Judas Priest, “Tear It Loose” by Twisted Sister, “Not Fragile” by Bachman-Turner Overdrive and “Sheer Heart Attack” by Queen.
“These songs, they kept us creatively charged,” the bassist said. “Some of the first ones we talked about were deep cuts from my childhood.”
One of those deep cuts: “Beth” by KISS, a band that heavily influenced Ellefson. The same influence was there for Hazaert, but the vocalist is actually 10 years younger than Ellefson. So they had different influences early on in their respective lives.
“There was all this great music we could go back to,” Ellefson said, adding that Def Leppard had to be represented with their track “Wasted.” In fact, the bassist gave the guys in Def Leppard some of the highest praise: “They really made what I do today possible. They were really doing it.”
When they gathered the 18 tunes, Ellefson had to brush up on some of the particulars of each classic. A few of them he had played before, just messing around on the bass, but others he had never brought to life on stage. For example, it took some getting used to “Sweet FA” by Sweet. He knew the arrangement of Queen’s “Sheer Heart Attack,” but he needed to take the track to a whole new level. And that meant he needed to master its sound.
No Cover comes at a strange time for Ellefson, but an exciting one. The world is still reeling with a deadly pandemic, and tours have mostly been canceled or postponed. But the actual recording of new albums can still take place, and Ellefson has been jumping from project to project: a new Megadeth album, this covers album and a new solo album of all original material.
“I’ve been super musically active this year,” he said. “It got me excited again on a whole other level. … But with this pandemic everything is subject to change. We have to be flexible, nimble and pivot quickly.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Ellefson, featuring David Ellefson and Thom Hazaert, will release No Cover Friday, Nov. 20 on Combat Records. Click here for more information.
