Megadeth have announced the long-awaited replacement for ousted bassist David Ellefson, with James LoMenzo returning on bass guitar for the band's upcoming US tour.
LoMenzo kept Megadeth's low end warm between 2006 and 2010, debuting on the Gears Of War single and tracking two albums, 2007's United Abominations, and its 2009 follow-up, Endgame. He formerly played in Black Label Society from 2004 to 2005.
There is no confirmation as to whether he is full-time replacement for Ellefson, who was fired in May, and whether he was tasked with rerecording the bass parts that Ellefson had already recorded for Megadeth's forthcoming studio album, The Sick, The Dying And The Dead – snippets of which have been teased by frontman/guitarist Dave Mustaine.
But LoMenzo most certainly is going to be tasked with “crushing North America“ – Mustaine's words, not ours – on the Metal Tour Of The Year, which sees the thrash titans headline a bill with Lamb Of God, Trivium and Hatebreed.
LoMenzo said he was “super stoked“ to be back in the fold, and saluted the Megadeth fans for being mega.
“There are no better fans than Megadeth fans,“ said LoMenzo in a statement. “I can’t wait to get out there and shred some Megadeth music with you all.”
The Metal Tour Of The Year kicks off on 20 August in Austin, Texas. See Megadeth for a full list of dates.
