Artisan News Service recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine. In the interview Mustaine talks about the difference between the Big 4 and Mayhem Festival, and how he would like to do more big four shows. An excerpt from the interview is below:

Mustaine on doing more Big 4 shows: “Yeah, of course I’d be up to doing more Big 4 shows. I like to play. I think it’s cool to play with my old band, I think it’s great to get up and play at the end of the night and do the all-star jam- I’m kind of burned on doing ‘Am I Evil?’ every night cause there’s nothing challenging to it.”

Megadeth have officially announced the forthcoming release of their thirteenth album, titled TH1RT3EN. The album will be released November 1st, 2011 via Roadrunner Records in North America. TH1RT3EN will be released in Japan on October 26th with a bonus track (to be revealed). Release dates for other territories will be announced soon.

TH1RT3EN follows up 2009's Endgame, which was one of the most celebrated albums of the pioneering band's storied career. Anticipation is high and fans are anxious for a taste of new music from the legends, who have sold over 25 million albums globally throughout the course of their career, and they will get it imminently.

Dave Mustaine is incredibly proud of the music put forth on the new recording, saying, "This record is the culmination of my work over the 13 records I recorded. There are moments on TH1RT3EN that capture my every emotion, and other moments where I am releasing feelings I never knew existed! My proudest moments of my musical career are captured on TH1RT3EN.”

TH1RT3EN also marks the recorded return of bassist Dave Ellefson who was part of the band's classic lineup from 1983 to 2002. In a move that delighted the band's legion of diehards, Ellefson returned to performing live with Megadeth in early 2010 and has remained a fixture on the stage ever since. This is the first time Ellefson has played on a Megadeth record since 2002's Rude Awakening.

The title has several levels of meaning, which leader and guitar deity Dave Mustaine, who first picked up an axe at the age of 13, revealed in a recent chat with RollingStone.com, saying, "I was born on September 13th; this is my thirteenth record. It just seemed like it was the right thing to do to call it TH1RT3EN."

The band is spending its summer dominating and decimating the main stage of the fourth annual Rock Star Energy Drink Mayhem Festival alongside GODSMACK and DISTURBED. The band will cap off a busy and headline-making summer by performing as part of The Big Four once again, this time in New York at Yankee Stadium alongside METALLICA, SLAYER and ANTHRAX. The only previous Big Four show in the US took place in April in Southern California.

The band also recorded an original track, 'Never Dead', specifically for the NeverDead action-adventure video game franchise. 'Never Dead' will appear on TH1RT3EN. Additionally, 'Sudden Death' was recorded for Guitar Hero: Warriors Of Rock and will appear on the album.

Dave Mustaine recently told Artisan News that he was so busy completing TH1RT3EN that now that he's done he doesn't know what to do with himself. He also questions the album's November 1st release date. Check out the video report below:

TH1RT3EN was recorded at the band's own recording facility - Vic's Garage studio - in San Marcos, California with producer Johnny K (DISTURBED, 3 DOORS DOWN, FINGER ELEVEN).

At a one-off gig from the European Big 4 shows, (July 4th) Megadeth debuted their new track, 'Public Enemy No.1', live in Hamburg, Germany at the Docks. Watch fan-filmed footage of the new track below: