Anthony Morgan at Metal Forces recently caught up with MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson. An excerpt from the story is available below:

Californian thrash metal outfit Megadeth concluded an inaugural round of international tour dates in support of Th1rt3en (November 2011) on December 1st, 2011 in Heredia, Costa Rica. Following this, bassist David Ellefson browsed through a whole folder of lyrics and ideas that he had compiled. Much of these lyrics and ideas had been compiled in the last several years, lyrics and ideas David wished to place somewhere. This would result in the genesis of Unsung: Words And Images, a book featuring hitherto unpublished lyrics and images.

“The idea of obviously writing music around them and going into the studio seemed a bit daunting, especially at the beginning of a whole world tour for Megadeth,” David admits, co-founder of the group. “A friend of mine – Brent Nelson – had written a poetry book called Out Of Darkness and he had done a similar type of thing, putting some really dark, intriguing images next to poetry. That’s what really spawned the idea for this book, so Brent actually helped me… I was actually working with Brent on co-writing a couple of pieces anyway, so the idea came together really quickly. I wanted to create this book using the photographs as a way to add depth and thought-provoking impact to the lyric, much in the same way music would do to the words if they were in a song. We got our editor Libby (Calaby) out of London and Raffaella, we used her photo images out of Italy. Very quickly everybody came onboard, and we hussled. Within the course of a couple of months we were able to compile all of the lyrics, find the appropriate images to go with it, and the book was born and done.”

These lyrics were never shown to Dave Mustaine and the rest of the Megadeth members for potential use in Megadeth compositions. “I write all the time, and inspiration hits at the dirtiest times,” the bassist reveals. “Obviously we went through a season last year doing writing for Th1rt3en, and I find that when I go through these creative seasons I produce a lot of material. Not everything is gonna be right for any particular use. In fact, I don’t usually write specifically for anything. I find that usually if I just let my ideas flow, that’s really just the best way to create without contriving. A lot of these lyrics were ideas that had really just flowed through me, and I saved them. Obviously pieces of things have gotten used in various settings and situations, but these are lyrics that for whatever reason I didn’t feel compelled to put any music around. Using photos instead of music to be sort of the background to the narrative of the lyric I found really intriguing, and a fun, new, and innovative way to create.”

Go to this location for the complete story.

Unsung is available now via Blurb.com in deluxe hardcover and softcover editions, as well as a downloadable version through the iBooks app for iPad and iPhone.

Dark, light, inquisitive and inspirational, Unsung expresses a uniquely diverse side to David’s creativity. He enthuses that, “as a musician, my past lyrical work has always been set to music. But, with this new book I set out to explore a new medium using both words and images as the canvas for an exciting new mosaic of storytelling.”

Unsung captures the latest chapter in the life of one of metal music’s most iconic and influential artists, as he explores a new medium for his lyrical creativity. The book is also David’s first venture into the realm of self-publishing and as a result, he encourages the reader to utilize his new and original lyrics under license from him for their own songs. In this manner, song-writers of all levels can actually become a co-writer with David.

As bassist for the rock group Megadeth, David has been a regular contributor to one of metal music’s most enduring legacies. Followers of David’s work will be delighted that Unsung proves to be yet another unique narrative from a man who is known for creating fresh and innovative ways to inspire and connect with his fans.