Newly enlisted MEGADETH guitarist Chris Broderick (JAG PANZER) has issued the following update:

"Hey Everyone,

Just finishing up some loose ends before I head out. I have 20 songs down and there are a few more I will learn while on the road. I love playing the solos to 'Hanger 18' and 'Washington Is Next' and look forward to playing them on stage. I have been working on all the rhythms with Dave who has a very meticulous ear which is a big help in getting the rhythms exact. See you guys on the road."

Megadeth mainman Dave Mustaine and his cohorts - drummer Shawn Drover, bassist James Lomenzo and Broderick - have been rehearsing at Mustaine's home in California for their upcoming tour which will commence in Helsinki, Finland on February 4th. Mustaine spoke to BW&BK; last week about the setlist.

"These are all the songs we've got prepared, ready to go, approved by me, we've run over every note and we are ready to do them," he reveals and they are as follows: 'Sleepwalker', 'Take No Prisoners', 'Wake Up Dead', 'Skin 'O My Teeth', Washington Is Next', 'Kick The Chair', 'Darkest Hour', 'Hangar 18', 'Gears Of War', 'À Tout Le Monde (Set Me Free)', 'Tornado Of Souls', 'Ashes In Your Mouth', 'Never Walk Alone... A Call To Arms', 'Symphony Of Destruction', 'Trust', 'Peace Sells', 'Burnt Ice', 'Holy Wars', 'Mechanix' and 'She-Wolf'."

Mustaine continues: "And we have 'Blackmail The Universe', ' 'Set The World Afire', 'Devil's Island' and 'Reckoning Day' that Chris and I are still working on so that we can give it some variety. All those solos, we had Chris play by himself and we filmed it by himself and we had him play along with the record. We slowed everything down and we listened to every single solo. Now, certainly we know that there are a couple of solos where the notes are flying by so fast that it's almost impossible to nail every single note. It's like running down the beach after a friend and trying to land in every one of his footsteps he's got. You can get real close, but it's not going to be exactly perfect. I gotta tell ya man these songs are ready to go."