In a new interview with The Inquisitr, Megadeth bassist David Ellefson opens up about 35 years of Megadeth, the singularity that is the Big 4, seeing brothers-in-arms Slayer hang up the axe, and staying engaged as a fan of heavy metal. An excerpt follows:

Q: You’re headed out on some dates with Judas Priest and sharing the stage with KISS as well. What’s that like for you, as someone influenced by them?

David Ellefson: I think for Kiss, me and Dave grew up fans of theirs. We owned their records as young teenagers. When I see KISS, it brings it full circle. They were the four superheroes that were larger than life, and untouchable. Then, to be able to stand on the same stage as they do and play our show and have our fans look at the four guys in Megadeth as larger than life and untouchable is really a cool thing. It’s part of the family tree of rock n’ roll. We learned from KISS and now young bands learn from Megadeth, and it’s just a continuum of great rock n’ roll.

Q: While you’re trekking through Europe, Slayer will be on their farewell tour. Is there an element of introspection that triggers with seeing another member band of the proverbial Big Four hang up the axe?

Ellefson: Look, groups retire for all kinds of different reasons. Either they’ve just lost interest, their heart just isn’t into it anymore, maybe it’s a health issue, for who knows what reasons. And I don’t know why Slayer’s hanging it up; I’ve not talked to Tom or Kerry about it to know. It’s great to see them have this big last hurrah of success. I’d like to think they’re not gone forever, on some level, y’know what I mean? Many farewell tours have made for a hell of a reunion tour later."

Read the full interview at The Inquisitr.

Megadeth will commence their European tour on June 5th in Oslo, Norway at Spektrum. To view the complete routing, visit this location.