MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine has issued the following update:

"I am so excited to know that in less than 48 hours I am going to be jamming with my band and getting ready to start the next world tour.

Even though this bit is really early, we are doing these four shows with SLAYER in the hopes that the rest of the world will sit up and take notice.

Well . . . they have.

I'm happy to say that we are starting to talk about upcoming shows with our old friends, and co-founders of the American metal scene and one of the other Four Horsemen, as well as another show or so with pals JUDAS PRIEST, and only Lucretia knows who will be on this year/next year's Gigantours.

I am going to ask James (LoMenzo - bass) and Chris (Broderick - guitar) to check in with you, as well as keeping up to speed with a possible chat in our fanclub coming up soon again. I love doing those with you guys.

I was talking with Chris Olson of Networth Coffee Brokers and they bought a new Dean Signature Dave Mustaine VMNT electric guitar with the new album cover painted on it, and they are going to have a contest for people who do something over there, and someone is gonna win this bad boy. Check out here and over there to find out when the contest is and what the rules and whatnot are.

I wonder if I could enter that one, because the album cover is going to be eerier than anything I have ever done."

A six-minute video featuring Megadeth producer Andy Sneap (NEVERMORE, ARCH ENEMY) talking about the band's new track 'Headcrusher' at his Backstage Recording Studio in Derbyshire, UK can be viewed below. The video was previously available only to MegaFanClub members and features excerpts from the song.

Says Sneap: "It's certainly old school Megadeth - that's what I like."

Says leader Dave Mustaine in an earlier online posting from today: "I am so stoked to see all of the positive comments about 'Headcrusher', since this was the last song that we wrote on the record. You see Shawn had this song and there were parts that I took out and wrote the rest of the song to, and there you have it. The concept is about the torture device, the most horrific allegedly, and the image is of a person subject to the nauseating results of a 'head crushing.' I noticed a few squeamish schoolgirls have commented on the artwork, and I can only shake my head and be grateful that we appeal to all kinds."

Megadeth's forthcoming album is set to be released in September. The follow-up to 2007's United Abominations will feature 12 songs including 'Headcrusher', 'Nothing Left To Lose', 'Bite The Hand That Feeds', '1'320', 'How The Story Ends', 'This Day We Fight' and 'Endgame'.