Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine has shared a new preview of the band’s forthcoming 16th album, ‘The Sick, The Dying And The Dead’, in the form of a 12-second snippet of a track titled ‘Life In Hell’. 

The snippet came in a Cameo clip that Mustaine filmed for a fan named Cabe, who, per Mustaine himself, has become “the first person in the outside world – outside of the studio and the band and my family – that’s heard any music from the new record”. There was a clip of the new album’s title track that landed back in July, though one could argue that it didn’t count because that was an early Pro Tools draft of the song.

‘Life In Hell’ appears to be on the heavier side, with the short tease boasting a bold, energised riff and thrashy drum fill. The clip cuts off right as Mustaine’s vocal kicks in, however, so it’s unclear whether the longstanding vocalist’s chops hold up this time around; the rest of his bandmates – including the as-yet-unveiled replacement for ex-bassist David Ellefson – seem to be doing just fine.

Have a listen to the snippet of ‘Life In Hell’ below:

Though a concrete release date for ‘The Sick, The Dying And The Dead’ is yet to be locked in, the album is slated to land sometime in 2022. Mustaine has been teasing it for almost two years at this point; last June, he revealed the band had recorded 18 new songs for the follow-up to 2016’s ‘Dystopia’, while in April, he said he only had “one song left to sing”.

Ellefson’s replacement for the record is still unconfirmed at the time of writing, however the band reunited with former bassist James LoMenzo for their recent North American tour. On one date of the run, Mustaine launched into an anti-mask rant.

Earlier this month, Gibson released Mustaine’s debut signature model guitar, a Flying V EXP that comes in antique natural and silver metallic finishes. It sold out quickly after its launch, and was made available only by calling the Gibson Garage and placing an order directly. It’s reported, however, that the guitar is expected to receive a larger production run in February 2022.