Megadeth, So Far, So Good. . . So What!

By Christian Lipski

I never actually owned this album until this year, but I’ve listened to it quite a few times. In the summer of 1988 my brother and I had jobs at the same company, so he would come pick me up at my apartment in Lake Merritt (Oakland) and we’d carpool. Since it was his car, it was his music, which was fine, as I liked hearing what he was listening to. That summer it was usually So Far, So Good. . . So What! at peak volume as we smoked and drove to work.

Megadeth was one hundred times harder than what I was listening to at the time, which was mostly T. Rex (before I got into the glam metal), so it was a whole ‘nother world. Not a scary one, though—despite Megadeth’s volume and aggression, they’re tuneful and precise. And it’s a great feeling to be racing through the streets of Oakland with “Into The Lungs Of Hell” blasting from the speakers. My brother and I did some nice bonding on those drives, albeit wordlessly.

I have never had any idea what the songs were about, but I don’t need that in order to enjoy the album. It was all about the guitar and drums and attitude, which pretty much sums up my summer of 1988.