Angry Again
"Angry Again" is a 1993 heavy metal song by Megadeth, written by frontman Dave Mustaine. The song was written exclusively for inclusion in the 1993 satirical action film Last Action Hero, directed by John McTiernan and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. The track featured on the film's soundtrack. "Angry Again" never appeared on any of the band's official studio albums but was included on their 1995 EP, Hidden Treasures, and several later compilations. The song was a financial success; it charted well and was positively received by critics. It was nominated for "Best Metal Performance" at the 1993 Grammy Awards, which was the band's fourth consecutive nomination in the category. It became a fan favorite and continues to be played live on a semi-regular basis. Development Dave Mustaine wrote "Angry Again" in one day, penning the lyrics while half asleep, listening to the melody of "Should I Stay or Should I Go" by The Clash. The song was initially recorded during the Countdown to Extinction tour but wasn't actually featured on the album. When Mustaine wrote the song, he was angry with his band, promoters, and a lot of different parts of the organization, and had problems with drug use at the time. The culmination of his stress and problems inspired him to write the track, which was appropriately titled "Angry Again". According to Mustaine, he wrote the song during a spur of the moment: "I wrote 'Angry Again' right after I got out of a treatment center in Arizona. They had done one of those happy little 1990s interventions where everybody who's not loaded gets to point the finger at everyone who is. And the day I got out of rehab, they threw me into a studio in Phoenix where I wrote 'Angry Again' for the movie The Last Action Hero." "Angry Again" was written for inclusion in the film Last Action Hero, which was expected to be a blockbuster. The film had followed the success of Arnold Schwarzenegger's previous film, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, and was directed by John McTiernan, the filmmaker behind popular films like Predator, Die Hard, and The Hunt for Red October, and had an $85-million production budget. The movie, however, was viewed as a large financial disappointment in its theatrical release, earning only $137,298,489 worldwide, and was considered a flop. Though panned by several critics, Last Action Hero became a cult classic several years later. Despite the financial failure of the film itself, its soundtrack was very successful, featuring popular hits like "Big Gun" by AC/DC, which was a number one on Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks; "What the Hell Have I" by Alice in Chains; and songs by Anthrax, Aerosmith, Buckethead, Queensrÿche, and Def Leppard. "Big Gun" was also, however, nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Original Song, but lost to "Whoomp! (There It Is)" from Addams Family Values. "Angry Again" charted on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart as well, at number eighteen, and was the best-received song on the album in terms