MEGADETH drummer Shawn Drover has issued the following update:

"Well, last night['s 'American Carnage' concert at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, California with SLAYER and TESTAMENT] was fun. Lars [Ulrich; METALLICA drummer] asked us to play 'My Last Words' two minutes before we went onstage and being as we have never even rehearsed that tune with this lineup and MEGADETH hasn't played that tune since 2005 in the land of Oz, I think we pulled it off rather well. Don't worry, though, next time METALLICA comes to where I live, I will return the favor and ask them DURING their show to play the most obscure tune they haven't played in years!! Baaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaa. [Big Grin]

"All kidding aside, that was actually really fun to just wing it and enjoy the moment. I hope the crowd did enjoy it as well.

"As you would fathom for San Fran, lots of musicians backstage and mingling to be had — all fun stuff and a good night was had by all."

Mustaine dedicated "My Last Words" to Ulrich "in the spirit of the 'Big Four' coming to America," leading to speculation that a tour featuring METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX — the so-called "Big Four" of 198s thrash metal — will finally make its way to these shores in the not-too-distant future. However, BLABBERMOUTH.NET understands that Lars and METALLICA guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield were watching the show from the side of the stage and Dave was merely playfully pushing the issue with the crowd — he was not making any sort of announcement regarding the aforementioned tour coming to the States.

Fan-filmed video footage of the "My Last Words" performance can be viewed above.

As previously reported, Ulrich has told England's Classic Rock magazine that more "Big Four" shows, featuring METALLICA along with SLAYER, ANTHRAX and MEGADETH, could happen in 2011 or 2012. Ulrich said, "The vibe on this thing is so big, we'd be stupid to ignore it. You know on your iPhone, you can move the weather maps up and down? Well, the 'Big Four' is quickly moving up to the top in terms of potential occurrences for the next couple of years."

The "Big Four" package played festivals across Europe throughout the early part of summer, with the four veteran speed metal bands sharing the stage together for the first time ever. Although there were no U.S. dates, one of the shows in Bulgaria was beamed via satellite to U.S. movie theatres.

Although Ulrich said that he's looking forward to taking "at least six months off" once METALLICA completes its current tour this fall, he added, "I would champion trying to do (the 'Big Four' tour) in 2011 or 2012, obviously in England and the United States. It's just a matter of logistics."

Artisan News Service recently spoke to former PANTERA and current HELLYEAH drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott about the upcoming deluxe 20th-anniversary edition of PANTERA's classic major-label debut, "Cowboys From Hell". Watch the chat below.

A previously unreleased PANTERA track, "The Will to Survive", can now be streamed on the band's official Facebook page (at "music" tab). Also available is a custom "Cowboys From Hell" 20th-anniversary edition listening party featuring the following songs:

* Cowboys From Hell (Disc 1)
* Psycho Holiday (Disc 1)
* The Art Of Shredding (Disc 1)
* Cemetery Gates (Live) [Disc 2]
* Primal Concrete Sledge (Live) [Disc 2]
* Heresy (Live) [Disc 2]
* Shattered (Demo) [Disc 3]
* Message In Blood (Demo) [Disc 3]
* Domination (Demo) [Disc 3]

Check it out:

* Quicktime
* Windows Media Audio

To celebrate the 20-year anniversary of PANTERA's classic major-label debut, "Cowboys From Hell", the band's official webstore is offering a limited-edition exclusive box set. This box set contains merchandise only available in the band's official webstore.

Box set includes: