Pat Douglas of GreatFallsTribune.com recently conducted an interview with Megadeth bassist David Ellefson. A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On Megadeth‘s 10th Grammy nomination, this time for “best hard rock/metal performance” for the single, Public Enemy No. 1 (the award eventually went to Foo Fighters):

Ellefson: “I know a lot of metal fans wanted Megadeth to win because we’re the clear metal band. It would be nice to win, I’m not gonna lie to you. To be honest with you, the fact that you’re nominated is the thing. You’re invited back to the party. It’s a cool thing. Metal is a very anti-establishment movement and the fact that the establishment even welcomes us in, to me, that speaks volumes about how undeniable our music and especially metal music, and our fans, are.”

On mending relationships with Metallica and Slayer and taking part in the “Big Four” concerts:

Ellefson: “It was almost divine intervention of sorts. Not only did Dave[Mustaine, Megadeth mainman] and I get to make peace… but Dave got to make peace with the Slayer camp and the Metallica camp and on every level. It’s different now because we’re not really competitors. We’ve all done our own thing and we’ve all made our mark in the world. We’ve all made it to the top of the hill and seen what it looks like on the other side, so now we can come together more as brothers in arms and fight for the same cause rather than fight against each other.”

On how he and Mustaine have renewed their interest in Christianity in recent years (Mustaine has openly discussed being a devout born-again Christian and Ellefson is studying for the ministry through the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod):

Ellefson: “It’s pretty funny, isn’t it? When you fight (God), you have struggles and it’s an uphill battle. When you surrender to it and you embrace it, that becomes like a jet engine that rockets you forward with not just great success but ease. All of a sudden, you’re not operating from a place of always being so competitive and fear-based. You start to go downstream instead of always paddling upstream. When you start running your business from a place of fear, you essentially work against yourself.”

On whether Megadeth will incorporate their Christianity into their songwriting:

Ellefson: “You can be a person who has faith and be principled and have an obedience to your creator and not have everything you say or do be a praise and worship song. God did put a lot in this planet. There’s a lot in this world to write songs about and that’s what we do. That’s the misconception that if you’re a metal guy, you only sing about the devil and if you’re a church guy you only sing about the Lord. What a lame stereotype that is. The only reason we talk about (our faith) is because people ask us about it. The MEGADETH tour isn’t some crusade. We’re not on some mission.”

Read the entire interview from GreatFallsTribune.com.

Gigantour — the critically acclaimed package festival founded in 2005 by Megadeth — is making its highly anticipated return for the first time since 2008. The multi-artist bill — with metal heavyweights Motorhead, Volbeat and Lacuna Coil all personally picked by Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine — kicked off on January 26 in Camden, New Jersey. Before wrapping February 28 in Denver, Colorado, the tour will make stops all across the U.S. and Canada, including a February 24 show in Los Angeles.

Gigantour 2012 tour dates:

Sat 2/18 Calgary, AB Big 4 Building
Mon 2/20 Abbotsford, BC Abbotsford Ent & Sports Centre
Tue 2/21 Kent, WA Showare Center
Thu 2/23 San Jose, CA Events Center
Fri 2/24 Universal City, CA Gibson Amphitheatre
Sat 2/25 Phoenix, AZ Comerica Theatre
Sun 2/26 Albuquerque, NM Tingley Coliseum
Tue 2/28 Denver, CO The Fillmore Auditorium
Mar 01 Dallas, TX The Palladium
Mar 02 Houston, TX Verizon Wireless Theater
Mar 03 Austin, TX ACL Live at The Moody Theater