I think it's fair to say that if "Risk" did split the fans, it probably split them about 75/25 in favour of loathing this album. Not being that emotionally attached to Megadeth (I do own all their albums but would not consider myself a die-hard fan), I'm not that concerned with sell-out claims if the music is still enjoyable. As a comparison, the Metallica "sell out" turned me off them as I thought "Load" and "Re-Load" were utterly hopeless albums.

As far as "Risk" goes, 'Insomnia' and 'Crush Em' are excellent rockers, industrial tinges evident for the first time. Although more mainstream, the melodic 'Breadline' is one of the more addictive tunes that the band have written, while the alternative, Eagles-inspired 'Ecstasy' and the edgy 'Wanderlust' are credits to their catalogue.

Less impressive are the dated 'I'll be There' and plain awful 'Seven'. Concept tunes, 'Time: The Beginning' and 'Time: The End' are interesting and 'The Doctor is Calling' is a passable rock tune. 'Prince of Darkness' is amusing metal parody but Mustaine does it well.

I like "Risk" but if you already have doubts then perhaps stay away.

Well im a huge megadeth fan and this is definetly diffrent than thier usual style but i still think its good. They wanted to try something diffrent for a change , diffrent style and i like it but not as much as thier old stuff. I loved cryptic writings though. When i first got this album i didnt know what to think , it definetly was not as good as thier past albums but after you listen to it awhile its pretty good- Some of these songs are catchy and good. Heres review of songs.
1.insomnia- 4 stars- good song/catchy
2.Prince of Darkness-2.5 stars
3.Enter the arena- not a song- intro to crush em
4.Crush Em-4 stars
5.Breadline- really good song/played on radio alot-requested/4.5 stars
6.The doctor is calling- 2 stars- this one sucks
7.I'll be There- 3 stars
8.Wanderlust- i like this song alot- like the slowness- its really diffrent than thier old stuff but its good diffrent and it starts slow then goes into loud chorus and you can hear the passion in his voice- sings this one good- 4.5 stars
9.Ecstacy-another slower song- pretty good - 4 stars
10.Seven-3.5 stars
11.Time: The Beginning- 4 stars
12.Time:The End - 3 stars
Overall average to good cd, for most megadeth fans they will either like it or hate it- i think its good but diffrent than thier regular stuff. I love megadeth and dave mustaine and i think he couldve done better on this one, they were taking a Risk putting this out. If you are a hardcore fan get this , you might like it.

Risk seems to be an album most Megadeth fans would like to forget. It showed the band finally breaking out of the heavy metal mold and into alternative rock territory (with a little industrial thrown in for good measure), which logically turned a lot of fans off (the album's decidedly low sales figures speak for themselves). One day, I was curious to see how bad/different the album really was, so I went ahead and borrowed it from a friend. Well, after giving it quite a few listens, I can say that it isn't as bad as people say it is. In fact, I can't really think of anything here that I would classify as "horrible." Unfortunately, with the exception of one song, I can't really think of anything that I would really classify as "great" or even "good" either.

Interestingly enough, the one song on here that I really liked also happens to be its most famous: the energetic sports anthem Crush'em. The song has a nice little groove, and even a bit of a Red Hot Chili Peppers flare at some parts. Mustaine also has a very low-key style of singing that makes the song all the more interesting and catchy.

Unfortunately, with the exception of Crush'em, there's nothing on Risk that really stands out from the rest of the crowd (both heavy metal and not). You would be shocked by how commercial a lot of these songs really sound. I'll Be There, for example, is a very Creed-like track while Breadline sounds almost like something from Godsmack. Again, Risk is not a heavy metal album. It's a basic, no-frills alternative album, fitting in perfectly with a lot of the modern alternative music MTV plays. Pretty much all that's missing from Megadeth are the Carson Daly haircuts.

The band does try to throw a little innovation into the album with some techno/industrial twinges. Unfortunately, they end up detracting from the songs rather than enhancing them. Insomnia, example, is a promising song that is ruined by messy synthesizers and annoying vocals.

This isn't a terrible album, and I'd say it does have the edge over a lot of the similar music MTV plays these days. It certainly isn't a great album, however, and is not recommended unless you're a fan of modern alternative music or are curious to see how Megadeth would sound playing such a style. Listen to some audio samples before you shell out $14 for it.

For those of you who gave this record low ratings, I understand your disappointment. Granted, this is not Megadeth's best record or even 2nd best. But, there is value to be found in it. Now, don't get me wrong. I WANT to hear more songs like 'Good Mourning Black Friday,' 'The Conjuring,' 'Set the World Afire,' 'Hangar 18,' and 'The Tornado of Souls.' But remember, Dave Mustaine is an artist. Ofcourse he is going to try some different things now and then. In all honesty, this record has some memorable tracks like 'Insomnia,' 'Wonderlust,' and 'Time.' If you only want the essential Megadeth, I suggest you stick with 'Peace Sells, But Who's Buying?,' 'Rust In Peace,' and 'The World Needs A Hero.' But if you are open to hearing the different sides of Dave Mustaine, then "Risk" should be in your collection. Keep in mind, Dave Mustaine DID NOT sell out. His latest record "The World Needs A Hero" shows that he still cares about what us heavy metal fans want.

This is a truly great CD. A lot of old Deth fans sound really disapointed, saying stuff like, "Megadeth sold out, just like Metallica, Megadeth is a soft pop band now, Megadeth blah blah blah..." But hell, look at what is popular these days. Korn, Limp Biskit, and a bunch of bands who are trying desperately to sound like other bands. I've been listening Megadeth since the beginning, and RISK is better than their past few albums, for sure. They have really developed as a metal band. Okay, so it's not bang-your-head-thrash-metal. So what? There are plenty of bands like that out there. And there are Megadeth's old CD's. This music is still Megadeth, and it's like nothing else. A lot of the people who have been dissing the album haven't really given it a chance. If you read more of these reviews that are posted, you'll see people saying, "At first I didn't like it, but after listening to it some more, I love it."

Megadeth still retains their heaviness here, but it is given in a different way than usual. If you love Megadeth, buy the album. If you're mad at the world and want to jump around the house and break stuff, go buy Fear Factory, Pantera, or Slayer or something.