Dave Mustaine for riffs by far. I seriously don't understand how anyone could think otherwise. If you listen and learn James Hetfields riffs, they are all basically the same. Powerchord-chug E string-Powerchord-chug E string-Powerchord-chug E string. And some riffs all he does is chug the E string. Not saying it doesn't sound awesome, but it isn't very creative at all.
Dave Mustaine's riffs I've noticed have a lot of bass runs, like look at Tornado of Souls, those riffs just annihilate everything James Hetfield wrote, hands down.
Dave Mustaine's ability to sing and play far surpasses James Hetfield. If you look on Kill Em' All, you will see James Hetfield changes the riff to something more simple when he is about to sing because he can't sing and play complex rhythms, he does this in nearly every song on that album. Now look at Dave Mustaine's riffs. In Tornado of Souls, he manages to sing and play the really hard riff (2nd one) for like 4 bars or something, which is like nearly impossible, even if you know the riff by heart. Same goes for Never Walk Alone.. Holy Wars..etc.
As far as vocals go, James Hetfield has a better voice, but I prefer Dave Mustaines. It's kinda like how Yngwie Malmsteen's technical skill flat out destroys Hendrix and Dimebag, but people still prefer them. I don't know what it is, it must be that snarling or something. The chorus in United Abominations just sounds so amazing when he is singing and playing...just so awesome.
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