The ups and downs of Metallica
In order to keep this short I will just hit the main points by year.
1985-I first heard Metallica when a local radio show called "Friday Night Metal" played "Fight fire with fire", "For whom the bell tolls" and "Fade to black" over the course of the summer. These songs got me interested.
1986-I bought Master of puppets shortly after it's release and was hooked. I bought Ride the lightning and Kill 'em all shortly after that.
1987-I wasn't too impressed with the $5.98 EP and my local Sound Waves also charged me $5.99 for it. Still I knew a new LP was coming eventually.
1988-I saw them at Van Halen's Monsters of rock and they were very good. I remember a few months later going to Sound Waves to get "And justice for all" on it's release date. I was highly disappointed with this album. It was still metal, but very dull and lacking the edge of the previous two albums.
1991-Since 1988 I drew away from Metallica some, but was hoping the new album would be good. I bought it the week it came out and was let down again. It was a rock album and although better than And justice for all, it wasn't a whole lot more satisfying to me.
1996-Load was released and I really can't recall what song I heard first, but it was enough to interest me. I bought this album probably several weeks after it was released. It was again a rock album like the black album, but I thought it was much tighter and enjoyed it more.
1997-Re-load was released and I bought it when it came out. I liked it as much as the previous album and played it fairly often.
After that I just didn't keep up with them much other than listening to past albums. The Garage Inc. cd came out in 1998, but that didn't interest me so I didn't hear it until years after it's release. I have still never heard the S&M thing and have no desire to.
2003-St. Anger was released and I bought it the day it was released. I thought it was an odd approach, but didn't instantly dislike it like so many other people did. However I have only listened to it once and that was over four years ago.
Now the new album will come out some time in the upcoming months. Speculations about what it will be like are starting to spring up. Honestly I have not thought about much about it because they have just become so distant to me and their prime was so long ago. I also know that since they are still high profile that I will get to hear some of the new stuff easily and can decide then if it's worth getting or not.
posted by Metal Mark at
12:09 AM
9 Comments:
St. Anger wasn't as bad as the decline-of-Western-civilization diatribes I read after its release, but its production in particular was bloody awful. If they have better production and even slightly better songs, this will be a solid album.
-- david
that's about right, except I just don't care about the Load albums, honestly. maybe time will change it, but nah...
I actually liked S&M. It surprised the hell out of me that I did.
Like you, I'm the rare person who liked the Load albums, but didn't care as much for the black album and And Justice for All. I couldn't even get through St Anger. However, I'm looking forward to the new album, because Rick Rubin has a knack for helping bands to find themselves and as much as I get annoyed with Metallica (Lars especially), I still think they have some good songs in them if they can find themselves instead of trying to be something else.
i'm not hardcore into Metallica, but I definitely appreciate their early work more than anything they did within the last 10 years or so.
David-I think the potential is still there, but I won't get my hopes up.
ray-I have always liked the Load albums.
fuzz-The concept just doesn't interest me.
bob-I really can't understand the people who love the black album, but don't like the load albums. They are along the same lines only the Load albums are far more interesting.
jay-I think back in 1986 that many of us thought they were going to be like Black Sabbath or Iron Maiden. That they would be the next band to rule metal. Unfortunately 1986 was peak and they have never come close to that level since then.
I followed pretty much the same road although it seems you enjoyed Load and Reload more than I did. St. Anger wasn't too bad and I really tried to like it, but the fact is I still pull out their old albums for some good music. Black album was way off for me but a good album I will listen to it but for a totally different reason I would listen to their other albums.
Okay Metal Mark...it's like this. As soon as I read that your first METALLICA album was 'Master', I knew your opinions may be a bit 'skewed'...but to hear you call 'The Black' album a rock album--a ROCK ALBUM? What are you smoking man? I want some(lmao)! This is DOOMY Metallica...somewhat influenced by the Seattle scene perhaps, but that album not only contains one of THE METAL ANTHEMS of all time (a double edged sword since jocks and geeks alike embraced The Big 'M' afterwards), but it has THE best production values of ANY METALLICA album (besides MY personal fave 'Kill 'Em All')--PERIOD. I mean, you can actually tell the band has a BASSIST on this album (a problem with the band since the death of Cliff Burton)! A shame that Jason Newstead had to 'dumb down' his bass playing from his FLOTSAM AND JETSAM days (the guy ripped on bass Steve Harris style)--but that's what happens when you become a 'hired gun' in a big name band and have to 'follow orders' (Newstead was treated like dirt in Metallica). But my next problem with your review...calling 'Load' a great record--better than 'And Justice...'???--man that MUST be some good shit your somokin'! Load was just that--a LOAD of CRAP. Commercialized monster truck ralley F.M. radio friendly METALLICA--as was 'Re-Load' (RIDICULOUS title--couldn't think of anything else guys?). And then came 'St. Anger' When I was sucked in by the super fast riffage and double bass drumming of the title track on the radio, I thought "This is it-they're back!" Then I listened to the whole thing. I scratched my head. Is this the SAME band I have known since the pimply faced kids on the back of 'Kill 'Em All'??? Can't be--these guys aren't even playing in KEY! It's like they are making the songs up as they go along...this is utter SHIT! And I know that Trujillo CAN play his bass! WTF? So METALLICA tried something new...and FAILED miserably. So I agree with you on 'St Anger'--In a way perhaps we were lucky? Because I feel 'Death Magnetic' is THE Metallica album we have all been waiting for since the dark, Sabbathy good 'Black' album...it is equal parts 'Black' and 'And Justice...' with some 'Puppets' in their for good measure. Thank you God--METALLICA is BACK. And that is coming from a guy who bought the FIRST album from Jonny Z.'s Rock & Roll Heaven after hearing the demo 'No Life 'Till Leather' w/Mustaine on guitar/vox (before Metallica stole Kirk Hammett from EXODUS and put poor old Dave on the bus home without so much as a warning)...so I know my shit. Load and Re-load have about what--4 good songs TOTAL? Gimme a break Metal Mark...besides--'Kille 'Em All' is and always will be THE GREATEST Metallica album ever made...it changed the face of metal and influenced TONS of thrash bands thereafter. I see you need to 'approve' all the comments before posting--let's hope your fair about it and don't delete ones that don't agree with your viewpoints like some of the other useless metal pages out there...
Metal Man-First I only have to approve comments because I get at least half a dozen spam comments every single day. Everything else gets posted so don't think that I edit views that don't agree with me. I even approve long-winded spastic rants.
Calling the black album a rock album is the truth. It's not doom, it's slowed down, but not heavier. They took the polish and the sugar coating to it and shined it up for the masses. Best production values of any Metallica album? No, but it's better than And justice for all which suffered greatly from a thin production.
Wait, you think Load was commercialized and the black album wasn't? You need to re-think that one because it's way off.
"'Kille 'Em All' is and always will be THE GREATEST Metallica album ever made"
Well, no. Lightning and Master are much better. No contest. Kill 'em all was good and influential, but fortunately they got a whole lot better over the next two albums.
Death Magnetic? I reviewed it on my blog shortly after came out. It's okay. An attempt to do And justice for all with better production. Not bad, but a little too late.
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