Metallica - Death Magnetic: Kirk Hammett Has His Revenge
September 11th, 2008 | 9:57 am est |
Call Death Magnetic Kirk Hammett’s revenge. Famously browbeaten into accepting Lars Ulrich and producer Bob Rock’s dictum that guitar solos were “dated” and thereby verboten for 2003’s St. Anger — a fraught recording chronicled on the 2004 documentary Some Kind of Monster — Metallica’s lead guitarist dominates this 2008 sequel, playing with a euphoric fury not heard in years, if not decades. This aesthetic shift isn’t because Hammett suddenly rules the band: powerless to add solos to St. Anger, he couldn’t reinstate them without the blessing of Ulrich and James Hetfield, the politburo of Metallica. The duo suffered some combination of shame and humility in the wake of the muddled St. Anger and Monster, convincing these two unmovable forces to change direction. They ditched longtime producer Rock — who helmed every album since 1991’s breakthrough blockbuster Metallica — in favor of Rick Rubin, patron saint of all veteran rockers looking to reconnect with their early spark. Rubin may be the go-to producer for wayward superstars, but as the producer of Slayer, he’s also rooted in thrash, so he understands the core of Metallica’s greatness and gently steers them back to basics on Death Magnetic.
Of course, Metallica’s basics are pretty complex: intertwined guitar riffs, frenetic solos and thunderous double-bass drums, stitched together as intricate seven-minute suites. Metallica slowly weaned themselves away from labyrinthine metal during the ’90s, tempering their intensity, straightening out riffs, and spending nearly as much time exploring detours as driving the main road, all the while losing sight of their identity. This culminated in the confused St. Anger, a transparent and botched attempt at returning to their roots, crippled by the chaos surrounding the departure of bassist Jason Newsted. With all their problems sorted out in public — including replacing Newsted with Robert Trujillo, who acquiesces to the Metallica custom of being buried far, far in the mix — the group embraces every gnarled, ugly thing they eschewed in the years since Metallica. Death Magnetic bounces the band back to the days before Bob Rock, roughly sounding as if it could come after And Justice for All. Such a deliberate revival of the glory days can be tricky, as it could make a group seem stuck in the past — or, just as badly, they can get essential elements wrong — but Death Magnetic is a resounding success because the band hunker down and embrace their core strengths, recognizing that their greatest asset is that nobody else makes noise the same way as they do.
That’s the pleasure of Death Magnetic: hearing Metallica sound like Metallica again. Individual songs and, especially, Hetfield’s lyrics — less the confessional ballast of St. Anger, more a traditional blend of angst and terror — are secondary to how the band sounds, how they spit, snarl and surge, how they seem alive. Metallica isn’t replicating moves they made in the ’80s, they’re reinvigorated by the spirit of their early years, adding shading they learned in the ’90s, whether it’s the symphonic tension of “The Unforgiven III” or threading curdled blues licks through the thrash. Listening to the band play, it’s hard not to thrill at Metallica’s mastery of aggression and escalation. There is no denying that the band is older and settled, no longer fueled by the hunger and testosterone that made their ’80s albums so gripping, but on Death Magnetic older doesn’t mean less potent. Metallica still is vitally violent and on this terrific album — a de facto comeback, even if they never have really gone away — they’re finally acting like they enjoy being a great rock band.
It’s definitely nice to hear Metallica sounding like Metallica again, and getting rid of Rob Rock was the best thing they could have done. Does anyone remember ‘A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica’? It amazes me they worked with him for so long. Metal is back in, of course, with all the metalcore, screamo, and thrash bands coming out these days and Metallica is making yet another great business move (I think they’ve perfected the business of Metallica in the last 18 years more than anything). Although I like this album a great deal, I think it does replicate the past a bit too much for my taste. That’s one of the first thoughts that came to mind upon listening to it. The chorus to ‘The Day that Never Comes’ is SO close to the ‘Fade to Black’ chorus with the same timing and some different notes. There’s also a riff that sounds a whole lot like the classic ‘Jump in the Fire’ riff, and there are moments of the guitar harmonies from ‘Blackened’. I’ll take this any day over what they’ve been releasing, besides putting Garage Days back out. I wish they would have taken a little more risk with this album, but I’m still enjoying it.
From Metalsucks.net:
METALLICA’S DEATH MAGNETIC (THE OLD FART’S TAKE)
Thursday, September 11th, 2008 at 1:30pm by Corey Mitchell
If anyone around here has the right to dissect Metallica, it’s me – the Old Fart.
My full conversion to extreme metal came in January 1985 when I read an issue of Metal Forces magazine. Inside was a two- or three- paragraph review of a little album on the British Music for Nations label called Ride the Lightning, by some band I had never heard of, named Metallica.
I went out to the “cool” indie record store on The Drag at the University of Texas, Sound Exchange, and purchased the only copy of RTL, in LP form, of course. I immediately went back to my dorm room (on the intensive study floor, ha!), sliced open the plastic on the right side of the sleeve, unsheathed the black vinyl disc, and popped it onto my record player, and was immediately appalled by what I heard – the full-on thrash attack of “Fight Fire with Fire.” After several years of being raised on glam metal, James Hetfield’s harsh vocals, the twin guitar attack of Hetfield and Kirk Hammett, the rumbling, thunderous bass of Cliff Burton, and the propulsive drumming of Lars Ulrich scared me.
I was not impressed.
But then, something happened. The fourth track, “Fade to Black” came on. It was palatable, easier on the ears, and devastating. I liked what I heard and flipped the record over to listen to the second side. I was instantly more into the flip side, but mainly because I was digging on “Fade to Black.” I went back and listened to the entire album again and was forever hooked on extreme metal.
This led to a six-year obsession with Metallica that I felt would never end.
I was never a casual listener of the band. I was one of those freaky obsessive types that dissected every note, every lyric, and every sound on each and every recording. I collected every magazine that the band was featured in. I had posters, silk banners, rare imported singles, every version on LP, cassette, and later, CD.
Of course, I caught the band every time they came through Austin, Houston, or San Antonio. In fact, the second time I saw the band was at Cardi’s, a small bar in Houston, along with only eight other people. I remember banging my head against the stage and Hetfield grabbing my hair to help me along. I remember pulling on Cliff Burton’s bell-bottoms and screaming like a little school girl when I snatched one of Kirk Hammett’s lime-green guitar picks. But the coolest was hanging out with James and Lars after the show for more than two hours, drinking beers, and shooting the shit.
Hell, I even incorporated the band into my college education. I wrote a paper on Metallica for an English class – remember, this is back in 1985 when the band was not popular outside of metal circles, received no radio airplay whatsoever, and, of course, had not even entertained the thought of making a music video. In 1986, I gave a speech about the band in a Business Speaking course while playing “Orion” in the background. To this day, I still crack up thinking about the blank stares that came from my classmates who were comprised of frat boys, business majors, and Austin hippies. I also wrote an article about the band’s groundbreaking “Cliff ‘Em All” video in a Radio-TV-Film course, and at least two more times for various classes. Hell, I’ve listed the band in several of my books in the “acknowledgements” sections and have even listed James Hetfield on the top of my list of major influences in a recent interview with the Discovery Channel’s Investigation Discovery blog.
Metallica was the band that could do nothing wrong in my eyes.
And then came Metallica, the dreaded “Black Album.” Metallica’s bid for expansion of their audience left me cold and my favorite band ever was suddenly knocked down several pegs. I still went to see the band play live, but the damage was done.
Of course, the less said about Load/Reload the better.
Hell, I am probably one of the only people here at MetalSucks that actually liked St. Anger. Probably one of the only people on the entire planet, for that matter. Of course, I think that had more to do with shitty timing in my life (the unexpected death of my first wife) than my actual appreciation for the music.
So, why the hell should you care?
Mainly, because as a seasoned long-time fan of Metallica, I am here to tell you that their newest album, Death Magnetic, is the biggest pile of crap to be unfurled upon the metal public this entire year.
I really wanted to like this album. All the rumors of the so-called reversion back to the “First 4” albums-era had me excited beyond belief. I was less-than-thrilled about the inclusion of Rick Rubin, whom I have NEVER believed has made a single difference in anything he has ever “recorded.” Nonetheless, I was excited to hear the new Metallica.
Conveniently, the new album has ten tracks. MetalSucks ranks on a 1-5 Horns basis, so I figured the best way to go about this is to give you a track-by-track rundown with my thoughts from the first listen. If I like the song, that’s equivalent to ½ a horn.
1. “That Was Just Your Life”– Cool mid-paced guitar that turns into a decent thrasher. This sounds encouraging and gives me hope for the rest of the album. There are tinges of “Blackened” guitar riffs, which is cool. The bass drums, however, sound like tin cans strung behind a “Just Married” couple’s getaway car. Hetfield’s going for that higher-pitched TBA/Load style vocals that I am not a fan of. Despite the shortcomings, I dig this song so: ½ Horn!
2. “The End of the Line” – First verse reminds me of “No Remorse.” That is followed by a section that sounds like the “Creeping Death” chanted vocals refrain (“Die! Die! Die!”). That is followed by yet another section that sounds lifted straight from the title track to …And Justice For All. It seems weird that they are pilfering so many of their own riffs, but I guess it’s cool that they are stealing from their four best albums. Unfortunately, the guitars sound like gnats buzzing around a person’s head. The lyrics are cringe-worthy and self-referential. Cheesy enough to make me not like this song: 0 Horns.
3. “Broken, Beat & Scarred”– Horrible drum sound. Hetfield’s higher-pitched vocals suck and are really annoying me. The guitar sound is interesting; however, the mid-paced tempo simply drags and drags. Then comes the big solo! Or, the rip-off solo from “No Remorse.” Ulrich’s drumming always sounds out of the pocket, at least a half beat behind. The vocals are buried too far in the mix. Horrible, horrible song: 0 Horns.
4. “The Day That Never Comes”– “Unforgiven” rip-off in the beginning. Again, Hetfield’s vocals sound terrible. The chorus is a blatant rip-off of the “Fade to Black” outro. The transition at around 4:30 is another blatant rip-off, this time from “Orion.” Then Hetfield whips up such brilliant lyrics as “Love is a four-letter word.” Uggghhh!! Then a minute later, the metal kicks in!! I’m not digging the wah-wah guitar sound and suddenly, it sounds like Judas Priest’s “Freewheel Burning,” a great song, but where’s the originality? The guitars sound tinny and as if they were recorded underwater. The drum roll at the end is horrible: 0 Horns.
5. “All Nightmare Long”– Yet another old-school Metallica rip-off riff. This time it’s “Hit the Lights.” Good galloping part leads into an “Enter Sandman” croaking voiceover speaking part. Again, Hetfield’s high-pitched vocals continue to grate on my nerves. He almost sounds like Sebastian Bach circa Gone Country 2 on the high notes. Kirk Hammett’s solo rocks but the vocals suck, suck, suck!! Song is way too long, boring, and goes nowhere: 0 Horns.
6. “Cyanide”– Intro sounds like Dokken’s “Breaking the Chains.” Yet another “Enter Sandman” talking part reminiscent of that song’s “Now I lay me down to sleep…” lullaby section. Tailor-made for cheesy “crowd interaction.” Vocals suck. This song is horrible: 0 Horns.
7. “The Unforgiven III” – Nice try with the piano intro. Lyrics are horrible - a sample: “By the light of the golden treasure” – Blah! I hated the original song and have no interest in this Godfather III version. This sounds like a lame attempt at being an MOR alt. rock band ala Creed. Vocals are horrid and lyrics are even worse: 0 Horns.
8. “The Judas Kiss” – The transitional riff in the beginning is a direct rip-off of Queen’s “The Prophet’s Song” from A Night at the Opera. It is later used during the entire mid-section. Guitar solo ripped off from “Trapped Under Ice.” The silly “Enter Sandman” voice is used again. Decent song that is ruined by incredibly lame lyrics such as, “Sell your soul to me, I will set you free.” 0 Horns.
9. “Suicide & Redemption” – Intro ripped off from “Whiplash” intro. Bass sounds lazy in the drop-out section. So much for Rick Rubin’s “expertise.” This instrumental sounds like a bad Pelican song. It sounds like a bad practice pad jam during the first half of the song. The second half sounds like a jingle for a beer commercial. This is a horrible attempt to sound like Isis or Godspeed! You Black Emperor. Horrid!! 0 Horns.
10. “My Apocalypse” – By this time I am completely spent, disappointed, and I just don’t care. This sounds like another “Blackened” rip-off. Vocals are weak, the drums are behind the beat. It has turned into a silly game of Name That Tune: The Metallica Home Version. The lyrics have only gotten worse, “Into the crypt, total eclipse.” 0 Horns.
This is easily the biggest disappointment of the year for me. If you have never listened to Metallica or heavy metal for that matter, you will probably like this album. Of course, for the other 99.99% of you, avoid this one at all costs.
(½ horn out of 5)
There goes my shot at writing that Cliff Burton bio I always wanted to pen. Oh, well.
-CM
The metalsucks review below is exactly that what they accuse metallica of:
An old fart’s take.
This is some enthousiastic music, Really made my day. So stop trying to pretend that you know something about music and just listen, old fart.
It’s a ton of fun, this album.
I’m really looking forward to this. Every album that Metallica’s put out has had me hooked, on one level or another.
It started when my cousin played the black album for me at 6 years old. I scrounged up every spare cent I could find to buy it on tape. After two months, the tape got chewed up. So I went back to the music store with my 2 months of allowance savings ($5/week!) and my dad, and asked the salesman if they had the “Metallica” tape. Not sure what I meant, the guy showed me Master of Puppets. After convincing me it’s the same Metallica, he put a copy on the tape CD player for me. I’m pretty sure it was the first time I crapped myself since I was potty trained.
Since Puppets and the Black album, I have been able to find something I’ve liked. I bet this is going to be no different, but probably their best since ‘88.
Ha! Mike, that’s the best 2nd paragraph of a blog comment I’ve ever seen.
At some point the members of Metallica got so rich and lazy that they forgot how to write a decent song. Yes, they are still capable of writing good riffs and parts (though most of them on the new album sound suspiciously like things we’ve already heard), but the songs on the new album lack any decent structure. Every song meanders from part to part to part and rarely sounds like a cohesive whole. I remember them talking about writing most of their newer stuff through jamming in one of the last couple of documentaries and wanting to ‘let loose’ a little but, boys, you were good before BECAUSE you were such perfectionists. It just sounds like laziness to me. They jam, they listen back and pick the parts they liked the best, the tinker a little, and BAM: there’s a song. Just not a very good one. Listening to the new album has gotten me to go back and listen to their older stuff again, but I still wouldn’t call them relevant.
Listening to DM I just can’t shake the feeling that each and every song however good it is (and some are really good, like The End of the LIne or All Nightmare Long) is just a couple minutes too long. That obsession of theirs with replicating their prog-glories of …and Justice for Al et al seems to make them go for it just for the sake of it, not because the songs really need this.
Suicide and Redemption captures this problem the best - where their previous instrumentals like The Call of Ctulhu and Orion (and to a lesser degree To Live is To Die) were undisputed highlights of their correspondent records, here it just shows how pointless and hollow that whole complexity feels.
And oh, just to clear things up - this is coming from someone who just happens to dig not only the classic Metallica of the 80’s, but Load/Reload (they could’ve been edited down to a terrific 60-minute single record) AND St.Anger as well. Make what you will out of it
The Old Fart’s review is a classic example of someone going against the grain just to seem like they are above it all. He fails.
You are going to have to get over your hatred of Metallica circa 1991-2007 at some point bro.
Death Magnetic is bloody awesome. So what if Metallica sounds like Metallica, people bitch when they don’t sound like Metallica as well so I guess they can’t win.
All I know is I really like the return to form. Some parts may sound too much like other songs they’ve done, and the lyrics at times are a bit too convenient, but overall it blows away anything I’ve heard by anyone in a long while.
I like how some of the Load/Reload and St. Anger sound has been sprinkled in with their earlier style. 9/10
For the record, there is not a Metallica disc I don’t like.
The entire Metallica catalogue including the new album are available in MP3 from 7digital.com
http://www.7digital.com/artists/metallica/
Well, I’m a fan of classic Metallica and dropped off after the black album, finding they lost their way.
No band ever gets back to their point of greatness (Justice for this band in my book) and no fan should expect it. But teaming with Ruben, ditching Bob was the right thing to do.
I’m still in my first listen and it’s money well spent, this is Metallica regardless of their haircut, unlike what they did for the last 15 years.
And if you look at what the music industry is trying to sell us, this is a gem.
Metallica are the best Metal band in the world.I like all thier album and i have all their album from early stage and now.I’m from malaysia so in here 15 september the album will be release.I cant wait to buy the special edition album or death magnetic.What ever shit u say about metallica is pure noob.I u are metallica fan u will not say such words to them,for me the old guys metallica still got so much kick!!
Metallica? Sounding like Metallica? Outrageous!
Excellent review, I was amused by the comment about Rob’s bass being buried in the mix, as per the Metallica norm.
When St. Anger came out I was happy the band seemed to want to play heavy music again, but it was clear the wheels had come off during the song-writing because the album was a complete mess.
I’ve been listening to the new album non-stop, and its so refreshing to hear this back to basics approach that somehow doesnt feel dated, but really a consolidation of Metallica’s strengths.
9/10 for me.
This album is not bad, it really sounds like an album between and justice for all or the black album, but it’s not as deep as them and bored me really fast.
this band has such a force behind it, instantly recognizable…my favorite material is always the newest.
Jacob
http://www.ConcertPosterArt.com
“Over 4000 Original Concert Posters, Flyers and Vintage Ads”
I really enjoy the music but can’t handle some of the vocals. Is it just me or does it sounds like Rubin used Autotune on most, if not all, of James’ “singing” (not the “shouting in key” that he’s known for)?
Hetfield’s vocals are crap on this album. Great to see Kirk Hammett back in full force though.
metallica still kick ass
kirk hammett is still a bad ass guitarist i just think james should sing how he use to its just an opinion because before james use to sing great he had talent
Got to say, I love Death Magnetic. The lyrics are not great but they get back to rockin it. Kirk cranks it up.
Russ
http://concertposter.org
Posters from the Biggest Concert Tours of the year