Death Magnetic
June 14th, 2010 | by admin |Death Magnetic Review
One of the most common praises heaped upon Death Magnetic since it’s release a year and a half ago is that it is the best album Metallica has released since the Black Album. I would agree with that. Some have claimed that it’s one of their best ever but I won’t go that far.
For the record, it’s hard for me to pick a favorite amongst the first five Metallica albums (For the record, I’d pick pick either the Black Album or MOP if you put a gun to my head). I also enjoyed and appreciate the Loads even though they overdid it with the bone-headed, C.O.C. inspired sleaze-metal. St. Anger? Let’s just say that I wish I could find a redeeming quality with that one (to date I have not).
Death Magnetic is the first album Metallica has recorded in the last 15 years that truly sounds like the same band that recorded KEA through TBA. The elements that defined Metallica from ‘83-’91 are all there. Pounding drums that actually sound like drums, tight riffing, extended middle sections, frequent solos, etc. It’s all there.
It doesn’t sound exactly the same, of course. James Hetfield does not have quite the same roar that he possessed twenty years ago. He’s done way too much damage to his voice over the years, so he deserves some slack. However, he certainly doesn’t embarrass himself on Death Magnetic (unlike St. Anger).
The production is also much different, and is truly a bone of contention for many. Like most fans, I wish the album was not so fuzzy and compressed. Not only were dynamics lost (and clipping introduced), but I think the guitar tone really suffered. The guitars lack the kind of chunk that defines the classic Metallica sound. They are plenty thrashy and distorted, but are lacking guts.
The songwriting is solid. The opener, “That Was Just Your Life”, rips like nothing we’ve heard since the AJFA album. “The End of the Line” is a rock solid follow-up.
“Broken, Beat, and Scarred” suffers slightly due to it’s cliched lyrics, but Hetfield’s delivery is genuine enough to do the song justice.
“The Day That Never Comes” is the least memorable of Metallica’s “track 4″ ballads, and is probably the weakest track on the album. It follows the “One” blueprint a bit too closely for it’s own good; it’s lack of originality detracts from its overall quality. It’s merely okay.
“All Nightmare Long” and “Cyanide” are rock solid thrashers. “Unforgiven III” is superior to “The Day That Never Comes” in every way except perhaps in name. Invoking the “Unforgiven” name likely caused scads of fans to roll their eyes and possibly overlook what really is an excellent tune.
“The Judas Kiss” is another ass-kicker. “Suicide and Redemption”, Metallica’s first instrumental in twenty years, is not quite as focused as their classic instrumentals such as “Orion” and “The Call of Ktulu”. It is more listen-able than the bulk of “To Live is To Die” however (I may get flamed for this, but lets be honest, TLITD really plodded along aimlessly in between it’s gorgeous opening and middle sections).
The album’s final track is “My Apocalypse”, a solid slab of up-tempo (if not quite full-on speed) metal that closes the album with the same kind of raw energy that it opens with.
Death Magnetic is not on par with Metallica’s first five records. However, after two albums of overly indulgent exploration (Load/Reload) and one spectacular failure (St. Anger), it is a huge step in the right direction. While Death Magnetic may not equal the quality from their heyday, it certainly belongs in the same discussion, which cannot be said for their previous three releases.
Death Magnetic certainly bears the scars of Metallica’s previous missteps, but the hindsight of their struggles over the last decade-plus only underscores the fact that this album is a rather triumphant and long-awaited return to form.
Death Magnetic Overview
Limited Edition UK pressing of Metallica’s 2008 album housed inside a coffin box along with a EXTRA LARGE T-shirt. Death Magnetic is the iconic Metal band’s 10th studio album overall. and was produced by Rick Rubin. Formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by drummer Lars Ulrich and guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, Metallica has become one of the most influential and commercially successful Rock bands in history, having sold 100 million albums worldwide and playing to millions of fans the world over. They have garnered numerous awards and accolades, including seven Grammy Awards, two American Music Awards, and multiple MTV Video Music Awards. In addition, their 1991 album, Metallica, which has sold 15 million copies in the United States alone, has been awarded the prestigious “Diamond Award” from the Recording Industry Association of America, given to those albums with U.S. sales of 10 million or more. Mercury Records.
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