Metallica

This is probably the sorriest excuse for an album (second only to LOAD) that Metallica has excreted in their illustrious career. Oh, Cliff Burton must be spinning in his grave.

I've been a Metallica fan for quite some time. The first album of theirs I bought was Ride the Lightning back in the early 80's. I've continued to buy all their releases, even through the time when most of their early fans abandoned them. You either liked the early stuff, and hated the post Black Album material, or you only liked the newer stuff. Hardly did you ever find a Metallica fan that liked both. I'm one of the latter. I liked both. They had a different feel on the latter albums, but I still liked it. Having said that, since I grew up with albums like Puppets & Justice, I did long for an album like that again. We sort of got it with St Anger (rather underrated), but Death Magnetic was it.

This is the album they should have made after And Justice For All. This feels like old school Metallica, yet with modern production values. Normally when I write one of these things, I say which tracks I like, and why. But I'm not doing that. This disc is totally solid (save for one song which I'll talk about in a bit) from front to back. The first track just starts off with that "WHAM", and it doesn't let you go. It's one of those discs that when I was listening to it in my truck and it finished, I just let it repeat. It's fantastic. Has the twin guitar sound, there's solos again, and we have some good Lars drums. By far and away, not even funny - the best thing since 1989.

The one track I don't care for is "The Unforgiven III". Musically it doesn't fit with anything else on the album. Now that I can deal with - most albums have a track that doesn't sound like the rest of the album. That's not why. I don't like it for two reasons. First, I just don't care for the tune. Secondly is the title. If you're going to bother calling something a "three", then it would stand to reason that it would bear some resemblance to the two previous entries that bear it's namesake. This does not. I totally fail to see why it's called "Unforgiven 3", it might as well been called "Random Other Song", and it would have worked better, I think.

However, that's just one track. All the others are bloody well fantastic. If you are a Metallica fan, and gave up on them awhile back - this is what you have wanted. It's a Metallica renaissance. Go get it.

I can't really review the music on this album because the mix is so unbelievably horrible. Seriously this sounds like something a 14 year old would record in his garage.

Can you say "CLIPPING"? Is Metallica completely deaf? Can't they hear how bad of a job Fidelman and Scheps did to their work on such a basic task?

I suppose if you listen on cheap enough equipment you probably won't notice the problem.

Just when you think Metallica is all washed up, They slam you in the face with the best album ever produced!

Wonderful CD, very good quality!!Not only the music but the art of the package too! Metallica Rocks!

I was 11 when this came out and I bought this and Justice at the same time. I was new to metal and I was a kid but I knew I was listening to Justice constantly while I struggled to get beyond the third track here (it was cassette.) If you liked well played thrash or any kind of music, it boggles the mind why you would want this stuff that gets boring after a few listens. Roam, Struggle, God that failed, Through the never are just filler. I loved Sandman back then, but I liked Smells like teen spirit too.

Before I get into the meat of my review, I must acknowledge that this album was one of several that distanced the "hardcore" Metallica fans from the band. Many felt betrayed by the band, which they had seen as moving away from their thrasher metal roots. This is indeed true; the album is very radio-friendly. That said, the album on its own is very solid, whatever your opinion of how it compares to the band's previous work.

From the distinctive opening noted of "Enter Sandman" all the way to the end notes of "The Struggle Within," there is not a bad song on this album. Several Metallica staples, including "The Unforgiven," "Sad But True" and "Nothing Else Matters" also make appearances on the album.

I know the above-mentioned "hardcore" fans find a positive review of this album a heresy, but for many who have never sampled metal before - myself included - this acts as a gateway album for getting into Metallica. An avid fan myself now, I would have never delved into "Ride the Lightning" or "Master of Puppets" if I hadn't heard "the black album" first.

First off, let me say that I am not a metalhead at all. I barely know anything about the genre. But I like Metallica. And I refuse to accept the claim that this album is a sellout just because it doesn't thrash like Master of Puppets (which is a masterpiece). Sure, it doesn't, but that's an unfair reason to insult an album. It isn't as fast or hard, and it isn't as good, but it's got some of the best songs Metallica ever made.
First and most obviously is "Enter Sandman." Like many others, I was introduced to the band via that song. Granted, the year was 2006 rather than 1991 and it was off my friends' iTunes rather than the radio or MTV. But my first exposure to the band was through that song's ominous, crawling riff. It's a great song, too. That riff is classic stuff. It was one of the album's five major hits, and I'm unashamed to say I love all five of them. This means not only "Sandman," "Sad But True" (which probably has the best riff on the whole record), and the Eastern-informed "Wherever I May Roam," but also both "The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters." There go all my credentials. "The Unforgiven" is a classic power ballad, maybe not as good as "Fade to Black" or "Sanitarium" but still a fine, deeply emotional piece of work. And "Nothing Else Matters" is probably the most melodic track in the group's history.
Those are the big highlights, along with the groove-metal monsters "God That Failed" and "My Friend of Misery." But I enjoy just about every song on this album, other than the rather lame closer "Struggle Within." I guess the thrash songs are a bit generic compared to previous albums, other than "Holier Than Thou" (another good song), but I think "Through the Never" and the underrated "Of Wolf and Man" are worthy songs. Even the jingoistic, rather hypocritical "For Whom the Bell Tolls" rewrite "Don't Tread on Me" (interesting how a band who took a decidedly anti-government stance is now firmly endorsing the gulf war) is solid enough. After all, it's got the same riff as "For Whom the Bell Tolls," and THAT is a guitar riff. Even if it's recycled.
This album really doesn't deserve the bad rap it gets with some fans. I think it's an example of the group branching out, rather than selling out. And it's good! One of the classics of the '90s.

I am a Metallica fan since the late 80s and the black album IMO is one of the best they have released. Enough said as most of the praise, positive comment and feedbacks have already been mentioned on this comments section so I suggest you start reading others comments.

This album has been labled as the moment Metallica "sold out." I've heard that phrase so much I'm almost not sure what it means anymore. And to the die-hard fans that creamed their pants for Master of Puppets and Ride The Lightning, I guess I can see your point. Gone are the days of speed metal, the riffs are slower, the tempos much mellower, the bass isn't nearly as epic as when Burton played (RIP). But to completely knock the band and the album is being overly harsh. This is a great album if you take it in context. It's not trying to be a thrash album, it's not supposed to be a speed metal album, and if that's all you really want from Metallica then I'd advise you stay in the 80s, cause that sound won't be created again...not even by Metallica. I don't like this entire album, I consider 3 or 4 songs to be filler, but the good songs are damn good and that makes up for the filler. The solos are much slower than in previous albums but they have that epic sound to them that Metallica hinted on with ...And Justice For All but never fully reached. And while the slower songs like Unforgiven and Nothing Else Matters have grown old on me (their solos haven't), there's no denying that Sad But True, Wherever I May Roam, and Enter Sandman are just great cuts. Sadly, the one attempt of a sped-up tempo (Holier Than Thou) falls flat in my opinion and I wish they would've just left it off the record. In any case, this is an epic album and one of the all time classics. It's also quite possibly the last good album Metallica will ever make...so cherish it for what it is.

Very much like most of the old 80's metallica's cd's Are good. I gave this cd a 5 star. Excellent bass all the way. Brutal vocals and machine gun gutiar sounds. Like battery the best. Other great songs on here like master of the puppets leper massiah. Trash at it's best.

Why is this album highly praised? Was it becuase the movie OLD SCHOOL had it in the background? maybe so.Metallica sucks. The only decent albums they have are load and reload and their masterpiece ST anger. Their first 5 albums are really bad.

I love the metal in this album!!! I just gotta say that this is just one of the best Metallica albums ive ever listen to.

This is easily the best album Metallica has ever come out with and will ever come out with. There is not one bad song on this album. From Battery to Damage Inc., it is headbanging heaven. If you do not have the album, buy it. Buy it now. Thank me later.

This is the album that I first listened to, and I have to say that all eight songs are classic, and worth the listen of anybody. from he thrashing supersonic riffs of Battery, to the soft intro of Welcome Home (Sanitarium), to the heavy riffs of The Thing That Should Not Be, this album is the BEST when it comes to Heavy Metal. You must get this album!!!!!

Metallica may have artistically peaked with Master Of Puppets (or maybe Justice), but this is my favorite album by them. It balances the fiery rawness of the debut with the more complex arrangements found on Puppets to create one of metal's defining masterpieces. Anyone who's ever had even a passing interest in metal has owned this album at some point or another.

It starts out with what is arguably Metallica's hardest hitting song of their career, Fight Fire With Fire (dig those drums, Lars!) and never lets up. The only real "break" we get is the semi-ballad Fade To Black, which is definitely one of the band's top five songs. The album culminates with the one-two punch of Creeping Death and Call Of Ktulu. There's also these two other songs on the album called For Whom The Bell Tolls and Ride The Lightning, which are okay. Just kidding. They rule. Trapped Under Ice and Escape are, IMO, the album's weakest songs. But Trivium wishes they had 1/100th of the talent to write a song in the vein of early Metallica, no matter how weak(ish). Still two good songs that don't bog the album down; just not as great as the other six.

Metallica have become to metal what Bob Marley is to reggae and what Johnny Cash is to country. Every guy my age I know cut their teeth on this band. Sabbath and Maiden give them a run for their money, but Metallica's enduring popularity with this new generation of rockers (yes, moreso than Sabbath and Maiden) cements them as the definitive metal band for those looking to get their foot in the door. And when I say metal, I don't mean Mudvayne.

This is the album I always recommend for anyone looking to get into Metallica. I must've played it hundreds of times over the years and the truth is it never gets old (for me, anyway). Great music is timeless.

Ride the Lighting was such an amazing album. There were many great songs on this album, such as Escape with it's great chorus line, the title track with its great intro, Klutu with the great reprise at the end, but the real highlight of this album is Fade to Black. Fade to Black is simply one of the greatest metal songs ever made, it's dark lyrics about a man contemplating and commiting suicide, Hammett does an amazing job on this song, especialy on the solo. The solo probably Metallica's best and one of the very few solo's which conveys emotion. You can just feel the sadnesss here, and this song is a true gem. Great album too.

eh... simple 80s guitar solos, long hair, leather jackets... how many of these black sabbath rip off bands do we need?

metallicas finest album is st anger. black album the debut was okay but i hate the filler solos, solos take up to much precious singing time

Talk of Metallica albums usually passes over "Ride the Lightning"; you hear how great "Master of Puppets" is, the transition that was "the black album" and general disgust at "St. Anger." The truth is, without "Ride the Lightning," we never would have seen any of the others.

"Ride the Lightning" was Metallica's sophomore album, and it represents a quantum leap forward over "Kill 'Em All," setting the sound that has come to be known as "Metallica" to us. The songs are more refined, yet still feel as raw as those off its predecessor. While it would later be refined into "Master of Puppets," arguably the greatest metal album ever, this album is still a masterpience, containing "Fade to Black" and "For Whom the Bell Tolls" as well as the very-well-done instrumental track "The Call of Ktulu."

Definitely an essential pickup for a Metallica fan, and one of the first few albums you should buy if you're just getting into the band.

This was a leap and bounds advance forward for Metallica in only 1 year time, but this album is not quite perfect people. With only 8 tracks on an album everything has to be perfect. While songs like "Trapped Under Ice", "Escape", and "Creeping Death" are very good, they aren't great. The highlights are the first 4 songs.

eh... simple 80s guitar solos, long hair, leather jackets... how many of these black sabbath rip off bands do we need?

metallicas finest album is st anger. black album the debut was okay but i hate the filler solos, solos take up to much precious singing time

Don't get me wrong, this is a great album, my one star review has to do with this particular pressing of the lp. For a half speed master, this sounds absolutely horrible! The signal of the recording is so low, I have to crank my phono preamp so much, that the surface noise of the vinyl is noticeable. This should never happen, ESPECIALLY on a heavy metal record, where the music should be so loud it drowns out any lp noise. Do yourself a favor, spend your money on an older original pressing, this one is horrible. I have a UK pressing of this album from vertigo from the early 90s that BLOWs this pressing out of the water, half speed mastered or not.

I bought this SHM-cd thinking it would at least sound a little better than the original one! Unless you need a special Shm-cd player, this release on a normal player doesn't sound any different from the domestic one. Usually Japanese releases sound better, but not here. This album needs a remastered job real bad!

i was sent 2 CD of " and justice for all " & returned 1 copy. i have NOT received a refund or credit for the returned CD. i like the CD but am not thrilled with the return procedure.

Three Stars Is a VERY Kind Review. I'm being kind because the album after this was below in quality and actually makes this one seem better than it ever really was. A good way to more objectively review this is to listen first to the "Black" album, then to "Master of Puppets", and finally this one. For me, listening to the Black Album was for the large part a chore, the ensuing MOP a pleasure, and this halfway between.

As I wrote in the title, ...And Justice For All is Master of Puppets extended, and beaten to death. So many of the same keys, chugg-chugga "melodies", vocal patterns, and composition structures are pounded into the ground. Even worse, the compositions themselves are rarely inspiring; the sludgey tempos and easy-to-make-fun-of dour atmosphere predominate throughout, making it hard to finish listening to most of the individual tracks. Perhaps Metallica recycled all of these patterns thinking that their more preachy lyrics would stand out more, there being little more to distinguish the tracks musically from "...Puppets". Either way, alot of time here just goes by without any sort of lift from the frowning "duh" of the vocal delivery.

One of the most significant (hold on, I'm holding my stomach laughing over the idea of the word "significant" applied to any part of this album) differences betweeen this and "Master of Puppets" is the near-complete lack of any worthwhile guitar leads. Hetfield was the only contributor of anything really non-shred (tranlated "memorable" "musical") guitar leads on Master of Puppets, but even he fails to deliver much to chew on here. But the worse culprit in this variable is of course the "guitar player of 1988", Kirk Hammett. There's not a single lick or trick (emphasis on the latter) on this release he didn't use on the three albums preceeding this one. What's really a bummer for other guitar players (the same ones whom, like me, really loved and looked up to his leads on the title track of "Ride the Lightning" and "Fade to Black") is hearing time and again his total disregard for crafting memorable, musical leads from the chords Metallica plays behind him. Try humming the solo to "One"...hah! After awhile any guitar player (you know, the kind whom grew out of the "look, Mom, I'm playing so faaaassst!" frame of mind) will become either disillusioned or facetious hearing so many oppurtunities wasted. I mean, considering how admittedly terrific and nicely composed his above mentioned Ride the Lightning solos were, we can forgive Hammett for a little redundancy. But after hearing him rely on the same crutches over and over (the wah and/or tapping whenever he runs out of ideas), it's safe to say that even Yngwie had a longer run from compositional perspective. At least he lasted more than two songs.

This album does have a couple of very memorable riffs and chorus/pre-choruses. But overall, there really isn't even one second here that comes anywhere near the invigorating power of,say, Disposable Heroes, or For Whom the Bell Tolls. Points I give for at least attempting to "stay Metal" and sounding sui generis, a distinction which for Metallica in 1988 was worth three stars alone.

They were great, they were the undoubtedly one of the best...until after Cliff Burton died. Do yourself a favor and grab the still awe-inspiring Ride the Lightning, and the only-slightly-less-inspiring Master of Puppets first for your collection. ESPECIALLY if you're a guitar player.

Okay, couple things I need to get out of the way since this is a review of the vinyl version of this album. First, to enjoy this vinyl record fully, you NEED good equipment to play it on. I'm talking at or near audiophile-level hi-fi equipment, with the turntable being nothing less in build quality than something like a Technics SL-1200.

That being said, it would have been real good if Metallica had re-mixed and re-mastered this album for re-issue on vinyl. The big problem I have with it is that James Hetfield's lyrics are a little too buried in the mix on most of the songs. One thing I will say too is be prepared to really turn up the volume to hear things really good. This album really pushes the LP vinyl format to its limit, with 27 minutes of music on side one and 26 minutes on side two. Because of the long playing times, the basic playing volume is reduced to make all the music fit.

Despite the flaws, because this is a vinyl release, it will be a good collectible album and when played on fine turntables will give lots of listening enjoyment. Just be sure to get Metallica's next three after this one though, 'Ride the Lightning', 'Master of Puppets', and '...And Justice For All' on vinyl too.

Metallica-Kill 'Em All ****

The cover says it all really...

The infamous debut from Metallica, thrash metals most popular band. Kill 'Em All is one of those albums that either do it for you or it doesn't. It is loud, fast, and in your face. James Hetfield can't sing here, though he never really has been able too, and his lyrics leave something to be desired. They would improve over the years but here they are a joke. Cliff Burton kills, but often fumbles over himself. Though his solo on 'Pulling Teeth' is over the top. Lars was far from Lars. Kirk Hammet...well this is his album. A real riff fest, solos from out of this world and Hammet nails them all. Though Dave Mustaine wrote most everything before being kicked out and forming Megadeth. Hammet really makes the album.

'Seek And Destroy' is a bonafide Metallica classic. It is the really only place on the album where all cylinders click. 'The Four Horsemen' is a really metal giant. Truest in all forms. Great riffs, and actually some decently evil lyrics. 'Whiplash' and 'Jump In The Fire' almost satisfy but fall short. 'Pulling Teeth' is genius and the first instrumental. The is was is missed most on later albums from the band is their killer instrumentals. The rest of the album does exactly what the album cover does. It looks and sounds like a group if zit faced metal heads trying to look and sound cool...and you know what...there is nothing wrong with that because amazingly Metallica make it work through out this entire album.

Kill 'Em All was a far cry away from their next three albums (Ride The Lightning, Master Of Puppets, ...And Justice For All) all of which became classics. RTL easily being the groups best. But Kill 'Em All is innocent and honest and the album we have been waiting for Metallica to make since 1992.

There probably isn't much to say about this album that hasn't already been covered by someone else's review. But I've been a Metallica fan since this album originally dropped and I'm still a fan to this day. I've managed to forgive them for Load...and Reload...and St. Anger. I'm trying to muster up the courage to buy Death Magnetic. But enough about all that...this is still my favorite Metallica album of all time for one simple reason...DAVE MUSTAINE! Listen to riffs like the main riff of Seek and Destroy and tell me it's not magic. I have respect for Kirk Hammett and he's done some great guitar playing over the years, but as far as writing music goes, Mustaine just writes catchier riffs...well not so much anymore, but definitely on this album. I'm also a huge Megadeth fan so I'm sure my view is skewed a bit...but to me there's just no comparison. With Mustaine writing the riffs, this album thrashes harder than a porn star on Viagra. The riffs are original, they don't sound repetetive, and they're fast without being so fast that you start getting dizzy from listening to 'em. I'm not knocking Ride The Lightning or any of the later work Hammett did up till the Black Album, but I still think Metallica would've been better off with Mustaine as their guitarist and this album shows it. This is THE THRASH ALBUM...plain and simple...oh yeah and James could still sing when this came out, even if his voice has a higher pitch. Oh and for all you fans that wonder what happened to Metallica the last 10 or 15 years...I'll give you 3 words to sum it up...Cliff Burton's gone! Alright I'm done, if ya' don't own this by now, someone should slap you!

I'm not quite a fan of the re-issue of this album, for one very good reason. Before I get into that reason, I'll say that Kill Em All was my FAVORITE Metallica album of all time. Great hard stuff that'll never exist ever again. Which brings me to why I don't like this album:

They cut Blitzkrieg (a cover, I know) off the album. Why? So they could slap it on an album of covers in the future and make you buy another CD to get this one track.

No thanks. Glad I've still got my original pressing of this album with ALL the tracks on it.

This album is as heavy and fast as Metallica ever got. One of the few albums you can listen to all the way through. A highly underrated album in my opinion.

As a long term fan of Metallica this album was an interesting way to revisit all of the songs that have been screaming out of my stereo over the past 20yrs. The best album they've put out since And Justice for All...

I love it. The orchestra adds a certain epic sound to the already great music of Metallica.

If you're on the fence about buying your first Metallica album, check out "S&M." It serves as the closest thing they've done to a greatest hits album, and the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (conducted by the esteemed Michael Kamen) adds a very nice level of depth to the songs. This is also the only album where you can find the songs "- Human" and "No Leaf Clover." The band touches on all its previous albums with the exception of "Kill 'Em All," playing staples like "Enter Sandman" and "One" but also throwing in songs like "Bleeding Me" off of "Load" and "The Call of Ktulu" off of "Ride the Lightning."

For a typical fan, it's hard to take a good, hard look at the artistic failures of their favorite bands and acknowledge them. Even if the music's lousy, they'll probably rationalize it and come up with some pertinent excuse. I love Metallica and I love "classical" music. (Actually, the correct term is "erudite music"). But I don't particularly love this album.

So, rabid Metallica fans, carefully hear (or better, read) my entire 2-star review first and then judge if it was reasonable or not. What I want to point out is:

a) This is not a "classical meets Metallica" album.

Check out Michael Kamen's résumé, people. He's a score composer - "The Dead Zone", "Highlander", the "Die Hard" series, the first "X-Men" movie, etc. Although most of the great soundtrack composers of the last century (John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, Eric Korngold, Miklós Rózsa) had a "classical" background, it's a completely different mindset. Scores are created to serve images and dialogues on the screen - they pull the emotional strings of the moviegoer, so to manipulate what he should feel at a certain scene. On the other hand, erudite music doesn't have the creative, financial & time constraints of score composition, which allows it more freedom to experiment. Plus, it doesn't serve anything but itself.

So S&M is actually closer to a "scores meet Metallica" album. No wonder this record starts with a soundtrack composition - Ennio Morricone's "The Ecstasy of Gold", from the Spagguetti Western classic "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly" (1966).

b) This is not a "creative", "innovative" and "experimental" musical venture.

No, not really. For the most part, this is Metallica matching the studio versions of their songs note-for-note and the SFO is scrambling to play around Metallica's songs. They took the safest route. What? Safest? Yes, safest, because...

b.1) ...they get to play the songs exactly the way they are. Metallica are, notoriously, highly protective of their musical oeuvre. Check out the "Year and a Half" documentaries and you'll see the kind of temper tantrums producer Bob Rock had to deal with when he suggested changes to their songs. Whatever you do, don't tamper a Metallica song... ever! Nevertheless, I think the guys could have further downplayed their egos on this one. Have the orchestra musicians assume more active roles in Metallica's music - say, let the orchestra's lead violinist play one of the solos instead of Kirk... or something like that.

b.2) It also pleases their hardcore fanbase, which wants to hear nearly identical versions of their favorite songs. That always striked me as being odd - if you want to hear the songs always played exactly in the same manner, stick to their studio albums. I have always thought that a live record is a situation where you can add something fresh to the songs but, apart from SFO's inclusion in the proceedings, S&M sounds like the same old...

All in all, this record won't convert many metal fans to "classical" music. That is a shame, because Metallica have always borrowed from the erudite music cannon. Cliff Burton's "Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth)" bass solo, for example, heavily quotes from one of Bach's fugues. Another example is their Diamond Head cover "I Am Evil", which quotes ipsis literis the introduction of Gustav Holst's "Mars, the Bringer of War". There's other examples... I'll add them later, if I can.

I like Metallica - and that's why I won't give them a 1-star review. I can't give them a higher-rating review because I really feel duped. There's so much they could have done with SF's Orchestra, but they opted to play it safe... Is that middle-age sinking in? And they should have hired a proper "classical" maestro - that could have done so much for the music too. Claudio Abbado, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Lorin Maazel, Pierre Boulez, Valery Gergiev, and the list goes on...

...but well, nevermind.

This cd would appeal mostly to Metallica fans who want everything the band has ever done, or maybe fans of symphonies who like 'edgy' music. Sound quality on this recording is excellent (my favourite Metallica album, "Reload" has very poor sound, and I've heard very bad things about the sound on the band's new album "Death magnetic". It seems the sound quality on Metallica albums is very hit and miss. Here it's more 'hit'. Both the symphony and Metallica are clearly distinct on this cd, so one does not suffer in comparison to the other, prominence wise.

Of the songs selected for this double cd, I could have sworn I'd seen "Fade to black" on it when I looked at the track listing a while back. Maybe I was mistaken. That is arguable their best song and I think it would have worked really well on this cd. Some of my other favourite songs which missed an appearance on this cd were: "Welcome home", "Orion", "The unforgiven" and "The unforgiven II". There are probably lots of 'hardcore' Metallica fans who don't rate these songs that highly and rate more highly songs which did appear on this compilation. As I think the songs above are amongst the band's best, I'm disappointed that they didn't make it on to the album. The only other Metallica song which I consider an out and out classic, "Enter Sandman", does make the song line-up. "Memory remains" is a near classic and makes this cd as well. From their earlier albums, I don't mind songs like "The thing that should not be", "Master of puppets" and "Battery". All these songs are on this cd. Perhaps "Fight fire with fire" is in those songs' class too, and deserved to be on this album.

The only other point of comparison for this album that I have is a KISS symphony programme I saw on ABC TV in Australia (not sure how similar it is to the title that is available for purchase on dvd). My problem with some of the songs on that programme was that the orchestral arrangement actually detracted from some of the excellent KISS songs. In other words, the symphony didn't play to those songs' strengths. Perhaps that's an unfair comparison as I saw KISS on a portable tv and I heard S&M on a stereo with good headphones.

In this review's heading, I state that some of the band's original material comes out better on this than on the original album. Which is to say that songs on albums like "Load", which I really didn't find that interesting, sound more interesting with this arrangement. That includes songs such as: "No leaf clover", "Hero of the day", "Bleedin' me", "Outlaw torn" and "Sad but true".

If you're wondering if the symphonic treatment softens the sound of the band, "Battery" should dispel those fears. Of all Metallica's thrash songs, this one doesn't lose any of its accoustic brutality.

One possible gripe for this cd is that more use could have been made of the symphony. Personally, I would have liked to hear more isolated instruments carrying the melody of the song in the quieter parts. Especially if that instrument had a sound with character...I don't much about individual instruments in symphonies, but maybe something like an oboe, or a horn or something...maybe even a harp.

On one occasion, something approaching what I would have liked in that regard is achieved...in the intro for "Battery", for orchestra delivers a nice counter-balance to the thrash metal which comes after that. They provide a simple but effective arrangement for Metallica.

Since "Memory remains" is one of my picks as Metallica's best song, it's good to see that that is a hard song to stuff up...it works well symphonically too. You do get the crowd singing along the melody to that song, along with the symphony.

Which brings me to another gripe: crowd involvement would have been better on the recording if the microphones were nearer the audience or something. Iron Maiden's otherwise mediocre song "Fear of the dark" is turned into pretty much a classic by the crowd singing the melody in their "Rock in Rio" concert. That recording really captured the crowd's passion really well.

If you're after versions of songs which don't take liberties, then maybe this cd isn't for you. Hetfield occasionally stays silent so that the crowd can sing some of the lyrics of the song. Occasionally he adlibs or encourages the crowd, which may annoy some people who'd rather hear Hetfield keep to the script of the song.

Even though I'm not heavily into heavy metal, heavy metal albums which I highly recommend are:

Metallica: Reload (which is a great hard rock album); Master of puppets (their best early album) and The Black Album.

Coldseed: Completion makes the tragedy (a great debut album with lots of stylistic variation in the song list. Another two albums like that from them and I'd rate them as highly as Metallica!).

To put it simply, I love this album. If you like Metallica at all, there's probably something here for you. Granted, there's less of the progressive stuff a la Load and Reload, but I was never a big fan of that anyway. (Although Turn the Page and Loverman are awesome.)

Looking at my jewel case now, Bob Rock's name isn't on the back. On the discs it says "Somewhat produced by Bob Rock with Hetfield and Ulrich." I've been trying to figure out why Metallica went from metal gods to media darlings, and as near as I can tell it's because Bob Rock sucked. "Somewhat produced," with its suggestion of lacking quality may have been the best thing that happened to this album. The quality is inconsistent, Hetfield lets out a giggle when someone jumps the gun on a note in Loverman, there's a...Bob Seger cover (cooler than it sounds), and that's just disc 1. Disc 2 is a big collection of covers (16 songs!), and one of the few CDs in my collection I can honestly say I like start to finish.

People who aren't really into the Load/Reload era will find a lot to love, people who are perhaps need not apply.

I really, really wanted to give this a positive review, but I can't. Individually, the songs on here are fantastic, especially the cover of Bob Seger's "Turn the Page" and "Whiskey in the Jar." As an album though, the band shifts styles dramatically from track to track, making it extremely difficult to listen to straight through. It sounds like I played it on random.

Don't get me wrong, it's still a decent album. I would have just liked to see it flow a little more smoothly.

I like this album better than their early thrash albums like "Kill 'em all" and "Ride the lightning". "Garage Inc." is itself a thrashy type album, but I just found the music more engaging than on those other albums. It doesn't have any great songs, like "Fade to black"-an all time classic song from "Ride the lightning"-but the songs are what I would call "listenable". Of their early albums, I think that "Master of puppets" is their best. The good songs on "Garage Inc." aren't of that quality either, but hey, if you like heavy metal, "Garage Inc." will please. There are lots of heavy metal type sound modules in it-that is, certain lead guitar type sounds, rhythm guitar sounds etc, which are classic 'heavy metal'.

From the first cd-which includes covers of songs by Black Sabbath and Nick Cave-my favourite songs are:

Whiskey in the jar-it's this song which got me interested in buying this compilation. There was an Australian radio station which had a listener poll of the top 2000 odd songs of all time, and this song made the cut. It's a cover of Thin Lizzy's version, from what I've heard. Not a big Thin Lizzy fan, so hats off to Metallica to doing something I can appreciate with this song.

Tuesday's gone-a respectful, bluesy, country ballad, for the most part. Has accoustic guitar, steel string accoustic guitar and it also features a harmonica. So, this album is not just purely aggro thrash metal...there's some stylistic variety to it.

The second cd is superior to the first, I think. My favourite songs from that are:

Am I evil-has occultish lyrics (I don't tend to associate Metallica with BS lyrics, but this compilation has the kind of lyrics which you associate with the dark side of metal...but not really to an extreme extent). The song has some baroque and intricate fast lead guitar work. The intro also has a Black Sabbath vibe to it, despite being a Diamond Head song originally.

Breadfan-the riff is similar to the one in that great Red Hot Chilli Peppers' song "Around the world". The Peppers song is newer though, I think, so maybe they've heard something like this song previously. There is a change of pace in this song which reminds me of Metallica's original instrumental "Orion".

So What?-this song is really in your face and a lot of fun. By a punk band I've never heard of before: "Anti-Nowhere League". The lyrics are relatively shocking, even now, so I suppose it would take courage for Metallica to sing this song nowadays! It has real punk rock attitude and the language to go with that. If you're a teenager, this is the song to either make sure your parents never hear you playing, or to play this song just to spite them.

Overall, the sound quality on this cd is excellent (in stark contrast to the sound quality on my favourite Metallica album, "Reload"). Occasionally a couple of songs don't sound very hi-fi, but it's not as bad as, say, The Moldy Peaches debut cd, which takes that lo-fi sound to a whole different level.

The booklet which comes with this cd has very lengthy notes on the compilation, and the picture of the band in cover band mode is good for a laugh too.

If you like thrash metal, punk rock, and the bass guitar, I think you will like this album.

Just a couple of notes I made on some songs from this album:

Last caress/Green Hell-a nihilistic punk song veering into a frantic thrash song. Has an out of whack version of Iron Maiden's intro to their all time classic song "Run to the hills" for the outro.

Damage case-the intro reminded me of Wolfmother's riff for "Woman". Wolfmother won a Grammy for heavy metal or something a couple of years ago, I think.

Too late, too late-reminded me a bit of AC/DC, guitar sound wise.

Anyway, here are some heavy metal albums I highly recommend and have reviewed here (most of them):

Metallica: Reload/Master of puppets/Self-titled

Coldseed: Completion makes the tragedy

I thought that this was a great buy especially considering it gave me a better idea of where one of the greatest bands drew its inspiration. Everything from folk style songs (e.g. Whiskey in a Jar, Turn the Page, and Tuesday's Gone) to wupass heavy songs (e.g. So What, Am I Evil, Blitzkrieg) to the excellent cover of Queen's "Stone Cold Crazy" are all some of the great variety you can see here. Many complain that Metallica became sellouts for ditching their traditional thrash, but I think this goes to show that they wanted to become more accessible by crunching human stories into some of their later work instead of singing constantly about revenge, death, and chaos like countless other metal acts.

Though the first disk has the more recent songs that vear into the style of "Load" and "Reload," the second disk contains all the B-sides and covers from their earlier career as is noticeable by James' higher vocal range. I think there is a little bit of everything to get a taste of from this set for anyone with an open mind.

Side 2 of the Second record in this 3 LP album doesn't play right. James Hetfield sounds like one of the Chipmunks and the band plays so fast it sounds like they're on Speed. There must have been a mistake at the factory because I had Amazon replace this album for me and the 2nd copy did the exact same thing as the first one! So, I asked for a refund. That was a very sad moment for me. I really wanted to hear Metallica's tribute to Mercyful Fate on Vynil...

If you really want Garage Inc. on vynil, wait until Metallica re-issues it sometime in the near future. They're doing that with all their albums in celebration of Kill'em All's 25th anniversary.

Okay, I'm going through the inevitable re-assessment of Metallica's catalog that comes with every new album. With Load, I have the same opinion that I did ten years ago: if this album had been made by anyone else, it would have been hailed as a great ROCK album. Problem is, Metallica spent all those years putting out truly epic, towering songs. After their 1st four albums (lets just ignore BLACK) anything other than truly legendary thrash built on mathematically precise, wonderfully layered foundations sounds weak and pathetic.
The songs on this album are good. I spent a lot of time listening to it and still go back every once in a while. I, like everyone else (or at least everyone who was around for the old stuff and has good taste) would have preferred MORE of the old sounding stuff. That being said, what's here is good music and should be judged on it's own merits rather than being trashed because of what its not.

Metallica's first worthy album! Took over 10 years to perfect... but they finally did it! Load has so many hits, it should be a greatest hits! My favorite track is.. well I don't have one i guess, they are all A+!! And i'm so glad they started doing music videos, cut their hair, and stopped writing those boring songs like 'One' and "seek and destroy'
Ever since this album Metallica has gotten better, but they can't top St. Anger!


For other good Metallica check out Reload, St. Anger, and Death Magnetic

For good Megadeth check out anything after Youthanasia, oh Especially RISK!! That was ultra trash metal.

Okay, I'll admit it up front: this does not sound like the Metallica we were used to. That said, the album is very good.

Metallica experiments a little on "Load," trying out some new styles. This is most noticeable on "Mama Said," which almost sounds country. As a whole, the album has a slower pace than any other Metallica album, but makes up for it with depth: "Hero of the Day," "Until it Sleeps" and "The Outlaw Torn" sound totally different from what we're used to but strike us still, relying more on lyrics and metaphor than, say, "One" or "Master of Puppets," which are still amazing pieces of music but use different tactics to get there.

Comparing it to other Metallica works is where the argument begins. Standing alone, this is a great album.

After recently buyin Death Magnetic and being very impressed , i decided to buy Load, one of Metallica,s albums i,d passed up on due to bad reviews , Hmm big mistake , this is absolutly brilliant imo , not really thrash more hard rock , maybe this is why many gave it a low score ? tracks like , Bleeding Me ,Aint My [...], House Jack Built ,Hero Of The Day, Poor Twisted Me ..er ok all of them make it a very enjoyable listen. Just not too impressed how the cover art was made , an i always thought they were a painting of flames lol.
A good album to wind down to at the end of a hard day.

This was when James was still James. He wasnt taking lessons by some psychiatrist on how to be "in touch with his feelings" and all that. He was James Hetfield: angry, screwed up and self destructive....the only difference here is that hes more mature, and naturally explored other musical tastes he was into. Namely blues.

The blues have been a cornerstone to rock n roll and metal music, and we see MetallicA expounding upon that. Its dark and heavy but makes you wanna move a bit more than just head bang and push 'n shove in a mosh pit. Load has way more groove to it.

"Aint My B__tch" is an upbeat opener. Its catchy hard rock that has that MetallicA touch. Its got this slight southern heavy feel to it that i love. The guitar solo is evident of that. Good opener.

"2x4" hits us upside the head with that blues sound, but darker than typical blues music. mix it with heavy guitar and James's evil growling vocals, and you got an idea of what it might sound like. This song deserves to be played while your drinking some beer or liquor and having smoke. This song might be more of an acquired taste, but its good stuff.

"The House That Jack Built" is probubly one of my very favorite of the songs on Load. Clocking at 6 minutes and 38 seconds, MetallicA progress with a bit longer song. With a memorable chorus thats very inspiring. This is a dark, and even uplifting song, if you can believe it...in a downtrodden way. One of the best songs on the album.

Now "Until It Sleeps" was the first big hit single on this album. I remember when i first heard it on the radio. It wasnt epic metal music...but i remember not complaining. It was its own beast. It was heavy and dark in its own right. Sure i didnt have any thrash speed guitar, but i honestly didnt notice. The song was that good. Dark inspired memorable hard rock, with a very memorable bass line opener. Cant forget that. Another good track that has a lot of lyrical meaning.

"King Nothing" almost seems like it could of been done on maybe the Black Album, it always tricks me, and i have to remember that its not metal, more than its some groovy evil sounding hard rock with that blues influence. Not all heavy music has to be fast as hell. This song cocks more attitude, a attribute ive always loved about later MetallicA albums like this. They werent just pissed, James gave us that " I DONT GIVE A F--CK" attitude , that made us wanna kick down someones door, with a shotgun in one hand and a beer in the other. Good song.

"Hero Of The Day" slows it down a tad, though it has a bit of an upbeat bridge and heavy chorus. The verses James sing are soothing, inspired and filled with power as it builds up. Definatly one of the more memorable songs on the album. It has an almost haunting melancholy to it, but it definatly has its heavy parts. Another very good song, and very meaningful song. ( the S&M version is even more powerful and moving)

"Bleeding Me" requires a bit more from the listener. Its over 8 minutes long. And hopefully MetallicA fans and casual listeners have a decent attention span lol. This is a very layed back, reflective song. More great singing from James, and yet it still manages to build up into something heavy. Further exploring that dark hard rock, structured around a somewhat blues influence. Remember, traces of the blues can be found in 80s MetallicA as well, you find it really in all metal and rock, but MetallicA really dug deeper into that influence and took it to the next level. This song returns to epic song lengths of old, but it takes us to another world, a world thats still pitch black.


The "Cure" is one of their more experimental songs. Its not a bad song, but its not as outstanding as the other songs, but still gives us more groovy riffs, and its worth listening to. The part when it goes "...Uncross your arms..." that sounds like they channeled the Black Album. That little part sounded so heavy, it kinda makes you want MetallicA to kick into over drive and turn it into a speed metal song...but to no avail lol. ( Just go pop in the Black Album if you start getting sentimental ) Again, not a bad song. just not extremely special.

"Poor Twisted Me" is another acquired taste. Steps back into that dark bluesy mode, but is a bit more infectious, makes me want to sing along. Could work as another drinking song at a bar. Thats what i like about. Its an okay song, just might take a few listens to really appreciate.

"Waste My Hate" is an okay song. just another hard rock song infused with some of that blues infatuation. Might be considered filler. but its not a bad song. it doesnt fall flat. If you really dig this sound you might love it even more. Either way, it didnt stand out in my head as all that amazing, but its a decently made song.

Now we come what i think is MetallicA's most underrated song of all time.
That song? "Mama Said"
"Mama said" could of been a great metal song if it wanted to be, but it took a more western path instead, and delivers a powerful and great song still that showcases some of james best vocals. This is one of my top favorite songs from LOAD, and from Metallica, period. Its an inspired song that moves you. telling a tale. A must listen. Great stuff that stands with MetallicAs up with other great unforgettable MetallicA songs.
Though sadly its very overlooked , but that makes it all the more special. Its like finding gold in a mountain somewhere no one cared to look.
Great stuff.

"Thorn Within" continues the quality song craft. This song is as dark as anything sung by James on the Black Album but in more hard rock mode, but its still very heavy and dark. Memorable lyrics. Memorable song. One of the better songs offered on Load.

Now heres another one of those songs you have to be patient with lol. It tells a story of a kid who i think grew up being ridiculed and finds revenge in a way thats not really all that nice. When the chorus sings "...Now they all pray!...Blood stain wash away!!" , you get the idea. And i think that chorus is the highlight of the song. The song as whole is allright, definatly takes a lot of listens probubly to really get into. But ill tell you what. MetallicA created their own sound here with Load....you cant really put your finger on the sound. Its got blues, its got hard rock, with a splash of alterntive rock.....who makes this kinda music? NO ONE. just MetallicA did, and it was pretty damn good. Even when songs like this were one of those more "acquired taste" lol.

"The Outlaw Torn" is a lumbering, dark, epic song. James sounds great here. Very good lyrics. Raw real emotion was pumped into this song, you can feel it. One of the more dark songs on the album. A great closer to a very good album. It one of MetallicA's longest songs clocking at 9 minutes and 48 seconds. Its a bit progressive, heavy , and laid back, but all together dark and cold as a desert at midnight.


This might not be as speedy as past 80s work by this band or as utterly heavy, but the songs are so good that i didnt even really notice, i forgot about it, the songs were that infectious and well done, ya cant help but like this album. Its still very much MetallicA in the end ,just matured and with a bit more grooves.


The LOAD album seems to have aged very well, like strong whiskey.

If you are of the speed metal only type of metallica fan, then this is not for you. However, if you love music, then this is. With Death Magnetic, Rick Ruben, along with many old metallica fans, said "make the album that should have come after And justice for all". The thing is, they made that album already. It's called "the Black ALbum". The fact of the matter is, Metallica was ready to move forward after "justice" - they had taken the "prog-metal"/speed metal thing as far as they could take it, and for them to evolve as musicians, they HAD to realease the stripped-down blues metal experimentaion that was "metallica(black album)", Load and Reload. which was, incidentally, just as important and influential as their first four albums. Musically, this is growth. this is experimentation. not something that the relatively narrow -minded""new metallica sucks" fan wants to hear. They already made four perfect, groundbreaking thrash albums, which no one else had done.... So, if you like music, Load is an expertly crafted excercise in melody and slow-tempo heavy rock. and if you like the sound of that, then metallica is one of the best, if not the best, at that genre. which is pretty cool, since they are also the best (or were, depending how you see it) band at speed- driven prog - thrash metal. Thus, if you are more broad in your music taste, you will find that Metallica is a band who created and conquered two genres, and RELOAD is an excellent example of this.

The Metallica fans are divided, with some saying Metallica has evolved and others saying they betrayed their fans. Make no mistake: "Reload" sounds nothing like "Master of Puppets" and bears only a passing resemblance to "Load."

The album is distinctly heavier than its namesake predecessor, yet tries to maintain its feel by including softer songs like "Low Man's Lyric" (a good track in its own right, but I digress). What this amounts to is a bunch of songs, some of which are great and some immediately forgettable, all tossed into a blender and put on the album in whatever order they came out. The album doesn't flow well, a cardinal sin when coming from the same people who brought us "Master of Puppets" and "Ride the Lightning."

Most of the songs are good, but the album is laid out terribly, leaving us somewhere in limbo when it comes to forming an opinion of it.

better than Load but still not enough for me to care. seriously, who cares what Metallica has to say anymore? arent we over it yet? i mean, they released 4 records that made metal what it is today, no one in a metal band can decline the notion that Metallica paved the way and in a way invented what we know today as american metal but that was 20 plus years ago, do we really care anymore?

there are some decent radio hits on this cd which is what Metallica had been trying to do since 1990 and have succeeded but with time the songs on these later era releases just arent worth the plastic they are put on.

im just so over Metallica and these songs.

dont get me wrong tho, i love Metallica, i love the early era stuff because it still rules over most if not all metal thats around today but do they really have anything left to offer but stale music packaged as an excuse to tour?

The best to the worst; Metallica stinks and they know it. The band committed suicide after ...And Justice For All.

This album is not terrific, as it has some filler. That filler is, generally, very bad. But when its good, this album succeeds. For some reason, the thrashing burn-outs never matured, however, and they are here giving undeserved 1-star ratings. It's all very unfortunate.

This album is a good, solid, hard, blues-based, rocker. It is interesting enough to keep you listening. The first half of this album is very good.

If you like hard rock, check it out.