Some albums contain brilliant songs, some sound phenomenal, others manage to create a completely unique vibe...
Metallica's self titled album did all of this and so much more and I don't think it will ever loose it's striking impact.
After four albums with lots of aggression and speed, the band daringly decided on something a bit different, a decision that made this album seem complete and comprehensive through twelve distinct compositions.
Enter Sandman in many ways represents the idea
of
"The Black Album". Groovy mid-tempo Metal with bite, punch, atmosphere and impressive song writing.
The build-up is still one of my favourite.
The essence of
Sad But True is quite simple, but man is it effective, the main guitar is uncompromisingly heavy and I love the details Lars throws in.
Holier Than Thou rips, tears and spits fire. The crushing drive and James ireful vocals are a perfect pair wrapped into a powerful rhythm section. A Metal masterpiece.
The more time I spend with
The Unforgiven the more impressed I have become with the depth and musical range of the piece. James low toned voice is amazingly stirring and the mixture of acoustic, lead orientated and heavy rhythm guitars creates a multi-sided atmosphere of mystique and melancholy.
The beginning of
Wherever I May Roam takes you on a mental ride throughout the bare landscape of the Middle East before the drum explosion steers it onto a rockier road.
The massive bass takes on a creative role, making room for itself to flourish and the symbolic lyric is so well adjusted the whole concept.
Don't Tread On Me is a personal highlight, the teasingly melodic beginning is just awesome and there is something about this song that's utterly cool and unpretentious. It's like the band decided to jam along with this one, resulting in a very propulsive track, I have a hard time not getting up my chair when the riff at 3.04 kicks in...that's head-banging material right there.
Through The Never is on the other hand my least favourite track of the lot.
The main riff becomes a bit trivial. The elaborate guitar solo is phenomenal and the verse has a special built-in strength making this a solid track anyway.
The orchestral arrangements in
Nothing Else Matters add a welcomed element and enhance a brilliant and rich ballad. The way the song goes from placid to intense and back again is simply magical.
Of Wolf And Man is another fantastic song, feeding on a primal urge. The drumming is no less than world class, the mid-section authentically gloomy and the rhythm guitar fiercely brutal.
The oddness of the structure in
The God That Failed is exactly what lifts it above just good. A catchy lick, the experimental and most excellent solo, an almost hypnotic slow paced rhythm section ending on a cool weird note all makes perfect sense as a whole package.
One of the most unique
Metallica songs have to be
My Friend Of Misery, a characteristic bass creates a most hypnotizing mood that keeps popping up throughout. James sings convincingly and Kirk adds a bucketful of lead fills keeping things vivid.
The military
drumbeat starting off
The Struggle Within is a sign of the intensity that quickly unfolds in its wake, this track is the most old school one with a trash beat and a blistering guitar solo, as with all songs on this album the different parts are so immensely tight glued together.
One of my favourite
Metallica songs.
The dark shrouded lyrics are elaborately written and cover a lot of ground, nicely related to the nature of the songs, going from emotional (
The Unforgiven), critical (
Holier Than Thou) and brutish (
Of Wolf And Man).
If I had to pick out my favourite produced album, this could very well end up being the one, the basic fundament is simply unbreakable and adds tons of extra power to the songs, the drums have so much force and every detail lights up just right.
Oddly I haven't stumbled upon anything sounding quite like this since.
This is a completely consistent album, every member contributes with unforgettable performances, every input falls into place and I'm fascinated about how fresh these songs sound today. They will always be classics, even those who didn't really achieve that in the broad public, hell those are some of the most brilliant ones.
Massive!
Written by
Tommy Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Show all reviews by TommyRatingsTommy: 9.5/10Members: 9.5/10 - Average of 3 ratings.
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 | bogdan
Rating: 10/10
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 | Sandra
Rating: 9.5/10
The black album, ooh yeah! This was how my journey in metal started.
This album has a s... · Read more · |
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