Whatever your views on Metallica's Black Album are, you will have more respect for this album and the band in general after watching this film.
Like the documentaries that the Classic Album Series have released in the past, including Iron Maiden's Number of the Beast, Judas Priest's British Steel, and Deep Purple's Machine Head among many other albums, we get the look inside the whole recording process, the songwriting ideas, and a behind the scenes view of what really went on. With this particular album, which was something completely new for Metallica when it comes to the whole recording process, seemed to almost implode the band, causing Hetfield to even seek singing instruction.
When you look at the Black Album, it was a new step for Metallica, they had just recently recruited Bob Rock, who was the man behind the board on Motley Crue's smash Dr. Feelgood, which had only been out a few years earlier, to produce the record; regardless of the bands first impression of Rock being negative. Rock literally took the band in a different direction when it came to working together in the studio, making the band play together at the same time. Up until this point, Metallica would record themselves separately, with each member doing their own thing one at a time. This would ultimately add to the friction between band members and their producer.
But Rock's vision of the record came together with the marriage of performing together copulated with various studio tricks that worked well, making the album sound more raw than overproduced. You have to remember that this was recorded in the days before Pro-Tools, or any other major digital audio workstation that might have been placed in recording studios like they are today; the tricks used here are raw with pure musicianship. The in-depth look (or should I say in-depth listening) at the multitrack tapes one track at a time gives us insight to how such a big sound came about. We hear droned guitars, harmonized arpeggios, 12-string basses, and other oddities that were not prominent in the final mix, but yet ambient and crucial to the whole sound. We also hear how engineering techniques were vital in giving the album its heavy sound, and we also learn that the mix of "Enter Sandman" set the tone for how the rest of the album was mixed, being heavy, punchy, and aggressive.
"Nothing Else Matters" is documented complete with an interview Michael Kamen, the man who composed the orchestration on this cut, which was another thing that was new to Metallica. We also get a look about how the whole S&M release came together years later with the orchestra, which completely contrasts the reluctance of the band wanting to use an orchestra on this song in the first place.
Overall, this is very entertaining, even for the fan that might have felt alienated or that the album was too commercial. The Black Album was really the last mega seller in the whole commercial/mainstream Heavy Metal Era, paving the way for more down to earth Metal bands like Megadeth and Anthrax to also achieve huge commercial success as well as multi-platinum record sales. But the album's release would be bittersweet for many reasons; one, this was really the last Metallica album many fans can even listen to; second, it would be five years until they would release another studio album, Load, which was disappointing to many fans, seeing the whole image and sound going off into a whole different direction. Also not to mention that only a few months after the Black Album was released, a trio from Seattle called Nirvana would come forth and release Nevermind, a record that shook the commercial record industry, causing Metal to be out-numbered on TV and radio by a whole plethora of Alternative Rock bands. But regardless, the album sold millions worldwide, made Metallica a household name, and has stood the test of time.
Rating: 8/10Written by
Hashman Monday, July 7, 2003
