To learn about the idea behind the album of the week, go here. (It is becoming more like the album of the month, but I'm defiantly carrying on as best as I can. ;-))
After years of silence, Metallica released their 11th studio album and as usually, it is accompanied by the usual fanfare, high expectations and similtaneous gripes that whatever will come out will never hold up compared to their earlier excellence, now rightly considered timeless classics.
Before I get to the album itself, first a disclaimer: I am / was a rather big Metallica fan and greatly indebted to them: They introduced me to the world of metal and they were the reason why I picked up playing the guitar. Moreover, to this day, I find James Hetfield and the demons he clearly carries / carried around with him an endlessly interesting, relatable and utterly likeable dude and still love watching interviews with him.
Having said that, what can I say about the record itself? To my ears, and it pains me to say that, this record sounds rather mediocre. Too often the songs, mostly in mid-tempo, meander around, drag on a tad too long on centered around rather generic and forgettable riffs and hence tend to blend into one another. Even Hetfield's energetic vocal performance can't save most songs. I just have the impression that Metallica has done these sort of songs better before: more memorable & more focussed in their composition. That is why the songs that tend to sort of deviate from the pattern described above are the ones that stand out to me.
Standout tracks: the fast and clearly inspired by earlier NBWOHM (a nod to King Diamond?) "Lux Æterna"; the long-ish closer "Inamorata", which is in the vein of "The Outlaw Torn" and "Fixxer"; the almost punkish "Too Far Gone?"
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