Metal Reviews

The first three Metallica albums are classics.

Escape would be the worst song on those three if TUD didn't top it.

I don't consider either "And Justice" or the black album to be classics.

The black album is a classic by default simply because it sold so many damn copies. It's their Sgt Pepper. They've done much better, but that's their iconic album.

Except that Sgt Pepper is one of the best Beatles' album which isn't the case with the Black Album...

Really? She's Leaving Home is one of their worst songs. Revolver and Magical Mystery Tour both beat it, easily. And the Yellow Submarine soundtrack, though only half of that is The Beatles, and I'm the only one who holds that opinion.

Beatles debate aside, I think my analogy holds.

Sorry to break the news, but great albums that are a step down for a band do not automatically suck.

The black album is a classic, even if it is not up to metallica's gigantic standards up to that point.

This reminds me of people complaining abut Bodom sucking when they are still one of the best groups around even though they are at a plateau at this point.

What band hasn't released a (long) string of material that didn't live up to past glories only to reemerge later on?

Deep Purple anyone?

I love She's Leaving Home ! And I think Yellow Submarine is their worst of the second part of their career...

And yes, I love Revolver & Magical Mistery Tour are awesome... Still my favourite Beatles is Abbey Road !

But back to Metallica... Indeed, the Black Album is their best selling album but not their their best.

Read a review of some new songs on Blabbermouth. Mixed bag, apparently, but that's nothing new from Metallica.

A mixed bag is still better than the pile of crap Shit Anger was...

yeah longer songs sounds like it might appeal to me more

Anyone that says the black album isn't a classic is just being a stubborn asshole. And I say that kindly. =)

Ditto. Whether some people like it or not, the Black Album has more-or-less been officially declared a classic.

Anyway, here are my ratings for every Metallica album that I own:

No Life 'Til Leather - 80/100
Kill 'em All - 85/100
Ride The Lightning - 75/100
Master Of Puppets - 90/100
And Justice For All - 90/100
The Black Album - 75/100
Load - 90/100
ReLoad - 85/100
Garage, Inc. - 80/100
S&M - 85/100
I Disappear (single) - 75/100
St. Anger - 50/100

I agree, I'm just getting alot of pepper from certain people for having that opinion.. It's probably the easiest one to get into. At least that was the album that got me fully into metal.

I'm hoping for an album better than Load/Reload/St.Anger, that's not too much to ask, is it?

Kill 'em All - 90/100
Ride The Lightning - 97/100
Master Of Puppets - 98/100
And Justice For All - 87/100
The Black Album - 87/100
Load - 60/100
ReLoad - 55/100
St. Anger - 30/100

This argument must never be used again. Sales does not equal classic status, else N Sync and Britney Spears are pretty high up there.

Kill 'em All - 85/100
Ride The Lightning - 89/100
Master Of Puppets - 90/100
And Justice For All - 90/100
The Black Album - 69/100
Load - 55/100
ReLoad - 55/100
St. Anger - 1/100

If the black album sucks then countdown to extinction must suck too!
Saying the black album sucks or that it isn't a classic is like saying that British Steel sucks because its the most stripped down of all Priest albums.
It would be like saying that Clayman isn't any good cause the songs and songwriting is more straightfoward and not as conceptial as the Jester Race or Whoracle.

In my opinion, If Metallica hadn't done the black album they would had faded away beneath the likes of Pantera, Sepultura, and Machine Head. They would had either join the ranks of Slayer, making the same kind of album each year or become like Testament or Exodus, breaking up and being forgotten for 10 years untill finally they made a monster comeback album like Tempo of the Damned or The Formation of Damnation.

No rock band that came out in '91 sounded like the black album. No rock band since the black album has even come close to making an album like the black album. Its one the ultimate hard rock albums. As a metal album it should be on the same level as British Steel.
Master of Puppets - Classic
Black Album - Classic
In Justice For All - Classic
Ride The Lightning - Classic
Kill 'em All - Classic
Reload - 75
Load -70
St. Anger- 60

[quote="doublewhat"]If the black album sucks then countdown to extinction must suck too!
Saying the black album sucks or that it isn't a classic is like saying that British Steel sucks because its the most stripped down of all Priest albums.
It would be like saying that Clayman isn't any good cause the songs and songwriting is more straightfoward and not as conceptial as the Jester Race or Whoracle.[quote]

Countdown to Extinction is average (though it has better energy and songwriting than Black Album, IMO of course). British Steel similarly has some pretty average songs- a good album, but nowhere near any of Priest's best. Clayman is also not as good an album as any that came before.

[quote]In my opinion, If Metallica hadn't done the black album they would had faded away beneath the likes of Pantera, Sepultura, and Machine Head. They would had either join the ranks of Slayer, making the same kind of album each year or become like Testament or Exodus, breaking up and being forgotten for 10 years untill finally they made a monster comeback album like Tempo of the Damned or The Formation of Damnation.[/quote[

Thankfully instead they went down the path that caused them to release St. Anger! I also take offense to your statement that Slayer have made the same album for their entire career- if that were true, maybe they'd have released something halfway decent in the last fifteen years.

Countdown's popularity never fails to baffle me. You see it on so many "Best Metal Albums Of All Time" lists, Symphony Of Destruction is hailed as one of the best Megadeth songs ever by just about everybody, etc. Even though Countdown was more-or-less Megadeth's "sell-out." The songs were stripped down for radio play, the thrash was basically gone, Dave took a more humorous/sarcastic approach with his lyrics, guitar solos were simplified considerably, and it contained Megadeth's first ever ballad (which, contrary to popular belief, was not A Tout Le Monde but Foreclosure Of A Dream). Granted, Countdown's a better album than Black IMO, but I seriously wonder why Megadeth takes absolutely no heat from metal fans for putting out Countdown To Extinction while Metallica takes a lot of heat for putting out The Black Album, Sepultura takes a lot of heat for putting out Chaos AD (which is a MUCH better album than Countdown IMO), etc.

Ironically, many of these people who cannonize Countdown To Extinction are the same people who trash its follow-up Youthanasia, even though that album was really just a logical progression of (and IMO a much better album than) Countdown.



It always annoys me when people accuse Slayer of "putting out the same album throughout their entire career." Slayer sounds VERY different now than they did during their "classic era" (ie. Reign In Blood through Seasons In The Abyss). Their songs are slower and more groove-oriented, Tom Araya's voice is more growly, they have an obvious nu-metal/metalcore influence in a lot of newer songs, they use B and C# tuning for more than half of their songs (they used to use Eb tuning almost exclusively), etc. I honestly wonder if these people who accuse Slayer of sounding the same after 20 years have ever even HEARD their more recent material.

Anyway, sorry for such a bitter post.

Let me just say that I agree with every aspect of Seinfeld's post. Particularly on how Youthanasia is quite a good album while Countdown is just so... boring. Even when I saw Megadeth live a few weeks ago, Symphony of Destruction bored me to tears- though Ashes in Your Mouth is awesome. Such an overrated album.

Maybe I'm just a poser but the Black Album is a classic for me, although only about half of it's good. But when it's good, it's fucking great.

Countdown to Extinction is brilliant, it might be poppy but it's fucking great. Youthanasia isn't as good, no way.