By 2008 Metallica were more than just a veteran act. They were part of the four #1 album in a row club. Countless stadium tours. Without question the biggest heavy band of all time. However, their 2003 record, ‘St. Anger,’ while going #1 had faced massive backlash from fans and critics. For it’s lackluster, muddy songwriting and terrible drum production. The time was right, five years later, for a massive comeback. And that’s exactly what Metallica did with 2008’s ‘Death Magnetic.’
Bringing in legendary producer Rick Rubin, Metallica were set to release their best material, hailing back to the ‘…And Justice For All’ era. But with a fresh, melodic sense that the self titled album and ‘Load’ eras have in spades. The result was ‘Death Magnetic.’ A top to bottom epic of thrash, groove and melodic heavy metal.
Other than the production, which came out during the height of the ‘loud wars,’ (still light years ahead of St. Anger) it’s a flawless record. From top to bottom, ‘Death Magnetic’ is entirely the best of what Metallica has to offer. Countless riffs, thrash moments, groove kickassery, shredding solos up the ass and just a pinch of sensitivity. The one, two, three punch of ‘That Was Just Your Life,’ ‘The End of the Line’ and ‘Broken, Beat and Scarred’ is a combo that’s pretty damn hard to beat. The band sounds fresh, focused and re-inspired. The single ‘Cyanide’ is one of the strongest Metallica have ever released. And remains a concert staple.
‘Suicide and Redemption’ brings in the old school instrumental track. Along with the the early progressive tendencies of the band. ‘The Unforgiven III’ is a worthy final installment of the trilogy. ‘The Judas Kiss’ cuts through the speakers with its kick ass dissonant metal riffage. And the album closes with the epic ‘My Apocalypse.’ The strongest closing track since ’91’s ‘The Struggle Within.’
Overall, ‘Death Magnetic’ is a gaument of heavy metal excellence. And it proved to those who were skeptical of Metallica being out of touch, due to the previous album and subsequent documentary ‘Some Kind of Monster,’ that they weren’t to be counted out. Once ‘Death Magnetic’ was released there was no looking back. The tour set a standard of Metallica’s stage show that’s still present to this day. The following album, ‘Hardwired…To Self Destruct’ wasn’t quite was strong. But it’s a worthy predecessor to a great comeback album. Here’s to hoping that Metallica will continue the song writing vein on ‘Death Magnetic’ on the next album. But with the production quality of ‘Hardwired.’
