Metallica - Load
If Bon Jovi are the biggest rock band on the planet, then Metallica must surely be the biggest metal band. This makes them hard to ignore, even for those of us who generally prefer our music on the more melodic end of the spectrum.
Metallica have their roots in the speed/ thrash metal genre. Most of this type of music leaves me cold, but Metallica do stand out from the crowd. The 'black' album seen Metallica producing material with a wider appeal than previously. This album takes things a step further.
The pre-release press talked out the band adopting a more 'trad metal' sound. This new direction, plus the makeup and the 'country' song, have created much discussion amongst their fans. The newsgroups were full of heated debate. The metalhead fans seem to have taken exception to the change in direction. All this criticism has led the band to make public that another album's worth of heavier material is already in the can for later release.
So much for the background, what does the album have to offer AOR/Melodic Rock fans ? The answer is not as much as perhaps the controversy would have you believe. Underneath the subtle changes in style, it's still the same old Metallica circa the 'black' album.
The album does improve as it goes along. This corresponds to the slight experimentation with different styles. Yes, the album does feature a slightly (and I do mean slightly) softer/melodic side of the band. I suspect that only the diehard metalheads would have any objections to this and that most people will have difficulty spotting the difference.
The highlights include the two 'trad metal' style numbers - 'Poor Twisted Me' & 'Ronnie', the familiar Metallica of 'Thorn Within' and the 10 min final track 'The Outlaw Torn'. 'Mama Said', the country song, provides a moment of relative peace amid the aural barrage. This is more a Metallica ballad with country flavoring, rather than out and out country. Garth Brooks can rest easy, Metallica aren't about to steal all his fans.
I have to admit that I like a bit of heaviness occasionally, but there's nothing here that would persuade me to abandon Dream Theater as my favorite purveyors of the heavier side of my collection. Based solely as a 'Melodic Rock' album this one should get a low mark, but I'm actually going to give it a 5 ( maybe I'm a bit of closet headbanger).
Rating : 5
