Well Metallica does it again – they made another lukewarm album. 

Sure, the solos are back and gone is the beyond annoying tin can snare sound of St. Anger, but so is the energy.  They just feel like they’re going through the motions on this one.  The tempo changes are sporadic and meant to conjure up that …And Justice For All nostalgia of yore but instead it sounds like they kicked the tempo up in random places because they got tired of playing the same riff over and over again!

Rob Trujillo is an amazing bass player and I really hoped to hear what he brought to the table but Bob Rock could have done the bass tracks on Magnetic for all we know!  Not nearly as experimental as his work with Infectious Grooves.

The only one who really shines here is Kirk Hammett.  He slays all even though some of the riffage might sound a tad worn out by this point, but he’s gotten to the point in his career where the listener can say, “Hey, that’s Kirk playing,” and there’s a lot to be said for that.  Hetfield’s guitar work adds flavor and that signature “chug-chug” that so many have fallen in love with, but again, the vocals an lyrics leave a lot to be desired.

“Suicide!  I’ve already died!”…c’mon…he’s just trying too hard here.

The bottom line is Kirk’s leads are the only thing that saves this from being a total suckfest.  After little more than a decade of hearing so-so to downright bad material from a band that has delivered so much to music fans everywhere this Metallica fan has finally decided to stop giving them chances.

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