And so have many people, in different genres. Take for instance, Bruce Springsteen. He has a loyal following. When the new Springsteen album comes out fans will bitch just like Metallica fans have for close to 20 years now. He'll sell a couple million albums and sell out shows around the world -- playing the old songs. That is Metallica nowadays -- they're never going to release a new record and push 20 million copies and rule the world. The same goes for Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Motley Crue, and any of those other 80's superstar Metal/Rock groups.

So what of Death Magnetic? It's a great album, just short of a perfect grade. A bit thrashier than the last few, sort of a cross between Load, Master of Puppets and ...And Justice For All, closer to the latter. Lyrically, I like what James has done here, very vicious, very angry. Anger being the driving force of Metallica music during their greatest successes, it seems they've come together, intent on banishing their detractors. It's also nice to hear Kirk soloing again, unlike the last album, causing a bit of contention among 'true' fans.... Let me back track a bit. St. Anger was not that bad of a record. Sure, the lyrics were corny, emphasis on barked ear shots, like a lot of the Nu-Metal stuff (that Slipknot "if you're 555 I'm 666" thing comes to mind). But St. Anger was a positive for the band, they did something different, Metal, interesting, and there are some similarities here, mainly the intense riffing, although Hetfield delivers some really vicious and chunky riffs, where St. Anger sort of got lost, simple, uninspired. And there are no short tunes, harkening back to ...And Justice For All, which also had its depressed moments of useless overkill.

But, back to the good stuff… Hetfield's riffing! It would not be a rush to judgment saying that Death Magnetic bestows the ears with some of the greatest riffs ever assembled, over and over again. Trujillo and Hammett are part of it also. Trujillo more so, but lets give James credit for creating something that is purely Metal and heavy, yet there remains a lightness, accessibility, and vicissitude like Metallica and Master of Puppets. And then there's Lars, who in spite of Metallica's achievement, has never truly been revered for stick prowess. Here he rises to the occasion, crazy with the snare, fierce stop and start bombarding, and unrelenting intensity. The instrumental "Suicide & Redemption" captures every element of Metallica Heavy Metal vehemence, without getting boring. When was the last time a 10 minute Heavy Metal instrumental did that?

So yes, my friends, their heyday is certainly gone, but then again, if there is a band that could prove me wrong, it's Metallica. To their credit, they came up with something near genius. Like the heavyweight slugger stumbling around the ring who is able to muster up one more swing, and it's a knockout. The impact of Death Magnetic has yet to be felt by the world, but it's surely blackened this reviewer's eye... and since the album cover art is very white, is this now "The White Album"? Like The Beatles, Metallica have been and are in some controversy, seen and unseen. However, I don't think the Metallica "White Album" will be their top seller like The Beatles' was.

P.S. Death Magnetic is currently number one on Amazon.com; however, the CD is selling for $8.99. The industry is definitely in the throes of a great revolution. I think I paid $8.99 25 years ago for Ride the Lightning. For all the fun (and inexpense) of downloading songs, the effect is slowly being felt artistically. Already, there are very few great albums, just hit songs. Unfortunately for Metallica and those who will otherwise never get to hear this record, there are no hit songs on Death Magnetic.

written by Alan Gilkeson

Playing time: 74:42