What's wrong with the Black Album (Metallica)?

Yeah, ...And Justice For All definitely never sounded "heavy" to me. A metal album without bass sounds like a bad joke.

 

Hated it from Day one. Gave it a couple of spins then shelved it. Never bought another album by them until DEATH MAGNETIC.

 

I've had it for twenty years and maybe played it like three times or something. I don't dislike their music but I've never managed to get into the band and even though many regard The Black Album as a sellout it's not very catchy to me.

 

Although many people, myself included, considered And Justice For All a disappointment--for me it was the lack of bass and the drumming, we tend to forget that, because in retrospect, it was the last album a lot of us older fans liked. The Black Album simplified things too much--the prog epics were gone, the lengthy bass solos, multipart songs--no more. They were, in effect, an alternative/grunge band now (even though grunge had yet to really break.)

 

I love the production and the sound of it, BUT:

1) with the exception of Enter Sandman, the songs suck.

2) it contains Nothing Else Matters,one of th worst songs ever recorded

3) too soft, too mellow, too lightweight

 

The Black Album is the band evolving and some fans just can't stomach that for some reason.

 

Overproduced and under delivers on the songs.

Too full of Hetfield-isms in the vocal department.

Overall the beginning of their self-indulgent era that continues.

Fleming Rasmussen ran a tighter ship.

 

??? Fade To Black has some loud parts and gets faster as it goes along. NEM is just boring.

A better comparison would be Fade To Black and Welcome Home (Sanitarium). Nothing Else Matters is more along the lines as Pink Floyd. Soft, boring, easy listening.

 

And there in a nutshell is why many Metallica fans started to so dislike that album; they weren't 'their' band anymore, but now belonged to the world and it's cousin, all of whom seemingly jumped on the bandwagon... I understand the sentiment even if I don't agree with it, Metallica were never anyone's band but their own... some fans complained about 'Fade to Black' being a "sell out" on it's initial release, so whatta ya gonna do?

I bought Metallica on the week of it's release - double vinyl and sounding incredible - and was thoroughly knocked out by it; there was a newfound depth and maturity to the songwriting, the band were concentrating on getting a strong groove going rather than mere complexity, we could actually - finally - hear Jason Newsted on bass, and Bob Rock's production was utterly immaculate. Did they 'sell out' on that album? Yes and no. The musical direction was genuine and organic, but the big-budget videos and innumerable singles were, I suspect, Ulrich's idea more than Hetfield's... it's no secret the former went on a major rock-star trip during that time; limos and coke and strippers and even a white leather jacket a la Axl Rose... he wanted to be in the biggest rock band on the planet and flaunt it for all he was worth, they were and he did, but he's always been something of an insufferable tit-head anyway so nothing new there, but the music was sound and still is.

The downside is that I heard that damn album so much in those days, and Metallica were so ridiculously overexposed that I got genuinely sick of the sight and sound of them and that album, I got 'Tallica fatigue that has never wore off, and even though I loved both Load and ReLoad, the damage was nonetheless done, and if I never hear 'Enter Sandman' again, I'll die a little happier, and that's not what music should invoke in someone...

It's just a pity the gargantuan success of that album destroyed that band in the long-run; they went from plucky underdogs to establishment overlords, losing much of what made them special to begin with... and that, I suspect, is what turned many longtime fans off, I see their point.

 

The Black Album is interesting in that many hardcore fans would say it's one of their least favourite albums, whereas more general fans would hail it as their classic. Many hardcore Metallica fans prefer thrash to plain old heavy metal, and therefore saw this album as a point where the band began to drop off. They also saw it as a concerted effort to achieve mainstream success, which they did. And of course, that always causes a pushback amongst said fans, because let's face it, no one wants your little sister or parents discovering your favourite 'underground' band. It's probably the album from Metallica I revisit least...To me, it's Metallica's least unique sounding album. And while some love the production, I'm honestly not a fan of the highly eq'd drums. There are some tracks I love, but if I hear Enter Sandman one more time, I might have to jump out a window.

 

I like the earlier albums fine but I also like The Black Album too. I don't know why some fans think you have to be in one camp or the other.

 

Pink Floyd, easy listening?

 

It's a matter of being what is considered a "metalhead". Stuff either "rocked" or it didn't. If it didn't meet the "heaviness" factor it was discarded. Metallica pretty much defined for Americans, not privy to the NWOBHM, what thrash metal was. Metallica moved away from that and hardcore fans didn't like it and resented it.

I would guess you didn't buy the albums up to Metallica in real time? If you did, you'd understand a bit better.

 

That's true! I bought The Black Album first in 1991 (yes, because of the MTV airplay of the videos) and the previous albums a little later.

 

This was the next logical step for Metallica after the complexity of ..And Justice for all. I think the biggest problem with it is the songs aren't nearly as good. Simplified, doesn't thrash, doesn't have the satisfying complex suites of the past. Enter Sandman is the perfect example, you could learn the opening riff to it the first day you learned guitar. It's not a bad song, it's just a pop metal song. When I play the album i get bored, whereas if I play any of the first 4 albums I don't want to stop and want to listen to every note. The Black Album I want to listen to something else. Depends on taste I guess, but to me the music is not interesting compared to the predecessors.

The same thing happened to Judas Priest IMO in the last 70's except they were much more effective writing simple mid-tempo rockers. But the Priest albums i continue to revisit are "Sin after Sin" and "Stained Class" over British Steel (which is still a great album, just simplified). If I am going to listen to an album repeatedly I need to discover new elements, find the brilliance over time. The Black Album doesn't reveal anything new the more i listen to it.

FWIW I think it might be the best production on a metal record ever.

 

While we can quibble over the mix, you absolutely cannot deny the impact of the guitars and IMO more than make up for the lack of bass on the album.

 

Surprised to hear a few people saying Justice was a disappointment. When that album came out I was blown away and thought no-one else could make a record that bad ass, even megadeth (I was wrong when Rust in Peace came out). I think it is their 2nd best album behind Lightning.

 

The songs are not very good and it didn't sound like Metallica to people who were fans of the first few records.

 

People outside of major cities sometimes don't realize how little music matters to the average person--I'm not talking about kids, I mean people in their 40's and 50's. Most haven't bought an album that doesn't have Adele's age as the title since high school. Sure some of them listen to country music on the radio or at the office, but they aren't buying the albums. There's a reason talk radio is so popular. If you take metal fans, they aren't large in number, but they are extremely passionate about their music. There are probably more 40-60 year old metalheads than there are young ones. They are very loyal, but don't show them disrespect. This is what they (and I'm including myself) saw Metallica doing with the black album--it's one thing to want a larger fan base, but it's another to compromise your sound to get it. They were, in effect, saying, we don't need you any more. Also, it's important to point out that 1991, the year the black album came out, was one of the key, most important years in metal's history--it was like, say 1967 or 1969 to rock fans. It was becoming more extreme and more innovative, and the playing was growing by leaps and bounds. Some of the albums that came out that year were Athiest - Unquestionable Presence, Autopsy - Mental Funeral, Bolt Thrower- War Master, Carcass - Necrotism, Cathedral - Forest Of Equilibrium, Coroner - Mental Vortex, C.O.C - Blind, Death - Human, Dismember - Like an Ever Flowing Stream, Entombed - Clandestine, Galactic Cowboys - S/T, Goreguts - Considered Dead, Last Crack -Burning Time Massacre - From Beyond, Melvins - Bullhead, Metal Church -The Human Factor, Morbid Angel - Blessed Are the Sick, Obsessed - Lunar Womb, Overkill - Horrorscope, Sepultura - Arise, Suffocation - Effigy Of the Forgotten, Voivod - Angel Rat...Metallica had been one of the leaders, and now they were turning their back on metal when metal was starting to peak. I suppose you would have to be a metal head, and be there at the time to fully understand it, but it was almost the equivalent of Dylan going electric to the folkie fans, but instead of becoming more interesting and adventurous, they were becoming bland and safe.

 

Justice was a disappointment after Master Of Puppets for sure. The Black Album debacle made me appreciate it more, though.

 

While I recognize the universal appeal I find the album far from perfect. My beef is there are several cuts that are unmemorable. Several tracks are plodding and boring. It's the beginning of the plodding era. The plod would be used to full effect on the Load albums. And "Nothing Else Matters" makes me vomit. Seriously. I enjoy the hits like "Wherever I May Roam", "Unforgiven" and "Enter Sandman", but rarely can sit through this record from start to finish. I'd rather just listen to "Dyer's Eve" and feel good about life.

 

Other than Nothing else matters Unforgiven I think the lyrics are pretty weak on this album as well. It's like they are trying to be a vagabond, or some weird outcast. It was like they were trying to be something. Where as you go back and listen to "Creeping Death" or "No Remorse" and they didn't have to say anything else. You just knew they were F***ing bas ass.

 

Nothing wrong with it, and this is one of the prime reasons why I detest and stay the heck away from the "metalhead" label. "If it ain't thrash it's trash"? Man GTFO with that!

 

I am envious. I wish I had yet to discover the first 4 masterpieces. Go buy and listen to the first 4 albums and absorb them. Then come back and tell us how often you spin The Black Album.

 

The Black Album and Master Of Puppets are Metallica's best albums imo.