Death Magnetic - Metallica > Reviews > Good Album but not Master

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money	Good

Advantages:	Kirk's Solos back, songs more varied and better than St Anger, a couple of epics .
Disadvantages:	Not as good as some over - the - top reviewers have said .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

It took me a while to get up the courage to buy this album, because, as most dedicated Metallica fans probably felt, I felt scared, in a way, as this was really a make or break record for the metal legends, following the disappointment of St Anger. However, when the heavy riff of That Was Just Your Life kicks in after the ominous, atmospheric intro I was able to breathe a collective sigh of relief, as it did herald a return of the pre-St Anger Metallica.

The first thing I was able to notice was that the influences of ..And Justice For All were painted all over this album. Even the way the album is structured points this way: The heavier, riff-based songs that kick off this album (That Was Just Your Life and The End of the Line) carry a lot of similarities with how Justice began with Blackened and ..And Justice for All. Then afterwards, like Justice with One, we get a softening ecstasy with The Day That Never Comes, which in my opinion is the gem of this record. The way the song builds up to the powerful chorus will give you shivers down your spine, like only a true Metallica classic could. The Unforgiven III is also a stand-out song on Death Magnetic, in some ways, it's sad to see them take such a move away from the old Unforgivens, however what they have created is outstanding.

Despite some good quality songs on this record, there are a few that aren't bad, but turn into a drag when your listening to them. Songs like Broken, Beat and Scarred take a while to get into after the somewhat slow start.

As a guitar player myself its a blessing to hear Kirk back with his crazy, over the top solos. I'm sure that most fans would agree that the absence of the guitar solos was a key reason for the disappointment of St Anger.

Despite all these positives, we shouldn't be too optimistic. There has been a lot of speculation that this album would be a 'Neo-Master of Puppets.' In my opinion, this album is a good piece of work that shouldn't be judged in that way, as that will only let down a lot of hyped Metallica fans. The Metallica sound has evolved too much to even think about that happening. Master of Puppets was their peak and they will never create another album as groundbreaking. My overall view is that if this album is listened to for its own sound rather than being tested against Master of Puppets, you will see just how good it actually is.