Metallica

As metal and the world at large are now fully aware, Metallica are on the verge of releasing a new album. 'Death Magnetic'. It is an album that will silence the dissenters and put to rest the tireless rumours that the gods of metal are no longer in possession of the juices of creation. Whilst their 2003 effort St Anger was widely disowned by the fans, it was a fine album - albeit not in the context of Metallica’s esteemed discography – that had more ideas than most other bands entire back catalogue. Sadly these ideas were sometimes ill formed and bloated, resulting in some songs sounding more like a collection of riffs than complete coherent songs.

A room full of expectant journalists wait for the album to begin and its clear from the off that 'Death Magnetic’ suffers no such problem. Yes it’s unashamedly complex and completely laden with ideas but these ideas are more concise, well thought out and most importantly. Completely. F**king. Amazing.

From the off Metallica seem completely set on battering the living Christ out of the metal heretics, claiming their ears as the property of the devil. 'That Was Just Your Life' begins hauntingly, before laying siege to your ear drums with riffs of molten steel, it’s a rhythmically powerful song with seamless tempo changes and a searing solo that blasts you right back to puppets era.

'The End of the Line' is another brute with an intro many will remember from last years live excursions as 'The New Song'. Be-warned, The New Song’ has changed beyond all recognition into a monster that should not be. Riffs course through its veins as it beckons you to bang your head until it snaps. The sheer size of the song blows the mind, it twists and turns, attacked by mighty wah riddled solo’s, even allowing for a moment of respite in the form of an acoustic interlude before continuing on its kamikaze course to the end.

'Broken Beat and Scarred' falls slightly below the par set by the first two monsters but still holds its own. It is far more focused on groove than the previous two and no less powerful for it. Whereas the previous two were puppets era Metallica, this feels more like a 'Black album' song. Its focus more on the groove and the less is more attitude of that album.

The new single is up next. 'The Day that Never Comes', as you may of heard, is not all that dissimilar to 'One' in its construction. From gentle beginnings interspersed with moments of heaviness, the song moves through numerous different tempos culminating in an orgy of solos and tireless riffs.

Before moving onto the next song its worth pointing out that James is in full working order. His voice is crisp and powerful. 'All Nightmare Long' never quite does what you expect. After a forceful intro you sit waiting for a riff that’s never going to come until all of a sudden they lay the smack down with a barbaric riff that itself only lasts for a few bars before swiftly and expertly warping into something completely different. Like a child with ADD this song switches mood and ideas with reckless abandon, all the time teetering on the brink of collapse.

As anyone who hasn’t been living under four tonnes of concrete has already heard 'Cyanide' is the B*****ks, like a cantankerous old relative drunk on whiskey and armed with a shotgun it dares you to do something impossible. Hate it.

Suddenly the whole mood of 'Death Magnetic' changes as pianos introduce 'The Unforgiven III'. Regardless of what you may have thought, this is a worthy addition to what is now the Unforgiven trilogy, it’s a sad, mournful ode to a life lost that can never be recovered. It’s not as bloated as the second one and harks back to the glories of 1991.

'The Judas Kiss’ swiftly brings us back to the present day as the sonic battering continues. Its one of the lesser songs on the album but with what has gone before and what comes after it would hold its own on any of Metallica’s contemporaries recent output.

The final two songs of 'Death Magnetic' end the album in a legendary fashion. 'Suicide and Redemption’ does not disappoint, its gargantuan wall of riffage crushing all it surveys, continuing a great Metallica tradition of bone trembling instrumentals. It feels somewhat at odds with the album and gives 'Death Magnetic' more breadth and scope, countering the intensity and violence of the majority of the songs with considered power acting as a lynchpin, holding the whole thing together. 'My Apocalypse' can only truly be described as completely insane, at points it sounds almost like Slayer. The song blisters with barely contained energy. To quote James on 'Cunning Stunts'. 'You want heavy? Metallica gives you heavy baby!'

Metallica has, since its inception, always strived to take metal in new directions. '...And Justice' and 'Black' are testament to this. 'Death Magnetic' feels like a consolidation of what Metallica is and the purpose of the individuals that make it up; to make great metal that shudders the bones and sticks in the mind. This revelation has allowed Metallica to create a focused, dynamic and incredibly powerful collection of songs that prove one thing beyond all doubt. Nothing. Else. Matters.