02.
Metallica
Death Magnetic

Yes! All the hype, all the expectation, the internet leak of ‘Cyanide’… Would it actually be good? I dared to hope. In fact, I probably had higher expectations than most, because I was the only person in the entire world who really liked 2003’s universally derided St. Anger. Ok, so it didn’t have cool solos, but I actually liked the new drum sound. Oh, well, that’s gone (no surprise there), but in spite of a disappointing return to traditional drumming, Death Magnetic is a superior offering to its predecessor in pretty much every way. It feels like this is Metallica at ease with themselves, for the first time since, well…ever. It starts with a heartbeat – a pretty strong sign of life – which leads into the slow build opening of ‘That Was Just Your Life’. A song that teases for nearly two minutes before then bashing you about the head like a big guy with tree a branch. Ouch. ‘The End Of The Line’ is classic Metallica riffage: the repeated ‘the slave becomes the master’ line is the best bit of the entire record, especially when it explodes back into the riff (I nearly make a mess in my pants every time). ‘Judas Kiss’ is wickedly off kilter, and the instrumental ‘Suicide And Redemption’ beats Karma To Burn at their own game without even seeming to try that hard. The closer ‘My Apocalypse’ is so brutal that it makes some of the stuff on St. Anger sound a little childish.

A great record from what is still a great band. Long may it continue.