Metallica are easily the most well known of the Big Four (others include Anthrax, Megadeth, and Slayer), and they are also the band I spent the most time with when I was a young child. Before I discovered bands like Incubus (a band I really need to talk more about on this blog), The Decemberists, and Daft Punk, I was primarily listening to albums like Ride The Lightning, Master Of Puppets, and my absolute favorite of the bunch,... And Justice For All.
Sure, there are plenty of people who will say it's crazy to put this album above such classics as the above mentioned, but there is one reason that I put this album above the rest in the band's discography; it's pure, unfettered aggression filtered through one of Thrash metal's finest outfits. Having suffered the loss of their former bassist and childhood friend, Cliff Burton, the boys in Metallica were sad, angry, and ready to pen their darkest, most raw album yet. And boy do they ever do just that, from the first moment the drums and guitar kick in on the opener "Blackened" you know this is a different breed of Thrash album. Even for a band that had penned dark tunes before, like "Disposable Heroes" and "Master Of Puppets", the songs on AJFA are noticeably more brooding and aggressive.
That feeling also comes through with the vocal performance that front man James Hetfield puts forth, displaying his signature growl, and backing it up with even more snarl; he sounds like a hungry beast, ready to attack the nearest thing in sight. Also, the lyrics on this album are more doom and gloom than before, with the opener focusing on death and how the world will be blackened in the end. The title track is a political number that Megadeth would proud of, and songs like "Shortest Straw" and "Eye Of The Beholder" are just pure Thrash perfection.
The most popular track here is obviously "One", a track that paints the picture of a soldier returning from war without any of his limbs, and how is essentially in perpetual torture after being used like a frag doll by the military. Sure, the aggression and growling may not be for everyone, but I find it irresistible, and this is one album that I can put on and simply thrash about for the entire run time.
If you haven't checked out this Metallica album, or are maybe thinking about getting in to Thrash as a genre, you can't go wrong with any of Metallica's early material.
10/10
No comments:
Post a Comment