The good news is, Metallica haven't sounded quite so engaged in what they're creating in some time. This is certainly an album crafted with the songs and the overall listening experience in mind. As for the songs, there's very little filler (although Murder One, an heartfelt tribute to fallen star Lemmy, reeks a bit of cheese despite best intentions); there's also a conscious effort to sneak away from the forced back-to-basics vibe of Death Magnetic, which resulted in some pretty good songs but, overall, struck me as at least a partial act of pandering. This time out, only about a quarter of the album thrashes, while the majority manages to stay heavy while cutting down the tempos. Think Load, but with more muscle. Or, the "black album" with less radio friendliness. Or, Death Magnetic with more radio friendliness. It offers something for Metallica fans no matter what their favourite Metallica album is (unless that album is St. Anger, which of course it isn't).
What brings Hardwired... To Self-Destruct down a peg is the same problem that's plagued Metallica for the better part of twenty years now; the editor is asleep in the cutting room. Songs that have no business being seven or eight minutes long are, because, well... maybe Metallica thinks they just have to be? The long intros and outros that built their songs up and brought them to cathartic conclusions back in the '80s are just here to pad out the run times now. The one exception is the fleeting title track, and I think other songs would have benefited from a similarly streamlined approach; 9 of 12 tracks are 6½ minutes or longer and, while they're not bad songs, they likely would have been better served in the 5-5½ minute range. There's a difference between epic and bloated, and we're shown it here.
Also, I'm curious as to why Metallica chose to release this as a double CD when the total length is under 78 minutes, or about two minutes shorter than Load. Perhaps it's simply a case of Metallica wanting Hardwired to feel bigger and more important than it is. Double albums feel more like events, and it's clear judging from the way they rolled out this record's campaign that event status is something they were looking for. It's just kind of a shame, though, because Hardwired didn't need to be stretched out and trumped up to such an extent. It's the best batch of songs Metallica have delivered in a long time, an album capable of exceeding listener expectations; and, while it did exceed mine, I can't help but think a more concise execution (and probably a better album cover) could have helped this record hold its own against the band's best work.
November 18, 2016 • Blackened
Highlights Atlas, Rise! • Dream No More • Spit Out the Bone
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