Metallica

It's been 5 months but hey, better now than never right?

I've always had an appreciation for Metallica ever since i was a wee little guy (still am...), which was around the time their self titled album, or better known as the Black Album, but i never heard the album in full, just the singles like Enter Sandman and Sad But True but i remember Enter Sandman having a big effect on me. In recent years though the Black Album has grown to be one of my favorite albums even though many "true" Metallica fans point to it as the time they "sold out." Contrary to that though, i think the Black Album has more cohesive, straight to the point songwriting. Gone are the days of the 7-8 minute epics shown on Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets, and in come a more radio friendly approach to songwriting. But as i've always said, radio friendly doesn't necessarily mean bad. In fact it's quite the opposite on the Black album.

I like almost every aspect of the Black Album. The production, the drumming, the vocals, the guitar: all are top notch. The production on this album i think is some of the best ever. You can ear everything crystal clear, and most importantly, you can hear the bass! Listen to their previous album ...And Justice For All and then the Black Album right after and it's like night and day, productionwise. The sound of the drums are some of the best i've heard. I'm a guy who likes his drums loud on recordings and that's exactly what you get, best shown on their track Sad but True. James Hetfield, who does the vocals for Metallica is the best he's ever been, showing his voice is very versitle on Nothing Else Matters and his usual, and much improved i might add, raspyness also on Sad but True. Kirk Hammett provides some more memorable riffs and solos that i still find stuck in my head from time to time. Who doesn't remember the main riff to Enter Sandman?

As a whole, the Black Album ranks high up there as one of my favorite Metallica Albums and here's how each song ranks within:
1. Enter Sandman - Kicks off the album with arguably Metallica's most famous song which reached gold certification. If this song doesn't get you pumped, i don't know what will.
2. Sad But True - One of my favorites on the album. I love the dark tone of the song. This song is the measuring stick to determine how good the drum production is. Vocals are some of Hetfield's best.
3. Holier Than Thou - Never been one to love this song. Really fun to play along with on guitar though.
4. The Unforgiven - Another one of Metallica's classics and it's a good one. Really love the melody and the solo is awesome. One of my favorites and oozes soul and feeling.
5. Wherever I May Roam - I've always though of this as the indian song of theirs. Pretty good song. Not the best, but memorable.
6. Don't Tread On Me - Has a nice groovy main riff. Another than that it seems like a filler song and a pretty forgettable song. Not bad by any means but I usually skip over it.
7. Through the Never - Another filler song. Nothing really stands out to me in this song.
8. Nothing Else Matters - Can't you just hear the hearts of the fans of old Metallica fans breaking? I myself really like this song. The lyrics are great, the vocals are great and the solo is superb. Like The Unforgiven it oozes feeling. There's a reason why it's a favorite to many people.
9. Of Wolf And Man - They puck up the pace again and pick up with a good one. I really like the lyrics. It's about shapeshifting into a werewolf, what's not to like?
10. The God that Failed - I've always treated this song as a filler. Most of the time i skip it. Nothing draws me in.
11. My Friend of Misery - By far the best song on the whole album. Starts of with a great bass intro. The vocals make this song; James is a his best. The solo is the best of the album and is my favorite.
12. The Struggle Within - Ends the album well. Simple but effective riffs along with more excellent vocals. Great solo followed but an amazing riff that makes me headbang everytime.

Overall, even though there's a few filler tracks the classics more than make up for it. Old Metallica fans give it so much unneeded grief it's amazing. I definitely recommend it. Listen to it, enjoy it, blast it!

Jumping off the deep end.

Hello! I've finally decided to give in and create one of these to get in the swing of things and for some practice for a job field i'm aiming to join, which is to be a music/film reviewer. But first things first, here's a bit of info about me!

• I'm Lucas and i'm 18 years old.
• I just recently shaved down all my hair to a half inch after having longish hair for about 5 years and i'm amazed at how it doesn't feel as weird as i thought it would. Everything seems a lot easier too.
• I live in Minnesota and i really can't see myself living anywhere else but i can see myself living in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, or any of the big cities in Canada.
• That being said i love the cold. Winter is my favorite season and i'm happy that this past winter was perfect. I do love spring just as much though and am ecstatic that it's finnaly seems to be starting and is getting beautiful out
  
• I can play guitar, trumpet and baritone but i really want to learn piano and drums.
• I'll be the first to admit that i'm a metal head: i really love the heavy stuff, but i love so much more. I enjoy anything from Metallica to Mozart to John Mayer to Between the Buried and Me to Simon & Garfunkel and then some.
  
• I don't let anything worry me...at all, almost. If you ever see me anxious or genuinely worried then somethings wrong. Same thing with me being angry.
• I've become a real movie/tv buff these past couple months. I'm often left with nothing to do so i try to find shows or movies that i'll like and nothing beats sitting down for a few hours watching your favorite shows.
• Angel, Supernatural, Dollhouse, How I Met Your Mother, are shows i'm big into lately.
  
• That said, one of my guiltiest pleasures are DVD's. It'd be a wise bet that down the road i'll have a huge collection. I'm always getting new ones and one of my goals is to get every superhero/comic book movie on dvd.
• I'm super anal about having things on my ipod organized. If i have like 4 sections in the artist section for the same artist it really bugs me. Same goes for albums. And same goes for my backpack; if it's unorganized and has papers everywhere i feel weird.
• I'm a huge Minnesota Wild and hockey fan. I watch almost every game of the season on tv. And if nobody has noticed, if you're ever wondering if theres a game, just look if i'm wearing a Wild shirt. Another one of my goals in life is to get season tickets.
  
• Only on rare occasions do i finish homework before the day before it's due. If it's a big project then i'll work on it before then but it's just my way of working and it works for me; why change?
• I have too many books that i want to read but haven't because of that same problem: i have too many that i've gotten and haven't started. I've sort of fixed that and have set up an order of the ones i'm going to read. Almost done with the first!
• I'm a big geek when it comes to Greek mythology. Greek Myths have always interested me since i was little but after reading a really good and really old Trojan War book that i wish i had now really got me into the whole story and is now one of, if not my favorite story ever.
• And finally: I'm currently going to school at Minnesota School of Business in their Music Business program and i'm very excited to graduate and hopefully get a job in Audio Production. I think it'd be really really fun working with bands trying to help them get the sound they want. Nothing bothers me more than crappy production on an otherwise amazing CD.

Hope that helps a bit! If not, i'm an open book - ask away!

Stay tuned though, music, movies, and tv show reviews coming up!