I’m a Metallica fan. I know. I know. Every piece of hatemail or comment accusing me of being a corporate rock whore is well deserved. After all, everyone has a right to an opinion, and I welcome the conversation. HowEVER, I feel that my love for METALLI-F’n-CA is just! So, to all you haters I’ll preemptively respond with a virtual smack on the shoulder and toothy grin:

“Thank you for sharing! Now, kiss my ass. XOXO, Nyco.”

Now, with that little bit of housekeeping taken care of, let’s talk about heavy metal. I generally don’t prefer it. Metal occupies a spot in my musical schema that is comparable to that of a Tootsie Roll in my delicious chocolate schema:

“Would you like a piece of delicious chocolate?”

“Why, yes! I would love a piece of delicious chocolate!”

“Great! Here’s a Tootsie Roll.”

“Ummmm. O-okay, sure.”

That kind of thing.

So why Metallica? It has nothing to do with their musical genre, however ambiguous it has been over the years. It’s not James Hetfield’s melodic growl or the masterful guitar work (honestly, I could live without Lars’ slightly-better-than-average drumming… but he gets props for being fast); rather, it’s the fact that they released an album at just the right time in my life. I’m sure if you all look back on those awkward teenage years, a soundtrack will accompany all the memories. Metallica’s “Load” is that for me.

Yes, “Load” is not generally considered heavy metal, especially when compared to their latest release, “Death Magnetic“. And I love “Death Magnetic” because it’s more than Tootsie Roll music; it’s proof that Metallica has evolved into a musical quartet with purpose, power, and a distinct voice. At the same time, I believe I have done the same. Put simply, Metallica and I have grown up together, and their musical output is an extended metaphor for the past decade of my life.

“Load” and “Reload” were the products of a loss of direction and thus Metallica meandered into realms not generally touched by heavy metal bands. They recorded a cover album (“Garage, Inc.“) and even went symphonic with “S&M“. And I’m sure all the heavy metal faithful shook their heads and thought Metallica had gone the way of Led Zepplin and the Eagles (both of whom went acoustic and now play out their individual careers in less than rock ‘n roll fashion). But then they found themselves again with a defiant “St. Anger” that seemed to say “Hah! Daddy’s still got it!” Unfortunately, I didn’t like “St. Anger“. Every time I tried to listen to it I felt like I was being bitched at. I thought they were trying too hard to be, well, HARD. And I thought Metallica and I were through, because Momma doesn’t like it so rough.

I didn’t even see “Metallica: Some Kind of Monster“. Me! The decade-long Metallica fan. I skipped it thinking it would be nothing more than a one-night stand with an ex who would only leave a note on my pillow the next morning.

But, we’re all human and love like mine can only be suppressed, not squashed. When a friend sent me a link to the latest music video, I watched and listened skeptically. The video, though a little on the corny side with the whole wounded soldier bit, struck me as a throwback to epics like “One” and “The Unforgiven“. I was tantalized at the idea that Metallica may have returned to, and possibly even improved upon, that golden sound that made them so amazing back in the 80′s and early 90′s.

Despite initial trepidation, I can safely say that Metallica and I have found each other again with “Death Magnetic“. It’s delicious, dark, and heavily peppered. Like this. I highly recommend it to any fans of rock, who I hope can let bygones be bygones. It’s not easy, but this album is worth it.

Tags: growing up, heavy metal, Metallica, music, rock

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008 at 8:39 pm and is filed under music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.