Metallica: Doug Magnetic

The whole first part of this post is going to be about Metallica. I have defended and will continue to defend St. Anger until I'm cold & dead. It was an album they wanted to do, it came from an angry place and was used more as a creative outlet for Hetfield's problems than anything. That being said, I got to read what Hetfield himself thought about it 5 years later upon the release of their new album. He stops short of calling it a mistake, but still appreciates the album nonetheless. They've pretty much come full circle by now-- after "singing" more on the black album, and their musical experimentation with Load, ReLoad, S&M, Garage, Inc., and St. Anger, they apparently just felt like thrashing again.
Last Saturday, I was napping on the couch. Karissa got the mail, and dropped a package into my arms. I knew exactly what it was--my new metallica album, Death Magnetic, that I only paid $1.47 for (long story) had came! Unfortunately, I was still very tired, so I hugged my package and fell back asleep. When I finally woke up, I had to go outside and mow the yard, so I didn't get much of an introduction, and Isabella talks all through dinner, so I was still having trouble gtting to hear it all. My real introduction came in the car, when I got to crank it up and listen to it nice and loud. I had already heard about three songs on the album, but I was still blown away. The entire album is fucking awesome. The first song, That Was Just Your Life, reminds me of songs like Battery and Blackened--it's fast as hell with a catchy riff. And speaking of fast as shit, All Nightmare Long has become a favorite of mine already for its insane tempo. Broken, Beat, and Scarred is a little more simplistic lyrically, but nonetheless cool in its get-the-fuck-up-and-fight kind of way. Cyanide, The Judas Kiss, My Apocalypse, and The End of The Line might become lesser known-but still hard-hitting classics in no time (I'd say people will remember them like they remember The God That Failed, My Friend of Misery, The Thing That Should Not Be, Orion, etc). I LOVE the intro to The Unforgiven III, which incidently might share a chord progression with the first two, but pretty much nothing else. No acoustic feedback, no "What I've felt..." lyrics like before--this one is no less awesome, though. As for the piano, I wonder myself if Hetfield played that intro--he did learn piano at a young age.
The Day That Never Comes was the first song I got to hear, and it's one of those cool Metallica-style ballads that works its way into your head. I've been using the clean verse riff as a practicing tool, adding it to my growing repertoire of catchy Metallica clean-riffs.
And is there an instrumental? Well, they did dive into their past a little, and must have decided that an instrumental is a welcome addition after 4 or 5 albums without. Suicide & Redemption clocks in at over 10 minutes! and is also awesome.
Yes, Kevin, there is a teensy bit of Lars' annoying snare, but not much, and the lowest tuning they go is dropped D. No Derek, Hetfield isn't all sing-songy with his voice. Here and there, he is, but he's still got his signature growl. And yes, Kevin/Derek, their WHOLE ALBUM is going to be on Guitar Hero, so you guys can fake-play to your hearts' content.
Anything bad to say about this album? Nope. I guess not. I love it, and I'm still listening to it as loud as I can get it. Plus it's all about death, and how various people are attracted/repulsed by it. Kinda like Tom Waits' Bone Machine.
What am I Watching?
Cashback- After a nasty breakup, an art student develops insomnia. To help him get through the night, he takes a graveyard shift at a local grocery store and there realizes (or pretends, it's never really clear) that he has the ability to freeze time. Utilizing this gift, he undresses store patrons (solely for art sketches, he's not a total pervert), plays little pranks on his boss, and eventually comes to se the beauty in life as a still scene. Characters are a little shallow and predictable, but are still fairly interesting. His freezing snowfall at the end looked really cool and would have amde a great end if the director hadn't opted for the mega-happy guy-gets-girl-and-shows-her-beauty-of-frozen-life ending.
AB Negative- A good guy is exhorted into harvesting organs after losing his wife (alcohol, bad liver), his job (expendable), and his house (see job). Using a database from his laptop of other employees & clients, the guy exacts revenge on those who fucked him over. Using a drinking problem to add depth to the characters was a good idea, but very poorly acted. The overall sound sucked. The ending was pretty good, except that he laughed maniacally, and that's just plain reidiculous. It's billed as a horror flick, but it's really just a cheap indie thriller.
Harold- 13-year-old with early male pattern baldness tries to make his way through a new school in a new town. This movie is one of those little nuggets that doesn't get good enough advertising and therefore falls through the cracks of popular cinema. It was funny as hell, and I have to give kudos to Spencer Breslin for his apparent natural acting abilities, also to Cuba Gooding Jr. for taking on a supporting role he didn't get enough credit for. It was a textbook happy ending, except for the fact that the bald kid blew off the hot chick for the frumpy big girl (and she actually is a frumpy big girl). That little detail makes me like how it ended after all.
Little Otik- A barren couple takes a weekend at cabin to take their minds of not being able to have children. While the husband is trying to rip out a stump, he comes across a root that looks a bit like a little child. He carves it out better and varnishes it, then presents it as a present to his wife, who immediately begins treating it like a real child. Despite being completely unnerved, the husband and wife concoct a lie about finally getting pregnant. They have different sized 'tummies' made up, and leave the root baby at the cabin, coming back for it on weekends. Finally, the wife "gives birth". The husband comes back to get her a week later, only to find the root baby alive and breast-feeding. I'll just stop the synopsis there and let that one sink in. I had to go back and check the info about halfway through, and sure enough, this film was made by Jan Svankmajer, a master of ultra-creepy artistic European stop-animation, and one of my favorites. This particular story is actually based on an old, equally weird Czech fairy tale called Otesanek. It is very bizarre and nds on an odd note with no closure.