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Rating:
reviewed by dreamJoey on September 5, 2008, on the 13th listen
Death Magnetic is the ninth album by MetallicA, following the much-despised St. Anger. The album, composed of 10 tracks, overall features a complex songwriting reminiscent of the gems of "And justice for all," with songs averaging just over 7 minutes. With 74 minutes of music, the four horsemen pour into our ears a river of metal with melodic little fish swimming to avoid the more modern new metal nets. The music flows fast, sharp, and heavy. The execution is top-notch, and the production, in its "simplicity," is qualitatively excellent.
1: That was just your life
a heartbeat guides a melancholic guitar arpeggio to which the bass joins, anticipating the entrance of the drums that marks a slow, anguish-filled walk. In a flash, a very incisive and rapid riff opens up to James's voice, seeming to revel in new rage: it’s the verse, damn thrash in classic Metallica old-style, followed by an amazing syncopated bridge that I can't wait to hear again later in the track. The chorus is thrash-driven and pissed off, the song proceeds with verse, bridge, and chorus, and an instrumental variation leading to the solo...
an excellent track, rating 8
2: The end of the line
the introduction of this track is typically in the "Master of Puppets" style and lasts just over a minute. Worth noting is a distorted bass arpeggio that sticks in my head from the first beat. The verse reminds me a lot (maybe too much) of "Creeping Death," but the surprise comes at the chorus, where guitars intertwine, separate, and then intertwine anew. The track continues with verse and chorus until a very "noise" solo section. The final chorus is preceded by a quiet, clean variation
good track, rating 6.5
3: Broken, Beat & Scarred
the introduction scared me, I saw the ghosts of "St. Anger" before thinking it was an instrumental in the "Train of Thought" style by Dream Theater. However, after about 1 minute, a very nice riff with distortion on the edge arrives, over which the voice advances in small steps, becoming the protagonist in the chorus. The track is very strange, a bit outside MetallicA's style
satisfactory, rating 6
4: The Day That Never Comes
the introduction immediately made me think of a ballad in the "Fade to Black" style, and so it was. Musically, the track is simple but well articulated; the voice is melancholic, and the short guitar solo opening to the verses remains in mind from the first listen. The ending is nothing short of crazy, transitioning from a slow riff with very aggressive vocals to an instrumental and solo section that includes power, technique, and melody; I don't understand why they felt the need to add 3 minutes of such experimental and almost "progressive metal" in the end.
despite the incomprehensible ending, the track is beautiful and will become a hit for new fans, rating 7
5: All nightmare long
two powerful and damn thrash riffs fill the initial two minutes of the track; then comes the voice, loading like a spring to explode its relentless and aggressive rhythm in a wonderful chorus that is sliced through with a blade to return to the very powerful introductory riff. Spectacular!!!! Then again verse, chorus, and solo that stands out. From the 5-minute mark to the 8-minute finale, MetallicA gives us a new vein of thrash metal, chromatic riffs, speed, power, rage.
excellent track, rating 9
6: Cyanide
this introduction scares me too, fingers crossed, it seems too tacky...sigh of relief, here comes James's voice getting angry and trying to act tough towards the end of the verse; the chorus is sharp, the guitars sting, but it's the voice that sticks in your head from the first listen. In its simplicity, the track is intoxicating, I’ll stop here...this will become a hit too.
excellent track, rating 8
7: The unforgiven III
self-celebration seemed around the corner, but this track doesn't seem to echo much of the two previous episodes of "The Unforgiven"; it's the classic metallic ballad style with arpeggiated verse and angry chorus, unfortunately, the solo lacks melody; there are some strings here and there to fill in.
insufficient track, rating 5
8: The judas kiss
another introduction that leaves me imagining the unexpected... a riff slices my left ear like a katana through paper, then immediately another riff on which James sings calmly, swelling into a wonderfully fast chorus that closes viciously again on the initial riff that also slices my right ear!!! Again verse and chorus, the tempo is terrifying! These are the Metallica of "And justice for all," spectacular!!! Suddenly everything stops on a march between bass, guitar, and drums on which Kirk begins to paint with his Wha-Wha, then comes the solo that returns to the chorus and then again to that terrible katana-riff that chops my head off. Great Metallica
excellent track, rating 9
9: Suicide & redemption
an instrumental track that feels more like hard rock than thrash metal, too many riffs glued one after another. I can't review it, I still need angry MetallicA at this moment, this track flows by without leaving a trace.
To be reassessed, rating 5
10: My apocalypse
introduction in the sign of "Kill 'em all," this is definitely 80s thrash... but as soon as the verse arrives, everything changes, it's "Master of Puppets" style...the chorus is beautiful, the song doesn't have a break, the four bad boys are really pissed off!!! A gem that I associate without a doubt with "Battery" and "Damage inc." It’s fast, breathtaking, vicious... it's MetallicA !!!
excellent track, rating 9
Album finished
Play, again... in 48 hours I'm at 13 listens
MetallicA is back with new ideas, a bit of the old style that made us love them, but also with a new polish that can be heard in tracks like "All nightmare long" and "The judas kiss".
Metalheads unite, the "The 4 horsemen" are back
rating: 8
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 That Was Just Your Life (05:04)
Like A Siren In My Head That Always
Threatens To Repeat
Like A Blind Man That Is Strapped
Into The Speeding Driver’s Seat
Like A Face
That Learns To Speak
When All It Knew Was How To Bite
Like A Misery That Keeps Me Focused
Though I’ve Gone Astray
Like An Endless Nightmare That
I Must Awaken From Each Day
Like Conviction
A Premonition
Not Worthy Of
So I Deny
I Deny
I Blind My Eyes
And Try To Force It All Into Place
I Stitch Them Up
See Not My Fall From Grace
I Blind My Eyes
I Hide And Feel It Passing Me By
I Open Just In Time To Say Goodbye
Almost Like Your Life
Almost Like Your Endless Fight
Curse The Day Is Long
Realize You Don’t Belong
Disconnect Somehow
Never Stop The Bleeding Now
Almost Like Your Fight
And There It Went
Almost Like Your Life
Like A Wound That Keeps On Bleeding
To Remind Me Not To Think
Like A Raging River Drowning When
I Only Need A Drink
Like A Poison
That I Swallow
But I Want The World To Die
Like A Release From Prison
That I Didn’t Know I Was In
Like A Fight To Live The Past I Prayed
To Leave
From Way Back Then
Like A General
Without A Mission
Until The War Will Start Again
Start Again
I Blind My Eyes
And Try To Force It All Into Place
I Stitch Them Up
See Not My Fall From Grace
I Blind My Eyes
I Hide And Feel It Passing Me By
I Open Just In Time To Say Goodbye
[Solo]
Like A Touch From Hell To Feel How Hot
That It Can Get If You Get Caught
Like A Strike From Heaven Turns That Key
And Brings You Straight Down To Your Knees
Like A Touch From Hell To Feel How Hot
That It Can Get If You Get Caught
Like A Strike From Heaven To Reprieve
That Brings You Straight Down To Your Knees
Almost Like Your Life
Almost Like Your Endless Fight
Curse The Day Is Long
Realize You Don’t Belong
Disconnect Somehow
Never Stop The Bleeding Now
Almost Like Your Fight
And There It Went
Almost Like Your Life
That Was Just Your Life.
03 Broken, Beat & Scarred (04:02)
You rise.
You fall.
You’re down, then you rise again.
What don’t kill you make you more strong.
You rise.
You fall
You're down, then you rise again.
What don’t kill you make you more strong.
Rise, fall, down, rise again
What don’t kill you make you more strong.
Rise, fall, down, rise again
What don’t kill you make you more strong....
Through black days
Through black nights
Through pitch black insides
Breaking your teeth on the hard life comin’.
Show... your... scars.
Cutting your feet on the hard earth runnin’.
Show... your... scars.
Breaking your life, broken, beat and scarred
But we die hard.
The dawn,
The death,
The fight to the final breath.
What don’t kill you make you more strong.
The dawn,
The death,
The fight to the final breath.
What don’t kill you make you more strong.
Dawn, death, fight, final breath.
What don’t kill you make you more strong.
Dawn, death, fight, final breath.
What don’t kill you make you more strong.
They scratch me
They scrape me
They cut and rape me
Breaking your teeth on the hard life comin’.
Show... your... scars.
Cutting your feet on the hard earth runnin’.
Show... your... scars.
Breaking your life, broken, beat and scarred
But we die hard
[Solo]
Breaking your teeth on the hard life comin’.
Show... your... scars.
Cutting your feet on the hard earth runnin’.
Show... your... scars.
Bleeding your soul in a hard luck story.
Show... your... scars.
Spilling your blood in the hot sun’s glory.
Show... your... scars.
Breaking your life, broken, beat and scarred
We die hard.
We die hard.
We die hard.
05 All Nightmare Long (06:00)
Luck. Runs. Out.
Crawl from the wreckage one more time.
Horrific memory twists the mind.
Dark, rutted, cold and hard to turn.
Path of destruction feel it burn.
Still life… incarnation.
Still life… infamy.
Hallucination. Heresy.
Still you run, what’s to come, what’s to be?
Cause we hunt you down without mercy
Hunt you down all nightmare long
Feel us breathe upon your face
Feel us shift, every move we trace
Hunt you down without mercy
Hunt you down all nightmare long
Yeah!
Luck. Runs. Out.
You crawl back in,
But your luck runs out.
Luck. Runs. Out.
The light that is not light is here
To flush you out with your own fear
You hide, you hide but will be found
Release your cript without a sound
Still life… immolation.
Still life… infamy.
Hallucination. Heresy.
Still you run, what’s to come, what’s to be?
Cause we hunt you down without mercy
Hunt you down all nightmare long
Feel us breathe upon your face
Feel us shift, every move we trace
Hunt you down without mercy
Hunt you down all nightmare long
Yeah!
Luck. Runs. Out.
You crawl back in, but your luck runs out.
1, 2, 3, GO!!!
Then you crawl back in,
Into your obsession.
Never to return.
This is your confession.
Hunt you down without mercy
Hunt you down all nightmare long
Feel us breathe upon your face
Feel us shift, every move we trace
Hunt you down without mercy
Hunt you down all nightmare long
Yeah!
Luck. Runs. Out.
You crawl back in, but your luck runs out.
Your luck runs out.
06 Cyanide (03:42)
Sleep and dream of this
Death angel's kiss
Brings final bliss
Come believe me!
Empty they say
Death, won't you let me stay?
Empty they say
Death, hear me call your name?
Oh, call your name!
Suicide, I've already died
You're just the funeral I've been waiting for
Cyanide, living dead inside
Break this empty shell for ever more
Wait, wait patiently
Your death-black wings
Unfolding sleep
Spreading on me
Empty they say
Death, won't you let me stay?
Empty they say
Death, hear me call your name
Oh, call your name!
Suicide, I've already died
You're just the funeral I've been waiting for
Cyanide, living dead inside
Break this empty shell for ever more
Say, is that rain or are they tears?
That stained your concrete face for years
The crying, weeping, shedding strife
Year after year, life after life
A narrow freshly broken ground
A concrete angel laid right down
Upon the grave which swallows fast
It's peace at last
Oh, peace at last
Empty they say
Death, won't you let me stay?
Empty they say
Death, hear me call your name
Oh, call your name
Suicide, I've already died
You're just the funeral I've been waiting for
Cyanide, living dead inside
Break this empty shell for ever more
Forevermore!
Forevermore!
It's just the funeral I've been waiting for!
08 The Judas Kiss (05:39)
When the world has turned its back
When the days have turned pitch black
When the fear abducts your tongue
When the fire's dead and gone
So what now?
Where do I head?
When you think it's all said and done
When you are the ostracized
Selfish ridden dead goodbyes
Twisting of the tourniquet
When the pieces never fit
So what now?
Where do I head?
When you think it's all said and done
Bow down
Sell your soul to me
I will set you free
Pacify your demons
Bow down
Surrender unto me
Submit infectiously
Sanctify your demons
Into abyss
You don't exist
Cannot resist
The Judas Kiss
When the storm has blacked your sky
Intuition crucify
When the ego strips your reign
Assassinate the living flame
So what now?
Where do I head?
When you think it's all said and done
Venom of a life insane
Bites into your fragile vein
Internalize and decimate
Patronize and complicate
So what now?
Where do I head?
When you think it's all said and done
Bow down
Sell your soul to me
I will set you free
Pacify your demons
Bow down
Surrender unto me
Submit infectiously
Sanctify your demons
Into abyss
You don't exist
Cannot resist
The Judas Kiss
Judas lives, recite this vow
I've become your new God now
Followed you from dawn of time
Whispered thoughts into your mind
Watched your towers hit the ground
Lured your children never found
Helped your kings abuse their crown
In the heart of feeble man
Plant the seed of my own plan
The strong and powerful will fall
Find a piece of me in all.....
Inside you all,
So, bow down
Sell your soul to me
I will set you free
Pacify your demons
Bow down
Surrender unto me
Submit infectiously
Sanctify your demons
Into abyss
You don't exist
Cannot resist
The Judas Kiss
10 My Apocalypse (04:09)
Claustrophobic
Crawl out of this skin
Heart explosive
Reach in, pull that pin
Fear thy name: extermination
Desecrating hail of fire
So we cross that line
Into the grips
Total eclipse
Suffer unto my apocalypse
Deadly vision
Prophecy reveal
Death magnetic
Pulling closer still
Fear thy name: annihilation
Desolating hail of fire
So we cross that line
Into the grips
Total eclipse
Suffer unto my apocalypse
My apocalypse
Go
Crushing metal, ripping skin.
Tossing body, mannequin.
Spilling blood, bleeding gas.
Mangled flesh, snapping spine.
Dripping bloody valentine.
Shatter face, spitting glass.
Split apart
Split apart
Split apart
Spit
Spit it out.
What makes me drift a little bit closer?
Dead man takes the steering wheel.
What makes me know it’s time to cross over?
Born to repeat until I feel.
See through the skin, bones they all rattle.
Future and past, they disagree.
Flesh falls away, bones they all shatter.
I start to see the end. In. Me.
See the end in me.
Claustrophobic
Crawl out of this skin
Heart explosive
Reach in, pull that pin
Violate, annihilate
All wounds unto my eyes
Obliterate, exterminate
As life itself denied
Fear thy name as hell awakens
Destiny inhale the fire
But we’ve crossed that line
Into the grips
Total eclipse
Suffer unto my apocalypse
Tyrant awaken my apocalypse.
Demon awaken my apocalypse.
Heaven awaken my apocalypse.
Suffer forever my apocalypse.
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Other reviews
By farmit
"Death Magnetic would undoubtedly win the Grammy for the most talked-about album ever."
"Welcome back, Metallica!"
By Anatas
"They should have titled the album 'Jamescantameglio' instead of 'Death Magnetic.'"
"'The Unforgiven III' sounds really bad, it's ugly, pathetic, pitiful."
By Psycroptic
With this album, the rediscovered Four Horsemen ride high again on the treacherous paths of Thrash Metal.
Death Magnetic is better than the infamous Black Album, which I never considered more than a good album.
By progandrea
"Death Magnetic shows that a new golden age for Metallica is impossible."
"All nightmare long' is the song that shows how Metallica, especially Hetfield, can still give a lot."
By Descanting
"Robert Trujillo represents one of the two main strengths of the work; incidentally, the other is the rhythm guitar."
"If the entire CD had been at the level of 'The Judas' Kiss,' one might have even been moved by such well-crafted metal in these dark years for the genre."
