Metallica - Some Kind of Monster

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Music reviews of Some Kind of Monster

Music Review: See How Metallica's First Album Since St. Anger Measures Up!
Rating: 3 Stars

To stir up fans to go see their new Documentary, 'Some Kind of Monster', Metallica decided to release a EP, featuring two versions of 'Some Kind of Monster', the regular song of 'St. Anger', and a new edit. They also added six new Live tracks they took from a concert in Paris, France(The Hottest Day in Paris' History), consisting of tracks from Kill 'Em All, Ride The Lightning, and Master of Puppets. Since this is the first material after the disappointing St.Anger, and Metallica's most affordable Live collection(S&M and Live (...): Binge and Purge are the others), being a Metallica fan, I was expecting a lot from this EP. So,does the 'Some Kind of Monster' EP live up to my expectations, or just fall flat on its face like St. Anger? Read on to find out...

Track Listing-

The first thing you notice about 'Some Kind of Monster' is the Track Listing is rather odd. First, you have the 'St. Anger' "Some Kind of Monster", and a new edit of "Some Kind of Monster", so two of the 8 tracks are "Some Kind of Monster", and since it's a sub-par song, that's not a good thing. Then, we get an array of tracks from the 80's, but, unfortuneatly,other than "Motorbreath", most of the songs are some of Metallica's weakest tracks from the 80's. We get Three tracks from Kill 'Em All, which include "The Four Horsemen","Motorbreath","and "Hit The Lights". Since 'Kill 'Em All' is Metallica's Worst Record of the 80's, it's surprising that it contains the bulk of the material, which, while very good, is not Metallica's best. From 'Ride The Lightning', we get "Ride The Lightning", which is one of the best songs off 'Ride The Lightning', and I'm glad they included it, because it's not very popular. From 'Master of Puppets', we get "Leper Messiah" and "Damage, INC.", arguably the worst songs off 'Master of Puppets'. That sums up the track listing, but here's how I would have done it-

1. Seek and Destroy
2. For Whom The Bells Toll
3. Sanitarium
4. One
5. Enter Sandman
6. King Nothing
7. Whiskey in Jar
8. Some Kind of Monster

I feel that more accurately represents Metallica's material, and I was a tad dissapointed at the Track Listing, although I did like the inclusion of "Ride The Lightning", arguably the best song on 'Some Kind of Monster'. Track Listing- 2/5

Band Performance-
First off, the two "Some Kind of Monster"'s are what you'd expect from St. Anger. Tin-Can Drumming from Lars, Good riffs from Hammett(Nothing compared to earlier material), but unfortuneatly, no solos. Hetfield's vocals aren't to good, except during the chorus. Overall, "Some Kind of Monster" is a Sub-par performance. On to the concert! Lars Ulrich's drumming is Spot-on, and his performance accurately represents the songs he plays. On many tracks though, the drums sound slightly "off-tune", except nowhere near the bad quality on 'St. Anger'. Kirk Hammett is Kirk Hammett, and shows why he's one of the premier guitarists in Heavy Metal. His performance is great, showcasing blistering solos and equally agressive riffs, and his guitar sounds perfect, and he represents his old material very well. James Hetfield's vocals are good at times, and bad at times. Because he "deepened" his vocals during the 90's, the 80's material sounds MUCH different. For me, I happen to like the original vocals from Hetfield, but sometimes his vocals work, such as on "Ride The Lightning", while other times, such as on "The Four Horseman", they sound weird. Robert Trujillo has a good performance, and I can't fault him in his bass playing! Overall, a pretty good Live performance, though not as good as S&M or Live Sh*t. Band Performance- 4/5

Sound Quality/Crowd-

'Some Kind of Monster' generally has good Sound Quality, except it's a Live album, so some features, such as the drumming and the bass, get lost in the thick of things, and sometimes both instruments sound hollow. Hammett and Hetfield's guitars sounded perfect though, and they perfectly echo out through my speakers at the blistering speeds they're played. Hetfield's vocals are clear, yet, as I said before, they sound a little strange on some of the songs. The Crowd Interaction was like it wasn't even there, because other than clapping, Paris did absolutely nothing! Oh well it won't affect my rating! Sound Quality- 4/5

Overall, 'Some Kind of Monster' was all I expected, not less or more so. The reason I give it Three stars is, because of the less than stellar Track Selection(But they did put "Ride The Lightning" on, and it's the best here!), the iffy vocals from Hetfield, and the slightly off(But not badly) sound quality of the Drums and Bass. If you're looking for a cheap way to hear Metallica Live, the 'Some Kind of Monster' EP is for you. Although, I would recommend S&M more, but some people might not like the orchestra.

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Description of Some Kind of Monster

Hard Rock & Metal CDs

• Music > Styles
• Pop
• Rock