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bob rock's comments confirmed exactly what i suspected about the new album - it's more an "artistic" statement from metallica (and bob) than an album of songs, in the common sense. instruments mic'ed half-assedly (albiet admittedly), song structures invented via cut-and-paste in pro-tools, lyrics written off the cuff by a group... none of these techniques produce a musically cohesive album/song. it's fine that they took this route, but i find it to be pretentious - just like i find modern art, later radiohead, etc to be pretentious.
all those arguing about how difficult it is to mic a drum kit or amp, or that we listeners should not be able to criticize because we haven't sold millions of records are missing the point. any band with the slightest recording experience (and half of metallica's technical proficiency) could make a much better sounding album. metallica made a deliberate choice to give the album a lo-fi and sloppy sound with disjointed song structures. i personally don't like it - and that decision is based on experience playing in a band, recording, and being a careful and critical music listener. idol worship of metallica, their previous albums, and record sales are irrelavent here. how 'bout we just discuss the new album and the recording techniques/songs present on it rather than bicker?
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