The first two Newsted recordings; take your pick and tell us why.

$5.98 is a fun and knockabout EP; AJFA is Metallica on largely peak form.

Only one winner, and it's the full-length.

I take the point of justice being possibly Metallica‘s finest hour. To me, it’s about one song too long. It doesn’t feel quite as hungry as puppets did. And yes, Jason is buried so deep in the mix each album should come with a shovel. The EP, on the other hand, is loose, fun, punchy, tight, and well mixed. I can only imagine the pressure Jason must’ve been feeling stepping into his new role.

Garage Days, mainly because Justice is so bad. As a tech thrash album with over-long songs it’s far better than, say, Dark Angel’s Leave Scars, but it still tries to fit in way too many riffs and contains mostly filler riffs because of that. Also, the production has issues way beyond Newsted being buried. Subs in the guitars? Really? That wump wump palm muting sure sounded heavy on my boom box as a kid, but I can’t take it now.

Also Hetfield’s playing “rhythm and harmony guitar” so he could cut Kirk Hammett out of some of the composition credits.

I'd like to give it to AJFA by virtue of it being all original songs, in addition to it containing the last vestiges of Cliff Burton's songwriting on "To Live Is To Die." That said, I've got no time for the perception that AJFA is Metallica at their peak. Metallica at their peak was Master of Puppets - in songwriting, attitude, and ethics. Complex, lean, and tight, all at the same time.

The second garage days ep smokes; much thicker-sounding and fully realized than the "Creeping Death" single + covers. Had such high hopes at the time for it being a bridge between old and new Metallica, but it was more like an impasse.

I enjoy AJFA, but when I want to listen to Metallica it's the first run of records up to and including Garage Days Re-revisited.

biscuitdough wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 10:04 am ...contains mostly filler riffs because of that.

I can understand people feeling AJFA songs contain too many riffs, but I can remember them all and it's not like I've played it to death down the years. Those are fine riffs.

I recall a lot of droning on about Machine Head's The Blackening being the AJFA of its time, for much the same reasons, and struggle to recall more than a couple from it. Now that was riff soup.

A_Man_Who_Tries wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 12:35 pm

biscuitdough wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 10:04 am ...contains mostly filler riffs because of that.

I can understand people feeling AJFA songs contain too many riffs, but I can remember them all and it's not like I've played it to death down the years. Those are fine riffs.

I recall a lot of droning on about Machine Head's The Blackening being the AJFA of its time, for much the same reasons, and struggle to recall more than a couple from it. Now that was riff soup.

Like I said, not on the level of Dark Angel, Sadus et al. There seemed to be plenty of throwaways IMO.

The $5.98 EP made me aware of some truly great NWOBHM. Garage Days Revisited was butt rock.

It's funny, I never loved Justice (I like it but never loved it and was the last one I cared about) , I used to think it was a dumb band trying to be too smart. Like they were trying to prove to themselves/everyone that it wasn't just Cliff who was musically intelligent, so the album felt kind over wrote, nothing like dumb guys trying to be smart. (I like my Metallica sort of dumb, its why I like Ride the Lightning the most).

BUT

This year, for whatever reason it clicked for me. It only took 30 years. I don't even care all the songs are too long.

Owen wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 2:31 pm It's funny, I never loved Justice (I like it but never loved it and was the last one I cared about) , I used to think it was a dumb band trying to be too smart. Like they were trying to prove to themselves/everyone that it wasn't just Cliff who was musically intelligent, so the album felt kind over wrote, nothing like dumb guys trying to be smart. (I like my Metallica sort of dumb, its why I like Ride the Lightning the most).

BUT

This year, for whatever reason it clicked for me. It only took 30 years. I don't even care all the songs are too long.

Your avatar fucking rules.