Metallica Announces Release Date For "Death Magnetic"!

Finally, 5 years after the release of their previous album "St. Anger", Metallica will be releasing their ninth album entitled "Death Magnetic", which will be available this coming September 12, 2008!

I'm one of them old-school Metallica fans that loved all their 4 albums in the 80's, namely: "Ride The Lightning" (1983), "Kill 'Em All" (1984), "Master Of Puppets" (1986, in my opinion, their best ever!) and "...And Justice For All" (1988). I didn't really took much notice of them in the 90's. However, I'm still feeling that excitement as the date approaches and find myself looking forward to hearing the songs in the album.

There's a video I've seen in youtube showing the photo shoot of their upcoming single "The Day That Never Comes", a song which is shown in an Iraq War setting. This is what Lars Ulrich told MTV News about it:

It’s a story about human beings who don’t know each other, in a particularly tense situation. It could be a contemporary war setting, but it’s really about forgiveness and redemption and understanding what goes on in people’s minds. We really feel that this was such a beautiful and epic way to treat the song in something that was really radically different than the specificity of the lyrics.

I hope that the guys will remain true to the spirit of Metallica and make this album as kickass as possible. If they do, then it's going to be quite a treat!

CD Review: "Powerslave" - Iron Maiden

"Powerslave is the fifth studio album by the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on September 3, 1984. It is notable for its Egyptian theme displayed in the album art, as well in the title track's musical style. It contains a musical re-telling of Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner", which uses pieces of the original poem as lyrics, and is the longest song Iron Maiden have ever recorded at a length of 13 minutes and 38 seconds. The album is also notable amongst the band's albums as being the first album to feature the same lineup as the previous one. As of 2008, this is the last of the band's albums to contain an instrumental track: "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)." Powerslave is often considered one of their finest albums by fans and critics alike." - Excerpt from Wikipedia.org

I bought a cassette tape of this album in the early 90's and it became one of my regularly-played tapes. What I particularly like about it at was the infectious energy of the songs from the beginning to the last. What I learned later on that each track has it's own interesting tale to tell. Some of the notable tracks include:

"Aces High", a song about a WWII RAF pilot during the Battle of Britain in 1940 which marks the first time an air battle was fought in the British Isles, provides a jolting kickstart to the album's high-energy opening salvo.

"2 Minutes To Midnight", tells about that time in 1953 when the Doomsday Clock registered the closest ever to "midnight", representing catastrophic destruction. (Presently, the Clock is set at 5 minutes to midnight. The furthest it was set was 17 minutes to midnight in 1991).

"Flash of the Blade" starts off with a prominent guitar riff to accentuate the tale of dueling swordsmen. The awesome guitar solo showcases intricate lead guitar harmonies between Adrian Smith and Dave Murray, that Maiden is known for.

"Back In The Village" is another fast-paced number, based on the 1960's TV show "The Prisoner" which was said to be a favorite of Bruce Dickinson's.

"Powerslave" begins with high pitched scream followed by an ominous laughter. It tells about the demise of an Egyptian pharaoh. One of the album's best tracks.

"Rime of the Ancient Mariner" is based on the poem with the same title by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. This epic song used portions from the poem itself to complement the song. It's a commendable choice for the band to inject classic poetry to their album.

This album is generally hailed as one of the best ever, if not THE best, to be produced by Iron Maiden and I believe the recognition is rightfully bestowed.

Release: 1984

Tracks listing:
1. Aces High
2. 2 Minutes To Midnight
3. Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)
4. Flash Of The Blade
5. The Duellists
6. Back In The Village
7. Powerslave
8. Rime Of The Ancient Mariner

Band members:
Bruce Dickinson - vocals
Dave Murray - guitar
Adrian Smith - guitar, backing vocals
Steve Harris - bass
Nicko McBrain - drums

CD Review: "Master Of Puppets" - Metallica

Metallica's 3rd full album "Master of Puppets", released in 1986, served as the breaking ground for this legendary thrash metal quintet to the public consciousness. James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Cliff Burton and Kirk Hammett have been toiling in the underground scene for the past years and only after this were they truly appreciated by a wider audience.

This is also the last album recorded by Metallica with their well-loved bassist Burton before his tragic passing just a few months after the album's release.

It was a time when the most popular bands were led by hair metal groups like Ratt, Cinderella, Bon Jovi and Motley Crue. Amidst the pomp and glitter of the 80's glam metal music scene, "Master of Puppets" provided a brutal awakening for hardcore heavy metal fans. They (including myself!) haven't heard anything like it before, at all.

All songs were clocking over 5 minutes, with the masterpiece title track well above the 8-minute mark. Each song bursting to the seams with killer riff after killer riff, to be punctuated with mind-boggling guitar solos. There were no typical song format at all. Pop hooks, catchy tunes? You can throw them out of the window because you won't find them anywhere near it.

But man! The energy and power in the songs as these four kids (they were still kids then) relentlessly bludgeoned their respective musical instruments with uncanny precision, can be felt. And that for me was one of the factors that made the album so special.

It was crazy.

Nowadays, there is much criticism aimed at the group from their old-school fans because of the "selling out" tag. But let's not forget, that there was a time when the mighty Metallica blitzkrieg once truly kicked ass.

This album is the undeniable proof.

Release: 1986

Tracks listing:
1. Battery
2. Master of Puppets
3. The Thing That Should Not Be
4. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
5. Disposable Heroes
6. Leper Messiah
7. Orion
8. Damage, Inc.

Band members:
James Hetfield - vocals, rhythm guitars
Kirk Hammett - lead guitar
Cliff Burton - bass guitar
Lars Ulrich - drums