72 Seasons - 72 songs, all the same.

Metallica - 72 Seasons

Released: April 14th, 2023

James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich, Robert Trujillo

Genre: Thrash metal

Intro

This album invents nothing. Half of these songs I can't tell apart from each other. The riffs and structure of each song is so generic, that it feels slightly above average at best, and completely mediocre at worst. None of these songs are great besides Lux Æterna. Every song follows the exact same path you expect it to take.

Thoughts & Feelings?

As of writing THIS paragraph, it is Wednesday April 12th, 2023. Two days until the album comes out. I thought it would be fun to write my opinion of the released singles in the smash or pass BEFORE the album comes out, and then the rest of the songs I will write the day of the release (April 15th, 2023). So the smash or passes for Wednesday are 72 Seasons, If Darkness Had a Son, Screaming Suicide, and Lux Æterna. Every other song smash or pass will be Friday's listen.

I'm very scared for this album to come out because I love Metallica so very fucking much, but I know it's not going to be incredible. I know this album will be decent but nothing crazy. It'll be interesting for me to review this against Hardwired... To Self-Destruct.

Before proceeding, I just want to state I've listened to this album 3 times now. I will not review an album unless I've listened to it at least 3 times. 

It's really unfortunate that the only decent songs were the ones released before the album dropped. This entire album feels like it's one long song that goes on forever. I wish they just at least tried to do something different, or experiment a little bit instead of playing the same old generic song structures. I miss the days of creative writing. Every song feels alright to listen to, but never does anything special spark inside of me.

This album makes me feel like I'm listening to a Metallica cover band, but they're not playing any covers they're playing original music and everyone is standing in the crowd shuffling around saying to themselves "These aren't Metallica songs, are they?", and suddenly everyone in the audience is using shazam and google to figure out if these are actually Metallica songs or not.

Smash or Pass?

72 Seasons - Pass. Slayer anyone? The intro sounds just like Black Magic. Despite that hiccup, this song isn't the worst I've heard. It feels so generic though- and not in a fun way. I feel like the main riff feels like it has been used a million times not only by this band, but by others too. I'm pretty bored by this song, not gonna lie. Chorus is honestly pretty dogshit. Non groovy vibes. Key change is kinda cool midway through the song. Kirk solo just makes me feel underwhelmed, like a deflated balloon. No offense but I won't be putting this song in my playlist anytime soon. 

Shadows Follow - Pass. The main riff in this one is pretty mean, but other than that I'm not super into it. Would I put this song in my playlist? Maybe, but probably not. Chorus is kinda okay. Harmonized section is pretty cool, solo isn't bad at all. Batman theme in there is kinda cool. Where this song loses me is in the verses and pre-chorus.

Screaming Suicide - Smash, I guess. I mean this is definitely better than 72 seasons but it's by no means a great song. It's decent, even good. The main riff is much better, and has me grooving, but it sounds exactly the same as every other song (so far, this is still Wednesday). Pre chorus is dogshit. Chorus is dogshit. I just like the main riff, NOT the intro riff. I feel very unsatisfied currently, listening to this. The solo feels like it's trying WAY too hard to be catchy. Absolutely pathetic in my personal opinion. It doesn't even feel like a real solo, it's awful.

Sleepwalk My Life Away - Smash. The bass intro is sexy as hell. I do enjoy the ominous opening riff. Not a huge fan of the pre-chorus. They kind of run with the same ominous riff the entire song without much change, but it's alright I guess. Solo was okay I suppose. It's just too bad this song for the most part sounds like a generic rock song. Would I add this to my playlist? Maybe, I guess so.

You Must Burn! - Pass. The opening riff is pretty cool. I really don't like the main riff though. It sounds a little too pretentious. Is it just me or are all of these songs SO slow? Pre-chorus as per tradition so far is pretty bad. Chorus isn't bad. Midway through the song it changes into a cooler song, so I appreciate that. Solo is kinda cool.

Lux Æterna - SMAASSSHHHHH HARD AS FUUCCCKKKKK. This is the kind shit I'm into. THIS is what I want out of this album, more songs like this. Kickass thrash metal riffs stuck in your face and up your nose with a rubber hose. This one is SO catchy. Not the best Metallica song I've ever heard, but definitely top 15-20 range. It holds strong and gets me vibing hard. The solo sucks pretty bad, but other than that I'm headbanging pretty goodskies. Definitely the best the album has to offer, as of Wednesday.

Crown of Barbed Wire - Pass. The opening section of this song is pretty cool. Not in love with the main verse riff, but it gets the job done. The heavy bouncy riff after is pretty neat. Again though, this song feels so generic. I don't know what it is but all of the singing in this one gets on my nerves. Would I add this song to my playlist? No. The breakdown later in the song is sick as hell though. More of THAT, please. The kind of riff that gets your skin crawling. Solo is alright. The heavier version of the bouncy riff at the end is sick, why didn't you guys just use that instead?

Chasing Light - Smash. The opening riff is pretty good. Again, every song on this album is so slow. The main riff is VERY cool. Not so keen on the vocals, but the riffs underneath are pretty neat. There's a lot of underlying guitar in this one to appreciate. Solo is pretty good. Would I put this one in my playlist? Maybe, probably yes. Strong ending.

If Darkness Had a Son - SMASH. This song hypes me up. This is some classic ass Metallica- if it weren't for the post-processing, I would have thought this song is on ...And Justice for All, or even the black album. Main riff is SICK as fuck, playing that shit is so fun. This just feel so much heavier because of the use of chromaticism. I can't help but groove hard to this riff and the chorus. Super good. Is it just me or does it feel like I'm listening to a Metallica parody by Tenacious D? This one is a groove definitely but by no means is it the kind of song that makes me cry my eyes out because of how good it is (Looking at you, Call of Ktulu). Solo is definitely better but not great.

Too Far Gone? - Pass. The opening riff is kinda interesting. This sounds very similar to No Remorse. What's with the "aah aah"'s? That's a bit weird. I like the gallop riff in the background for like 3 seconds. Early solo coming out, kinda neat. I don't know what it is about this song though I'm so off-put. Actual solo is decent I guess, I really enjoy the harmonized sections.

Room of Mirrors - Smash. I enjoy the main riff as per usual. It's kinda neat. So far I enjoy a lot of this song. It is very generic as usual but the vibes are decent here. This definitely feels more thrash than most on this album. This song doesn't do anything super special though. It just sounds good enough. Solo part is pretty neat, and of course I like that they harmonize it.

Inamorata - Pass. An 11 minute song to finish the album? I'll be VERY surprised if this has lyrics in it. I stand corrected, I am surprised. This song is extremely slow, on theme with this album. I'm not super into the riffs besides the one under the verse. The one under the chorus isn't too bad either but I just can't handle an 11 minute song unless it does something special. Honestly I could fall asleep to this song. I like the interlude / break midway through the song but it's super generic. Harmonized part after is neat. This song feels like it goes on for 20 minutes.

Conclusion

(Wednesday) - I love Metallica with all my heart. They were my 2nd tattoo I ever got. But despite that, this album makes me scared because of how mid to bad it sounds. Lux Æterna is the only song so far worth listening to, and If Darkness Had a Son is an unfortunate second. I'm scared to review this on Friday.

(Final listen) - This album is super generic. It has some good moments, and fans will find some underrated riffs that I haven't covered here. This album doesn't reinvent the wheel, but I suppose it gets the job done. It's just a shame the band didn't experiment at all. Most songs are pretty slow and don't feel like thrash metal anymore.

RANK: C+

What are your thoughts? Feel free to disagree and comment below!

I know this review was a bit harsh, but I just want to make sure everyone knows that I have the utmost respect for Metallica. Being a musician myself, most of these songs and riffs are much more experienced than I could ever create. I wish absolutely no hate for any of the members of the band, they do a great job creating music still- just this album wasn't their best work.

- Sharky