Reviews (page 9 of 14)
A great, classic Metallica album. It lacks the speed and energy of the earlier albums, trading it for a tighter and more polished sound. I will add that slowing down really helped the band amplify the depth and intensity of their sound, allowing them to venture into new musical territory and create some of their most memorable songs. The original fans may not all love it, but this is the album that really made them superstars. Fave Songs: Nothing Else Matters, Wherever I May Roam, Enter Sandman, Sad but True, The Unforgiven, The Struggle Within, Holier than Thou
pretty decent idk, I’m not really into grunge unless it’s Kurt Cobain or whatever but this was pretty well executed, at least part of the time feels like a 7/10 to me
Nice to listen to, knew more than I thought I would
Still rocks
I'm not a fan of metal, not a true fan anyway. I do really enjoy JP, for example, but it's not really on my rotation. But Metallica is a band that puts music out there with a seeming purpose. Well, other bands might have a purpose of just pure thrashing, pulsating, non-coherent noise, Metallica makes me want to continue listening...
An amazing album and one where i bought it on cassette and immediately drove from Tempe, Arizona to Bloomington, Indiana listening to it on repeat. Clearly Sandman, Unforgiven and Nothing Else Matters stand out. Very enjoyable to revisit it again start to finish.
There's a reason this thing was so big. Still sounds pretty great, and a lot better than most of their following albums.
Pretty good... Metal is not my very favorite genre, but this is pretty classic.
Nice
Well rounded and enjoyable
I know it's a very basic take but I think this album is very good. I know Metallica somewhat "sold out" with this album by going more mainstream as opposed to their previous very much thrash metal style. But this album is simply great.
4.5!!
Oldie but goodie, heard this one too much in college, never bought, brilliantly paced from beginning to end.
Ah, heavy metal. I recently found out that the genre, for some reason, calms my anxiety, so I'd been dabbling in Judas Priest which I've greatly enjoyed. This album is, however, my first time listening to Metallica. The production, the instrumentals and the lyrics, which are sometimes meh in heavy metal, are all top quality. As can be a problem with metal, the later songs did start to feel 'samey' and I found myself losing interest. Solid start and a solid 4 though.
There's a reason that 80% of the people I know born around the same time as me (late 70s early 80s) own a copy of this album. It's probably the most poppy of Metallica's work and appeals to the widest audience.
Good metal stuff
What a polarizing album lol. Trve Kvlt metalheads see it as the album where Metallica became irredeemable, mainstream music fans see it as the band being boiled down into their most listenable and polished form, and all manner of opinions fall in the middle (including mine). I see it as an album where Metallica went for a more commercial sound, and did so very successfully both in execution and profit. It might be a bit of a sell out, and it doesn't hit as high of highs as their earlier stuff for me, but there is still some damn good stuff on this one. Load and Reload on the other hand... thank god this came before them lol.
Opens with a phenomenal track, and while there are a lot of emotional songs that I actually quite enjoy, I find the end of the album drags a bit.
4/5 The instrumentals were very good, having interesting bass riffs and guitar playing, especially during the very melodic solos. The vocals were strong in terms of delivery, while lyrics were better on some songs than others. the structure does get a little repetitive after song 8 but that is a minor problem that just knocks it down off the 5/5, alongside the unforgiven and wherever I may roam being a little long in my opinion
This is an enjoyable album with some classic tracks. I'm not a big metal aficionado, but I can see how this album exemplifies the genre. What I'm not sure of is whether this album created the formula, or just follows it, but it is incredibly difficult to not notice the structure of it. We start out strong, very metal. This continues until we reach the softer, more heartfelt "the unforgiven". We then get a 50:50 softer/harder track in "Whereever I Roam" and then the metal comes back, with a stonking finale in The Struggle Within. It's pressing emotional triggers in a way that were the music less good might seem cynical, according to a defined structure. I can't really criticise that, given how successfully they've done it, but it stands out like a sore thumb. It's reminiscent of so much metal, from the narrative of Bat out of Hell and Use Your Illusions through the later structures of Roots Bloody Roots or even some of the numetal of the mid-late 90s. Would I listen to the whole album through again? Probably not. Would I listen to tracks from it? Absolutely yes.
Metallica is actually my first time ever listening to metal, and it turns out to be a lot less violent than my misconception told me it was. It was overall a good listen, not my genre but I can appreciate it anyway.
I have this album in my library. I have been familiar with it since the early 90s. When I wanted to listen to some metal, this was pretty much it for me, as it seemed somehow more accessible than other metal that I had heard. It was great to revisit the album, because it had been ages and ages since I had given it a listen. I just don't often get much of a craving for metal.
Hard to believe that it was 30 years ago that I bought this CD. I haven't listened to it in a long, long time and was reluctant to listen today. I figured I'd outgrown it. BUT I found the first 2/3 of the album absolutely exhilarating. This is great heavy metal with distinct and singable melodies and lyrics. Enter Sandman, Sad But True, The Unforgiven, Wherever I May Roam, Don't Tread on Me, and Nothing Else Matters are as thrilling to listen to today as they were back then. I really wish the album ended after Nothing Else Matters though. The last four tracks are tiresome if not downright silly.
I did not enjoy MASTER OF PUPPETS despite my best efforts. But this album - released 5 years later - opens with “Enter Sandman,” a song I have really loved since the early 90s. So as I put this on I am really, really hoping the next hour holds up to that song. But I have my doubts given my experience with MOP… It turns out that the five years between MOP and METALLICA resulted in a much more palatable album. Where most of MOP monotonously ground away at my ears, METALLICA has a whole lot more going on on. The vocals are much more emotionally expressive. The lyrics are a lot more relatable and interesting. The arrangements have way more variety and interest. My favorite song remains “Enter Sandman.” I also really like - and already knew - “Nothing Else Matters” (hooray for the orchestra!). Other highlights included “Sad But True”, “Holier Than Thou”, “Through The Never” and “Of Wolf and Man”. Metallica is still not entirely in my wheelhouse, but where my main reaction to MOP was ‘when will this be over?’, METALLICA had me mostly wondering ‘what might be next?’ That and the presence of “Enter Sandman” and “Nothing Else Matters” made this something I’m glad to have listened to.
Well I mean it's a classic, isnt it
The "black" album, contains another of their masterpieces and one of their greatest, Enter Sandman (tank cadence, textbook guitar progression, raw and brash chorus, instrumental bridge that heightens the dramatic tension, chorus, coda), and again digs into the darkest depths of the human soul (Of Wolf And Man, My Friend Of Misery), but in general it marks the beginning of a step backwards towards a more human sound: only three tracks have a "thrash" rhythm. It is the most "unspectacular" work of their career: Metallica is a classic mainstream hard rock album and you are going to hear it whether you like it or not. (7/10) FT: Enter Sandman, The Unforgiven, Nothing Else Matters
A selection of Metallica-style songs off the album Metallica by Metallica
Listen, the guys of Metallica are kind of big loser babies, but I cannot deny that this album absolutely rules. I enjoyed every rock and rolling minute, and may have banged my head once or thrice.
Low 4
One of my all-time favorite albums.
Never heard of these guys. Seriously, the biggest problem with the Metallica album is that the good songs are never played and the great songs have been overplayed. To death. I have friends who are metal fans and if they never hear "Enter Sandman" or "Nothing Else Matters" again for the rest of their lives they would be ECSTATIC. Other songs are really, really good and you don't hear them very often anymore. My personal favorite is "Wherever I May Roam." The intro is so different from anything else the band had done before. Never in a million years would you have expected a progression from "Master of Puppets" to this. I liken "And Justice For All" like so many other progressive rock bands who went too far over the edge, a very divisive album, but then the band stepped back and tried something else. Some regained their fans (Yes, Genesis) others never really recovered (ELP). I picked up the 30th anniversary edition of the Black album (not the boxed set, that's overkill) and the lesser known tracks sound just as good (except "Through The Never", sounds kinda lurch-y. It feels like they aren't very sure about that one.) It's not my favorite album of theirs, but you cannot deny what they accomplished with it. My favorite quote about this album comes from Jason Newsted: "People said we sold out for this album. Yes, we did... every seat in every stadium." So I give this 4 stars, it's a really good, solid album, but it still isn't up there for me of their best (Master of Puppets, a quintessential metal album.).
Metallica have always been the one thrash band I can stand, and this album is a perfect example of their sound. A treat for my first album, but not quite that perfect 5 for me. Enter Sandman is a great song, but one that even I have personally overplayed at this point. Reminds me a lot of the first Rock Band game. If I had to pick a favourite song, I'd struggle between The Unforgiven and Nothing Else Matters.
Enter Sandman is such an epic song. I am also going to give this album 4 stars it was very pleasing. that's my takeaway.
dated but still a classic
The first time I ever encountered the concept of "selling out" was when I was probably 11 or 12. This kid in my Boy Scout troop wanted everybody to know that the Black Album sucks because "it sounds too good." Now, whenever I listen to this album, I picture a greasy-haired kid trying to look cool with his half-buttoned Class A shirt trying to think of reasons he hates it because he knows he's supposed to. I'm not trying to say that selling out or going commercial doesn't sometimes mean compromising artistic integrity, but the furor over Metallica making their music listenable is hilarious to me. This album owns. Best track: Nothing Else Matters
A very heavy and dark outfit from Metallica. It's probably their best and most well known album, having been number 1 in about 10 countries and a mainstay in the charts. It is the quintessential metal/heavy rock album. Its a heavier sound than the likes of the metal albums of the 80s, but does not disappoint. Best: Enter Sandman Worst: Of Wolf and Man
Love this as background, will listen again. 3/5 for concentrated listening, 4/5 background
My introduction to Metallica. As an 11-year-old and completely unaware of their earlier output, I had nothing to taint my view of this one. It was an entirely new sound to me and a very exciting one. I've still got a lot of time for it now.
Not necessarily my vibe but I have to admit that for an album that was released in 1991 it must’ve been huge and impressive. And „The Unforgiven” & „Nothing Else Matters” are undoubtedly both classics now :)
The only Metallica album I’m truly familiar with. Enjoyed on this listen much more than I thought I would.
Great album, don’t love every song but has extremely high highs and no true lows. Perfect for when u just wanna bang ur head around.
Ich fand es deutlich besser als befürchtet, teilweise aber dann halt doch einfach nur Heavy metal
Hab ich hier eigentlich je festgehalten, das Metallica die erste Band war, die mich zum Kauf einer CD motiviert. Es war „…and Justice for All“ aber dennoch war das Black Album irre wichtig fürs aus dem Kokon des Lego/Transformers-Zimmer hervorbangenden Metall-Kid. Und auch jetzt sitzt jede Melodie - war der Hippocamous damals recht aktiv beim wegsortieren. Bin also sehr, sehr, sehr befangen. Aber neben der Süße nostalgischer Note stimmt für mich auch nach wie vor die knüppelnde Härte der kompletten Rhythmus Sektion (samt Hetfield) und Filigranität Hammets. Natürlich war ich insbesondere dem Sellout Song „Unforgiven“ verfallen…verzeihlich und aus zeitlicher Distanz auch sowas von gerechtfertigt. Was ein Meisterstück - eingängig, melodisch, hart, bittersüßest in seinem narrativen Element reif und, ja perfekt. In dieser Balance aus deftiger Härte und wehmütiger Zartheit gelingt hier auf Albumlänge ein Meisterwerk. Neu entdeckter Liebling: „My Friends of Misery“. 4.4
great pop metal
The album has been trendy lately due to it getting remastered and having a wide array of weird selections covering it. The album is good but not top Metallica.
Surprisingly not as heavy as I expected. Some cracking tunes
ну ваще-то норм так-то альбум. Ракешник хорошо, хэтфилд орёт неплохо. Отмастерено плоско тока
I have a confession to make. Before reviewing this album, the only version of "Enter Sandman" I had ever heard was the cover by...wait for it...Pat Boone. You haven't lived until you've heard Pat Boone cover heavy metal tunes. Anyway, suffice it to say that I'm completely unfamiliar with Metallica's catalogue. Before I get into my opinion of Metallica's "Black Album," let's get a few things out of the way. There's no disputing the musicianship on display here. This is not simplistic three chord metal headbanging by ham-handed clods. The arrangements are intricate. The playing is pretty much flawless across the board. Some of the songs are catchy, certainly Enter Sandman. James Hetfield's vocals don't move me, but technically, he's an excellent singer--the way I see it, it's my problem and my loss. The guitar playing on the other hand is a minor revelation. Kirk Hammett may not be my favorite metal guitarist, but he's really good. He has taste, a great sound, and chops to spare. With that out of the way, here's my opinion of the album. While there's nothing in particular to complain about, it's just not my thing. I mean, I plan to put their albums in all of my Spotify "year" stations, and I definitely plan to check out the earlier albums, and I wouldn't turn off one of their songs if it came on, but I can't see myself putting on this album and listening to it all the way through again. Why? I find the singer unappealing--it's just personal taste or lack of it. I don't care for the songs, which is oddly enough, where this album is supposed to excel. Again, why? Hard to say. There is little to complain about. There is nothing lazy or unintelligent about the ways these songs are constructed. And clearly some of the songs are hooky. Again, my loss. Actually, this album makes me feel inadequate as a reviewer. Usually, I have damned good reasons for criticizing an album. I hate it when reviewers slam a record for no good reason. And yet here I am. Sigh. Wait a minute. I just figured out what bothers me about this music. It strikes me as cartoonish but with zero sense of humor (now I get why they were used as the model for Spinal Tap). Okay, I feel better now
Great album; a perfect example of Metal.
Brilliant album. Brings back a lot of memories from my teenage years. 'Enter Sandman', 'Unforgiven' both are songs that are etched in the collective memory of me and my friends
Si me gustara el metal, esto me encantaría. Pero como no me gusta, las canciones son muy largas y algunas muy raras
Album Ranking: Enter Sandman Through the Never Of Wolf and Man The Struggle Within Nothing Else Matters Wherever I May Roam The God That Failed My Friend of Misery The Unforgiven Holier Than Thou Sad But True Don't Tread on Me
Metallica's most famous album, and the album that ushered in the 90's Grunge era, as well as elevating Heavy Metal to a mainstay genre in the public eye. A lot of Metallica's most famous songs also exist on this album. All around, this is an amazing album and a must listen-to for any fan of music - especially Heavy Metal or Rock genre enthusiasts.
It's a great album. But it's carried by three absolutely insane epic tracks, and the rest is like I guess... OK metal? Idk, it's why I'm hesitant to give it 5 stars
A classic to start off with. Haven’t really listened to much Metallica outside their most popular songs so it was nice to hear some of their other stuff. ‘The Struggle Within’s’ guitar solo was a particular highlight.
I understand why its a classic even if it's not my taste
Classic
Je comprends désormais un peu mieux tous les geeks trentenaires aux cheveux gras, qui utilisent le smiley ":3" pour communiquer avec de jeunes filles. Cette description s'applique d'ailleurs a la moité des utilisateurs de ce generateur, ces gens qui vomissent la musique commerciale pour se la jouer marginale, et qui ont par conséquent descendu la muse Mariah Carey. Je n'oublierai pas.
Good & heavy with some great guitar riffs
O Black álbum era melhor na minha memória, as músicas mais famosas já cansam, mesmo sendo boas, as músicas mais desconhecidas são só chatas. No geral é um bom álbum mas não tao bom como tinha na minha memória. Nota 7/10
NODDERS
I like it!!!!!!
New appreciation for Metallica now...
Even as a non-metal fan this is just a great album. The Unforgiven - Wherever I May Roam - Don't Tread on Me is an underappreciated trio.
.
Ik ben geen grote Metallica fan, maar dit album vind ik geweldig! Een van de eerste hardrock albums die ik als tiener kocht en grijsgedraaid heb.
IMO this was when Metallica took the turn to become more mainstream (if that is the right term) ~ This is NOT the "Kill 'em All", "Ride the LIghtning" or "Master of Puppets" Metallica of my youth. A lot of my friends and fans called them sell outs when this album came out. Say what you want, this album, on the back of "And Justice For All" made Metallica the biggest heavy metal band in the world. and I fucking LOVED this album back in the day..... I wore that casette tape out! LOL
I always enjoyed this album. Wasn't much of a metalhead at 14, but this is pretty much my access point for appreciation of it.
Good, but listened to far too early
Needs a 4.5 option tbf
4/5
Enter Sandman" Released: July 29, 1991[1] "The Unforgiven" Released: October 28, 1991[2] "Nothing Else Matters" Released: April 20, 1992[3] "Wherever I May Roam" Released: October 19, 1992[4] "Sad but True" Released: February 8, 1993[5]
A classic album with iconic songs. Almost every song is at least great!
Not to bad. Some great hits are in this album.
Didn't even need to listen. Permanently downloaded in my brain.
8/10 Tiene muy buenas canciones pero después de nothing else matterzzzzzzzzzzzz
A staple heavy metal album. 8/10, I always thought the album cover was plain black.
I love a few of the songs on this album but not all of them. Mostly nostalgia...
enjoyed absolutely blasting it
Classic, forgot how good Enter Sandman was
Bängeri! Metal Metallica
Love it. Great for anything
this album continues to be classic metal, and inspiration for countless bands, and one of my favorite albums (despite thinking Lars Ulrich is a huge piece of shit).
More enjoyable than I expected. Definitely saving some tracks
Enter Sandman
Massive album. Extremely well produced and written. Sooo much groove and swing in the rhythm section. Down picking riff master Hetfield outdid himself on this one. All the riffs are classics at this point. They have punch, power and they hook you instantly. Solos are melodic and well thought out never too much and always complement the songs. Ver very well put together piece of music. Some filler (eg Holier than thou or The struggle within), but even that doesn't detract from the overall quality.
Kende m al, oud goud natuurlijk. Best hard, maar niet binnen mijn huidige smaak (jan 2021)
Rough round the edges but a solid rock album
Overall a ton of classics Standouts include Sad But True and Nothing Else Matters
Very smooth transitions and excellent musicianship. Some of the songs blend together and sound a bit repetitive, but that could be my inexperience with metal. Super solid!
One of their best !
Solid stuff.
Enjoyable metal, have heard several of the songs before. Overall I would go back to this album sometime in the future
Metals most accessible offering to date catchy choruses and scintillating guitar.
3.9 never used to like Metallica (could’ve been the Napster thing), but they’re growing on me.
what a tremendous masterpiece
It's metallica.
Quite a good sound, but kinda samey tbh. Unforgiven was good
A great album with some huge hits. Unfortunately the other songs cannot hold the high quality of the hits which keeps this album from reaching 5 stars
Kyseisen soitinyhtyeen varmasti paras levy. Kuuntelee helposti muutaman kerran putkeen ja yksittäiset biisit toimii aina, mutta ei silti ihan viiden * leiskautus.
Great tunes but pretty poppy sound
It really holds up. Maybe because it’s 30 years later but it doesn’t sound so innovative today
Probably my favourite Metallica album but also their foray into the mainstream. Some classic songs
Quality this one
Start of the decline, maybe it would have gotten stale but more thrash Metallica would’ve been dope
Rageeeeee
1991. Key Songs: Enter Sandman, The Unforgiven, Nothing Else Matters
and NOTHING ELSE MAAAAATTTTEEERRRSSSSSSS this is the album that got me into metallica so i appreciate it for that. i like sad but true and (obviously) nothing else matters lol. sure i could see why metallica fans dislike it as its very commercially accessible but if it gets people into the band then hey! i ended up listening to more of their music after this and loved it.
Este álbum es poderoso tiene canciones muy emblemáticas de la banda Especialmente para mí Nothing Else Matters Me parece curioso que históricamente hablando (al parecer) este álbum representa un cambio de enfoque para poder mostrar resultados que puedan ser más abiertos a otras audiencias Algunas de las pistas en el álbum son buenas pero no memorables Pero si está reescuchable y se aprecia mejor conforme avanza el tiempo, estoy convencido de que hay álbumes más cohesivos que este, pero de nuevo, este es un muy buen álbum, sus estadísticas lo ratifican
I'm going light 3 on this one because even though I found it really boring and repetitive by the end, I feel like I would have had a pretty good time if the album was just Nothing Else Matters, The Unforgiven, Enter Sandman, and maybe any 3-4 of the filler tracks. I just can't get that excited about a band that varies its sound as little as this and isn't doing anything all that interesting when it does. I prefer metal like Lacuna Coil or Rammstein where synths and vocals add more interesting layers. This thing is just a dull monolith of gloom.
It's quite long. A few bangers but ends up samey. James Hatfield's voice is so corny.
I know I'm a broken record on this topic, but while I love music like this, I prefer when it has lengthy instrumentals and less singing. Or all instrumentals! - that would be even better. The music on this record is marvelously intense, though. 3
відчуваю себе американським підлітком в сша в 94му
Do you remember when you were younger and certain stimuli used feel like electricity coursing through your body when you were excited? "Enter Sandman" used to give me that feeling. Before learning about the band and their history, I heard the Black Album. It's a great starting point for most listeners, because this is Metallica at their most radio-friendly, while still retaining the metal edge that made them superstars. I get it, anthemic tracks like "Enter Sandman", ballads like "Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters" are new tricks for the then-biggest metal band on the planet. However, once I explored Metallica's discography, the Black Album seemed less interesting. The 80's albums are just so incredibly strong that the Black Album feels watered down by comparison. It's also unfortunate because the success of the Black Album inspired a lot of generic sounding radio rock copy-cats for the next two decades. Have I spent hours listening to this and pouring over the insert, yes; did I memorize the lyrics, absolutely; that said, this album has not aged as well as Metallica's earlier, more interesting work.
it’s not horrible but it’s just not my thing. i’m not an instrument music kind of person. i can objectively appreciate all the guitar solos and nice drums but ultimately it’s just not my favourite genre. some good gems here like nothing else matters, enter sandman and the god that failed. but as i am not super familiar with the band and genre it just sounds like generic no copyright metal music which makes sense because this is where they all took inspiration from. also weird seeing dont tread on me here (song imagery etc) and seeing what it means nowadays #awkward
Massive album, I know most if not all of the songs. It was ubiquitous in my youth and that was at a time when Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Achtung Baby were fighting for air space. I won't deny that the songs are catchy, to a point, but the same self seriousness of all Metallica songs is even sillier as I have grown older. Unforgiven sounds like it was written by a 5th grader. Don't Tread on Me...utter nonsense. I know this isn't Shakespeare or even Dylan but it's just so sophomoric. I will give it a 3 because it was important during it's time but I don't think it influenced a thing. There was no metal revival that came of it. If anything, it was the last vestige holding on as alternative definitively put a stake in the heart of 80's metal in the coming months.
Si me gusto mi fav fue the unforgiven 10/10
Old man, rock ‘n’ roll/heavy metal not for me except the first song, which is very Poppy
didn’t finish but i was waiting for the generator to give me this album
Oh hé, du metal ! Incroyable, il y en a, dans cette liste ? Bon, soyons sérieux 5 minutes, évidemment qu'il y aurait Metallica et Robert Dimery faisant du Robert Dimery, évidemment qu'il allait mettre le Black Album. Si c'est le seul album de Metallica dans la liste, ça va un peu m'énerver. L'album Metallica, c'est un peu le gros album controversé de Metallica. Parce que St. Anger, il est pas controversé : tout le monde le trouve nul, et à juste titre, mais on va éviter de parler de cette purge. La particularité de cet album, c'est le changement de style du groupe. Et qu'on soit d'accord : je ne pense pas qu'un changement de style soit une raison pour maudire un groupe. Mais là, c'est quand même un peu particulier. Parce que Metallica, c'est un titan du metal. Avec Kill'Em All, le groupe a ni plus ni moins fondé le thrash metal, en concomitance avec Slayer. Et ses trois albums suivants sont tous cultes, des exemples de thrash nerveux parmi les plus influents de l'histoire. Je vais pas m'étaler plus que de raison sur cette période de l'histoire du groupe, parce qu'il y a beaucoup de choses à dire et de nuances à apporter (comme la prod assez infâme de ...And Justice For All). Ce qu'il faut retenir, c'est que dans les années 80, avec ses 4 premiers albums, Metallica s'est démarqué en étant un monstre du thrash et son influence sur tout le metal extrême, de façon directe ou indirecte, est fondamentale. C'était un groupe révéré du genre, l'un des plus populaires au monde, voire même le plus populaire. Oui mais voilà, alors qu'on arrive dans les années 90, Metallica voit plus grand. Metallica veut remplir les stades, attirer les foules, vendre des albums par palettes entières. Et c'est pas avec du thrash que tu peux faire ça. Alors, sur le Black Album, le groupe se métamorphose. Finis, les titres rapides, rageurs. On ralentit le tempo. Et on ajoute plein de parties mélodies et accessibles qui parlerons au grand public. Et pour faire bonne mesure, on met une balade presque consensuelle. Metallica avait déjà de l'entraînement dans le style, avec le début de Fade to Black qui préfigurait un peu Nothing Else Matters, sauf que cette fois, pas de déchaînement, on reste sage et tout doux jusqu'à la fin. Et le pire, c'est que le groupe arrive à ses fins. Le Black Album a été un succès monstrueux. C'est l'album le plus vendu du groupe et, si je ne m'abuse, du metal tout entier. Un succès phénoménal, donc ? Si on regarde les ventes, oui. Sauf que ce qui fait la qualité d'un album, c'est pas les chiffres des ventes. Et c'est là qu'on entre dans la controverse : pour beaucoup, cet album est une pure trahison, un scandale que beaucoup n'ont pas digéré et maintenant, même des petits jeunes qui n'étaient pas nés à l'époque détestent Metallica par principe, juste à cause du Black Album (ok, ils sont assez rares, surtout hors d'internet, mais le simple fait qu'ils existent, je trouve ça dingue). Beaucoup de gens détestent cet album qu'ils voient comme une aseptisation du groupe, dans le but de faire plus de ventes. Et difficile de leur donner tort, à mon avis. Ceux que je comprends moins, c'est ceux qui adorent cet album. Parce que, et là, on entre dans mon avis personnel, c'est quand même pas dingue, comme album. Je ne fais pas partie de ceux qui le détestent, je trouve qu'il a des qualités, mais bon sang, que les parties metal peuvent être mollassonnes ! Il y a vraiment des passages lourdingues, où il ne se passe rien. Et limite, je trouve que c'est quand Metallica assume le plus ses ambitions commerciales que l'album fonctionne le mieux. Je parlais de mélodies accessibles un peu plus tôt et on pourrait croire que c'était péjoratif, mais en fait, trouve que c'est les moments qui fonctionnent le mieux. Mais pour moi, ça ne sauve pas entièrement cet album que j'aime vraiment pas trop, même s'il a ses qualités. Je comprends ceux qui le détestent, je ne comprends pas ceux qui l'adorent. Pour moi, c'est un 3, parce que c'est pro, c'est bien joué et il y a de vrais passages de qualité, mais c'est un net recul après 4 albums presque irréprochables.
Not so much that there’s any bad songs, it’s just that the album is too long at a bit over an hour and whether or not I like the sound now as much as I did as a teenager, it does feel like a bit of a wash across so many of the tracks. I think part of the trouble is that, in stripping back to a simpler, more live approach to the music (which was a good choice for the band clearly), you lose the proggy variance through the songs themselves of the earlier thrashier albums. Instead it’s kind of like 5 minute tracks supposedly designed for easier listening and radio play and the like (but I’ll grant them, they absolutely hit it on the initial tracks).
I’m torn here: do I rate it according to “objectively” how good it is or according to how much I like it. It’s really not my type of music, but much like it happened to me with “ten” by pearl jam I discovered this album had classic songs I’d heard a thousand times before.
Again not my thing, but extremely well done and influential
Feels raw. Some of it felt same-ish. I was surprised about how much pointless rage seems to be in this album.
A classic I spent a ton of my time as a 16-17 old year listening to, and memorizing.
3.5 favs: enter sandman, don't tread on me, nothing else matters
240626 13:42 3.5
What can I say, it’s fucking Metallica
started with a classic naruto amv banger and continued to some very listenable proto? metal? idk, i fuck with ~80s metal more than a lot of modern metal subgenres i’m aware of because it seems to be busy/cluttered and as a result more listenable for me. i'm def a musical ignoramus but i thought the guitar riffs were fun to and the sound is almost camp? which i enjoy in theory, but little actually stood out to me past track 1. i'd pick a copy of this up on cd if i saw it at a thrift for Angry Apartment Cleaning though. fav: enter sandman
Metallica (1991) - Metallica (6.75) Enter sandman 8/10 Sad but true 7/10 holier than thou 6/10 the unforgiven 8/10 Wherever i may roam 6/10 dont tread om me 6/10 through the never 6/10 nothing else matters 8/10 of wolf and man 7/10 the god that failed 6/10 My friend of misery 7/10 struggle within 6/10
Nothing else matters is a great song. The rest I don’t love as much. Objectively Metallica are quite talented, it’s just not quite my thing.
Strong opening track, just as strong closing track. Full of bangers.
The beginning of the end for Metallica. If I never hear this record again I’ll be ok.
It’s not a bad album, but it’s such a marked step down from Metallicas first four and a huge sign post as they transitioned into the Load era. Still some good songs though.
Lotta heaters at the start, brings back memories of listening to a bunch of them off an mp3 player my brothers mate gave us which was the first time really listening to music that we were choosing to put on, last 4 songs do drag though
No me gusta el metal, no pude terminarlo. Aun asi tuvo buenas canciones, enter sandman es un banger, the Unforgiven tambien. Si te gusta el metal es un clasico, guitarras fuertes, buena bateria. El bajo flojo, me gusta la voz del chabon como disco 4.1 personal 3.0
Solid album, liked it a lot. Drums have a very rich, punchy mix, use of a lot of low end in the tracks. Enjoyed the production of it mostly, guitars sound a little scratchy in places for me.
The first song 🔥🔥🔥
Before this album Metallica was for the grits, Sandman blew up and brought metal to the masses. I was a little familiar with some of their music but never really got into it until the release of The Black Album. It opens with a couple great metal songs, and there are a handful of good ones (mostly the singles) here but overall it is a bit one note. It is a decent album, a bit formulaic, I definitely prefer some of there early work over this one.
Well, this did nothing to challenge my opinion of Metallica as a band that's boring and annoying apart from the big hits that everyone knows and likes.
Metallica has some undeniably good metal riffs but, man, they don’t know when to end a song and their “ballads” flat out suck. If metal is your thing I’m sure this is a 4 or 5. I gave it as high as a 3 because I get that it’s good for what it is but James Hetfield takes his junior high level lyrics seriously enough that I certainly don’t have to.
This is so lameeeeee. I used to like it and didn't get all the critics but to be honest, listening to it as a whole in my late 30s is just a bland experience. The corny intro of Don't tread on me makes me wanna puke. Songs are not bad but all the time that mid tempo for stupid beer drinkers that say "'tallica" is just boring boring boring. Giving 3 stars though due to the huge amount of shit that there's in this list. This record at least has effective songs and a killer production (those arrangements in Sad But True are amazing, despite the song itself).
meh
3.5/5 https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/metallica/metallica/ The album with which Metallica 'sold out'. Of course it's not a necessarily bad album; they are (were?) too good a band for that (although later albums were actually bad...), but it's just a bit boring. It's long and very few songs really do anything interesting.
Its not my cup of tea but I can see why people that are into this genre love these guys. I mean I like them, I just have to be in the right mood.
holy dad rock. Wherever I May Roam is one of my favorite songs period god bless
I know and quite like the singles - but rest of album was new to me. On first listen it was quite relentless and fairly joyless. Although it was starting to grow on me by the second listen - which is the most positive response I have had to any metal album so far. Not sure I would readily listen by choice as just not my bag - but beginning to understand it a little.
Fun!
I struggle with this genre. I can appreciate the technical wizardry, and some of the melodies and compositions, but ultimately I'm unmoved by it all. The vocals, the guitars, everything - it didn't affect me. (Listened in the evening, at home)
I like Metallica decently enough, here they are really in their element. The guitar rips and the songs really get you moving. It's not something I'd consistently come back to tbh, but the big hits off this are big for a reason. Great tracks, only wish they had a little more differentiation between them. Otherwise pretty good. Fav Track: Enter Sandman
Enter Sandman absolutely rules. (note: if you're ever in the mood to run through a brick wall, listen to the Mexico City version, it's insane. Maybe the best opening to a metal concert ever) However, this album, like a lot of others runs out of steam pretty quick. There are some heaters in there, but I found myself waiting for it to be over a lot of the time.
I've never heard of any of them except for the first track. Sorry.
I think Metallica's 1991 self-titled offering is a very funny starting point. Self-titled albums sort of piss me of though, with an exception for debut albums. Was everything up to this point not "Metallica" enough for Metallica and this was when they really felt the stars align? The self-titled practice may also be appropriate for a band deliberately creating the last album they ever will, but I am not aware of any instances of that. The only track I already knew going in was the first track "Enter Sandman." Not without good reason, it's probably the only metal song anyone who does their eight hours in pleated khakis can name before saying something by Guns N' Roses and admitting defeat. The rest afterwards was fine but nothing stuck out to me too much. The start of "The Unforgiven" had a cool western opening that would have been at home in a Clint Eastward western, but then sort of goes into some standard riffs. A pattern in general I noticed here was that each track has a solid and interesting hook but when you open the can it's all spam. Delicious but totally homogenous meat. I can know what people say abou Lars Ulrich and I sort of agree, but I'm not ready to roll out the guilloutine just yet. I'll wait until I hit Metallica again on the six-hundreth and sixty-sixth day before passing divine judgement. I have a bad history of misunderstanding or straight up not comprehending lyrics in my native tongue, so going forward don't expect much analysis of prose and content. That said, I feel like everything here was completely digestible. I like that several tracks seem to be written from the first-person POV of abstract concepts. P.S. Thankful there's an edit feature, even if it's weird. Guess I should write these in a notes app and sit on them for a bit before posting. Just wanted to add that "Nothing Else Matters" is a needed change of pace to break up the album into clean halves, and "Of Wolf And Men" is probably a furry tf anthem or something idk.
You might be labelled a hipster to think that Metallica were better in the eighties before they blew up, but I think the hipsters might be right on this one. After putting out 4 landmark metal albums, Metallica drop the thrash and dumb down their sound for the masses so that even the most inbred hick can get plastered to 'Enter Sandman' and not feel left out! Perhaps I'm being too harsh, 'The Unforgiven', 'Sad But True' and a selection of other tracks are great hard rock staples. I just wish we got more experimentation seeing as they were incorporating progressive rock elements on their previous record and nothing like that is found here. The hardcore Metallica elitists treat this record like the plague and it does not deserve that type of bashing, but I was certainly underwhelmed after listening to this for the very first time in full today.
It's a staple of a genre and entire movement. It was always going to be a decent listen
The singles are of course tried and true classics. In terms of album-only cuts, its a mixed bag, as some songs didn't stick out to me. Overall, not a bad time/first album, though i'd cut it down a bit as it felt like a bit of a drag at points. Highlights-The singles, Holier Than Thou, Don't Tread On Me(guilty pleasure), and Through The Never.
Cartoonish, corny and absolutely stuffed with memorable songs and just a bit of boneheaded "USA! USA!" warmongering
The highlights on this album are eternal, obviously. But it's also clearly the turning point when the band moved away from the crunchy, often almost math-y structures of Master of Puppets towards a more straightforward sound. And it just makes me sad! Less polish, more grit please!
Went into this thinking I hated Metallica. Now there just meh. 3 stars
2.5
..
Bit noisy
All down hill from here haha. Can't deny the hits though.
17.5.2026
Not really my type of music but I can see why this album is so highly rated. The writing is super catchy and the instruments sound great. I probably won’t go back to it much but I still enjoyed my listen for the most part.
i'm big enough to separate the negative associations i have with this album and the people who love it and admit that for the genre - which i generally despise - this is a "great" album.
Enter Sandman is 5+ min long? I liked this album better than I expected and less than I wanted to.
A classic, not super my taste
Enter sandman and sad but true make for a really cool start to the album, but after that, it’s pretty much just a lot of Metallica, isn’t it?
I still dont really like this kind of metal, and are you kidding me? Did every single song have a guitar solo? Even the slow songs. ..
I was one of those people who dismissed this album when it came out as a sell-out album. The song should be long and intricate, and these songs were too short and radio-friendly. I still generally feel that, but I have to say that Enter Sandman is one of the best things they've done and an amazing song. The album goes downhill after that.
oui monpapa
Solid pop metal, part of my high school years, with a few solid hits.
Really polished metal that saw a shift from the previous speed metal style to pomp and spaghetti western influenced twang. Full of chart topping ambition and catchy tunes that shifted metal landscape when it came out. Just a bit boring in my opinion compared to their early records where things felt a bit less contrived and better to headbang the shit out of.
A really fun album. It's in no ways better than Master of Puppets, but it's a fun romp.
The Chili Peppers of Metal
No es mi estilo personal pero las que son un poco más tranquiláis me han gustado mucho, como nothing else matters o enter sandman
Not as good as the two prior albums and better than anything that followed. I personally preferred the frenetic/prog feel of Master of Puppets and ...And Justice for All quite a bit more than this. Three stars as this doesn't excite me when I hear any of these songs the way I do with their earlier work. Here is the catch, this is a solid 3.7 but in no way is it a 4.
Not really my style, but understand the significance behind it.
Not bad, but metal still isn't my thing.
Trying to stay positive here. This album brought metal to the masses, but for the band, it feels like they were stuck between the fiery stuff from their youth and the somber grindingly melodic songs that would appear on Load/Reload. So in a way, this album feels a little lost. In being more appealing to most, they lost some of what made them special to a few.
Great album!
A perfect encapsulation of this album is that this is the Metallica album my dad likes. That's not bad per sei, but it is indicative of direction Metallica took on this. There's plenty of good songs, but there's not the same raw energy that basically every album they made before this had. I do kind of hate that this a huge part of why terrible bands like disturbed could ultimately exist down the line. But that isn't really the bands fault. It's a fine listen. probably a little overrated by being the one Metallica album a lot of people will actually listen to. Also, the guy who said this is the Flavortown soundtrack is dead wrong. Flavortown would clearly be soundtracked by Reel Big Fish. Look up a picture of them, you'll know I'm right.
Any album with a handful of instantly recognizable tracks is a noteworthy accomplishment, and after 30+ years, this album sounds impeccable. It’s just so one-dimensionally “angry” or growl-filled or whatever. It gets boring fast.
Sinceramente achava que o álbum seria melhor, de 12 músicas 5 são relevantes e boas de escutar, o resto não fede nem cheira, parece a mesma música de visões diferentes.
Ultimate dad rock
Second day in a row for bands and albums I don’t seem to rate as highly as many people do, and that I want to like more than I actually do. This was the first Metallica album that I actually liked - up until this point, I appreciated a few of their songs but they just never clicked for me. This one unlocked them for me and made me go back and appreciate their earlier albums more, but as I gave this a full listen yesterday, I genuinely cannot think of the last time I actively chose this to listen to. The songs themselves are great but they’re still a band that I just don’t tend to reach for.
not a metal person, but still a good album
Never listened to Metallica song really, except that on song that got on Stranger things back in 2021 or something. Ok starting off strong with Enter Sandman, very intense lyrics, contrasting fear and childhood references. Tune's pretty cool though. I feel like I would hear this at one of those edgy stores at the mall thats all black and with really bad lighting, but good superhero merch and jewlery. WHOA MAMA THE GUITAR RIFFS THEY ARE INSANE WHAT my average acoustic guitar playing could not :') Holier than Thou is giving Thalia Grace vibes. I feel like i've Through the never before. It was so funny listening to the intense Metallica songs and then getting inturrupted by a calm turf installment ad. Is nothing else matters the calmest song on this album? Maybe. Good sound. Of Wolf and Man is pretty cool, especially the guitar solos. I was feeling pretty happy today, so Metallica didn't really fit the vibe for my day, even if i do like a good metal rock song. But the guitar was CRAZZYYYY. it was awesome.
As a metal fan, I should like Metallica more than I do. But it's more of a respect for their influence than an enjoyment of the music. I will say, the singles from this album were very inspiring to me as a teenager and got me more into the genre. Production is very dry. Drumming is unique, though not necessarily in a good way. I don't know, it doesn't fire me up the same way other metal albums do.
The album that launched Metallica into the stratosphere while leaving a large portion of its fan base in the dust. Side A is still a fun listen, but the back half is not as strong. I'm in the camp that they went for money on this album and never looked back. Hopefully Master pops up on this list.
This record was pretty good. It felt like there weren't many standout tracks here. Favourite Track(s): Enter Sandman, The God That Failed Least Favourite Track(s): My Friend of Misery
2 bangers, the rest is ok.
Reluctant 3. Fantastic songs, and a great album forever tainted by the whining from lars.
Спросили бы у меня, что я думаю про этот альбом полгода назад, я бы сказал что он неслушабельный. Однако переслушав его сейчас я понял, что впринципе он неплохой, особенно есди пропускать самые известные песни, по типу enter sandman или nothing else matters (хотя так остаются только половина альбома, но она очень хорошая). Возможно такое отношение к альбому у меня из-за того, что все эти песни я с детства слушаю и чаще всего, их слушаю всякие наглые люди, которые портят впечатление о песнях.
This is not my style, but I did enjoy some of the melodies. There are classic songs like Enter Sandman which I quite enjoyed. I might go back to this. 3.5/5 Some of the songwriting was quite corny imo. Still figuring out how review an album.
Not as good as my nostalgia would suggest. Some decent tracks. Generally good head banging energy but guitar riffs are self indulgent.
This was the last Metallica album I bought. I bought it because I hadn't heard it. Before today, I hadn't listened to it for decades.
Can't deny the hits. Of which there are many on this one. But it's just not really to my taste.
Overall, an exciting project, the instruments used and the intensity of it are very enjoyable. The best way I can describe it is as final boss/epic movie scene music for sure. I can apprieciate the cult following of metallica off this albumn but personally not exactly my cup of tea that's why overall gets a 7.5/10 from me. Favourite songs have to be sad but true and of wolf and man. (wish there was a way to give half a star, so it gets 3 stars) Rough commentary as I listened: This would be the first rock album I have listened to, and must I say, Enter Sandman is a captivating song for sure, instantly had me wanting to shake my head. Something I would typically reserve for something like a Chief Keef song, lol. Intro alone, it is off to a good start; the drums and guitar are captivating as fuck. Enter Sandman - 8/10 Sad But True - 9/10 Goes Hard so far, but the only emerging criticism is the sly repetitiveness in sound. Holier than thou - 7/10 The Unforgiven - 6/10, different tone than the start, at least. Wherever I may roam - 8/10 Don't tread on me - 6.5/10 Through the never - 7.5/10 (final boss music) Nothing else matters - 8/10 (best vocals on the albumn) Of wolf and man -8.5/10 The God that failed - 7/10 My friend of misery - 7/10 The struggle within -7/10
Lot of hard hitting songs on this album
Mid
Mehtallica
Looks like they tried to make their sounds a bit more commercial (not a bad thing), but there are some tracks still have a vibe of their earlier albums. Nice listen but not that essential to me, since I’m less interested in metal recently and also prefer their earlier albums before this. I guess my 15 year old self would have love it.
Much bigger fan of Master of Puppets.
Funker fint som gateway-metal og føde til UKM band.
Metall med et mørke over seg. Overraskende sentimentale greier. Tekstene føles litt påtatte, jeg kjøper dem liksom aldri helt.
Weirdly underwhelmed by this. Definitely an improvement over the last Metallica album I had from this project, and there's a couple of standout tracks, but it all sort of merges into a very midtempo sludge that I didn't find as sonically interesting as I'd like.
The black album, nothing else matters!
Other than the guitar playing, most of these songs are just not that good lol
Wasn't really for me
- Not really my cup of tea, but not completely terrible - There's some melody and enjoyable parts of songs
Metal!
Not my genre, but a couple ones I like. I know Nothing Else Matters far better than I thought.
i only listened to half of it... (guitar) (guy speak sings some sad words) (More guitar) not bad... i would defo eat it up if i was like angry
The problem I tend to have with Metallica is that they don’t really grab me for extended periods of time. There’s not many songs that they have that I sit and feel genuinely satisfied to have listened to, and this album has a lot of those moments. It’s genuinely solid insofar as it’s well made, well produced, etc., like there’s nothing in here that’s necessarily bad, but only a few songs properly grabbed me (Enter Sandman, Don’t Tread on Me). I think if it was a bit thrashier like their first few albums I would have enjoyed it more.
The last semi solid Metallica record in my opinion. Definitely not my fave though…too many “hits”.
Monster album, monster hits, but it gets boring, preachy, and suffers from sameness. I think I bought this CD back in the day (I must've, because I'm definitely familiar with it all), but it was the last Metallica album for me. It's brilliant in a "We discovered the formula for MTV & radio airplay!" kind of way, but it's really mostly Metallica-flavored early 90s radio rock. A far cry from their previous albums. Kicks off at a solid 4/5, but by the end it's the kind of 3.5/5 that I round down.
I'm not a metal guy, of course there are some classics here.
Classic and just right to reminisce on the era
Good album with some amazing songs but I think I'm to old to enjoy this type of music. I recognize the quality but anything more loud than 'Nothing Else Matters' is to much for me.
Some good songs some snoozers. Holier than thou was rlly good.
The singles are good. The rest is just fillers. Not bad fillers but mostly uninteresting I think. I forgot how much I hate "Don't Tread on Me" lol. "The Unforgiven" is my fav. This is another exemple of an album that could have been better by making it shorter. I dont hate long album (I love Swans) but its a problem when an album with 5-6 good songs and 6 mid-bad songs is an houre long. Cut the crap and leave the good stuff. Yep this album was really the start of MetallicA's downfall. And god did they fall... I cant believe the band that made "Ride the lightning" is the same that made motherfucking "Lulu". Wait RtL is not on this book ? And how is this album ratted higer than MoP ? In wich universe ?
I gave it a listen not my style of music but I did like the writing.
Heavy metal
This genre is not my cup of tea.
buen album para motivarse
Better than we thought. Pretty decent
I dont like this kind of music.
idek
Yea amazing album. So many hits. Metallica isn't my jam usually but this is a great album
temazo "enter sandman" pero no soy muy fan de este tipo de musica sorry not sorry
Not my ususal genre but impressed, need to listen more
Hittone metallone
The most popular Metallica album by the masses that most old school Metallica fans. Losing the thrash and the shred and way upping production results in a heavier but more sterile output. It's not actively bad by any stretch to me and MTV loved to scare me with the Unforgiven video back in the day. But it's decidedly not my favorite.
Bom album com algumas musicas que sao hinos do rock. Apesar disso, nao sou mt fã do Metallica, mas Nothing Else Metters, Unforgiven e Enter Sandman sao incriveis 3.5/5
Worse than I thought. I mean the hits were good but the rest was ehh. Low 3 stars
The 90’s were not kind to a lot of hair metal bands. It could have been worse for Metallica.
Never sure where I sit with Metallica. Some great riffs, but also way too many overly long tracks.
I mean. It is what it is. Not for me, I won't be going back to it any time soon
This was released when I was 19, which is in the ideal range for loving music that is relentlessly huge and loud. I saw them three times on this tour. Listening back, there are a few solid tracks, but overall it is a tough slog. Essentially the same tempo and vibe for an hour straight, with a couple of “ballads” tossed in to try to catch that “One” lightning in a bottle again. Not to mention that this stab at the early 90s grunge zeitgeist was a huge step down from Metallica’s early years of thrash and prog metal. The record that made them a global phenomenon to the point where they haven't released a listenable album in 30 years and still fill football stadiums around the world
Lars still sucks
A few of their best songs but also some filler and I'm not too big on Metallica ballads.
Good driving music, full of major hits, it’s fine. A little one-dimensional, but fine.
Metallica reminds me of smoking resin from a gravity bong. Does it get the job done? Certainly. Do I enjoy it? Not particularly. I’m not really a Metal guy, but all my friends in school were. All of them who weren’t good people loved Metallica, and all of those who were good people hated them.
Best: Nothing Else Matters I’m pretty selective with the music i listen to within heavy metal so i didn’t really go into this one with high expectations and to be honest that held true, however I did LOVE nothing else matters. Production was actually cleaner than i was expecting, it obviously was very weighty but i didn’t feel like it was as messy as i usually find a lot of heavy metal, the dynamics were also really well balanced and the vocals sat perfectly above the music. I didn’t think there was much variation in pitch between songs and many of the tracks,?particularly towards the latter half of the album, were very tonally and rhythmically similar which blurred them together for me after a while, but maybe that says more about my waning interest. I know technically James Hetfields are very impressive and i can appreciate them but in tracks like sad but true i find them almost comical and i envision a silly swamp monster singing. Musically this is a very consistent album, tracks have heavy intro riff, verse, big chorus, guitar solo which i suppose is the same for a lot of songs in general. I feel like me enjoying nothing else matters is almost unfair because it is so incredibly different to the rest of the album. It’s much more emotionally engaging and less aggressive, it showed incredible nuance that i didn’t feel on other tracks. Rating a bit higher because i love this so much and im generally a bit biased within the genre.
In December 1997 I was 12 years old when I got this album as a Christmas present. I really loved it back then which makes sense because metal music in general and Metallica in particular is the logical and very common next step after children's music. I haven't listened to this in 25 years or so but I still remember every song. At least 1.5 stars for nostalgia.
I get why everybody thinks it's good. But it's just not my thing.
Too heavy and drums are clunky. Maybe wasn't in the right head space
Couple of bangers. Listened to this a lot during high school, but not in my rotation anymore.
Started off strong with the iconic Enter Sandman, some great heavy riffs and a catchy chorus. From then on it was kinda more of the same but not quite as good, did start to get a bit bored of it, especially with how long the album is. I found as well the vocals could be a bit cheesy at times. I Really enjoyed the Unforgiven, kind of an Ennio Morricone vibe throughout. Great bass at intro of The God That Failed, sadly gets a bit lost in the mix for the rest of it. Great guitar tones for ripping solo at end of My Friend of Misery, the last two minutes of that were probably the highlight of the album for me. Borderline 3/4 for me but despite having some strong tracks, as an album listen it’s just a bit boring.
I'm bored
It's a far cry from their earlier stuff, but I still think it's decent. To be fair, I don't think there's anything of value I can add to the conversation here, if there's an that album has already been discussed to death, it's this one. I'm just kind of ambivalent about it. Favourite track: Enter Sandman
Four Metallica albums on this list seems a lot, just saying. Seems they were trying to capture a wider audience with this album, so I tried my best to appreciate their efforts. It's still mostly just a thumping noise but I did find it marginally more palatable than the previous two we have had to date.
Metallica just doesn’t hit for me as much as other metal/metal adjacent bands of their time. I don’t like their singer that much at all and their power cords sound almost generic (although this may be the Seinfeld effect). They just seem like the background music/target album/EA video game soundtrack choice from thrash metal — the most accessible but least special
I have listened to 'Enter Sandman' and 'Nothing Else Matters' a lot in the past, so situating them within the album as a whole was interesting. 'Enter Sandman' is such a brilliant opening track - naming it as brilliant doesn't suffice for the way it propels the album forward and bursts onto the scene. 'Nothing Else Matters' is AMAZING. STUNNING. NO NOTES. For me, however, this meant the rest of the album blended into one. My prior experience with both of these songs meant they outshined the other tracks upon listening to the album as a whole. Maybe if I listen again this might not be the cause as, don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed listening to the album, discovering its overall sound, and delving into the journey it takes you on. It's just that all I was left with was 'Enter Sandman' and 'Nothing Else Matters' (I guess they are popular for a reason!), leaving the rest to fall to the back of my mind. Rating: 3.5
Not necessarily a genre I completely embrace, but some massive riffs and excellent playing. Probably wouldn’t revisit, except for Enter Sandman, but don’t hate it either.
Es un álbum interesante pero no llega a conectar del todo
Not really something I'd come back to because it's not really a genre I vibe with. But I appreciate the artistry and craft.
Unforgiven and enter sandman are good, not loving the rest unfortunately apologies to the fans. Solid but likely wont come back to it a ton.
3/5. “The black album” is the moment where Metallica went from being big for a metal band to being one of the biggest acts on earth. If you’ve ever tuned into rock radio post 1990, you likely have this albums singles burned into your mind. And with the first leg of the album, it’s easy to see how it was such a huge success. But as the tracklist goes on there is a number of lesser tracks in my opinion such as “don’t tread on me.” And just being blunt I vastly prefer thrash Metallica and the radio overplay of this albums singles has worn them down for me (even if that’s not the fault of the songs.)
Classic metal from the 90s, done well, even if Lars is a dork.
I listened to this because I'm a completionist, but I did not need to hear all of it to know how I feel about it. It's one of the most important metal albums ever, and contains several of Metallica's all-time classics. Sadly, it's impossible for me to divorce my feelings about the music from my feelings about the band, and can only care for Metallica from a musical anthropology perspective. To that end, I watched the VH1 Behind The Music more times than I could count when it came out in the late 90s, but I've never owned a Metallica record. As a guitar player, the only things that ever interested me about the band are the classical guitar intros that they like to dabble in (I also mentioned this on my "...And Justice For All" review). In this case, that's primarily "The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters". The enduring impact of this record forces me to rate it higher than if I were rating purely on personal preference. One of the longest hour long records in recent memory. My review of "...And Justice For All" said that I wasn't really annoyed to listen through that record, but I don't remember if that was just because it caught me on the right day or what was going on. I certainly feel a little annoyed to listen through this today, so I'm gonna price that in.
They're clearly enjoying themselves massively and if you like this genre at all you're going to love this. Unfortunately heavy metal is perhaps the genre I dislike most of all. But I'll score it relatively highly to allow for this being probably the best in it's class.
Day 1 — Metallica — Metallica (Black Album) (1991) Listened: Feb 23, 2026 Genre: Heavy Metal / Hard Rock Vibe: Haunting, aggressive, melodic Highlights: • Enter Sandman • The Unforgiven • Nothing Else Matters Impression: Giant sound. Very melodic for how heavy it is. Good balance for my tastes and makes heavy metal palatable for me. Rating: 3.0/5 Keep songs? Yes Revisit album? Yes
Hard and rock
Büro, Heidenheim, Deutschland. Schon so ein bisschen überbewertet.
I knew only two of these songs (the very well-known ones). The riffing is semi-decent (crunchy texture), but there are almost no off-beat rhythms, why is it so square? And I'm soon tired of the vocal style - I am quite open to cathartic music, but this is almost always shouty/angry, boring. So, Nothing Else Matters is great (better dynamic range), some other songs could be okay as one-off workout songs, but I wouldn't play this again as an album. I will keep choosing heavy rock / metal (eg Living Colour, Agriculture) that doesn't have this tedious shouty tone. Feeling generous, I say it's "Mix of Good and Bad", 5/10.
I finally got around to this, been putting it off. It was alright, 3 stars. definitely some catchier moments here and I've heard a lot of these tracks before but I've always steered clear of Metallica before. My view have softened to them in recent years but not super impressed with this album.
This has been my first listen through of a Metallica album, and it was an interesting listen but a little disappointing. The tone/timbre of everything is perfect, the drums are pounding, the vocals have that great gravelly quality, and the guitars sound perfectly chunky and electric... But the songs themselves just failed to wow me. Enter Sandman is of course a great track, but by the time I'm in the second half of the album my attention is really wanting, which really sucks because those other elements feel so great. I know Metallica has other albums that are held in a little more higher regard so I'm keeping my hopes up for when I get to those. Fav Track: 1 - Enter Sandman Best Three Track Run: 1, 2, 3
A little on the long side for not-my-preferred genre. But full of easily-recognizable hits.
It's metallica and it's good but I don't love metallica
This was okay. A bit too long for me.
Does this album need to be on this list? No. Groove metal Metallica really doesn’t need much dwelling on. That said, Sad But True is one of the platonic ideals of groove metal, so this album is worth listening to for that.
Not my usual but I liked it
I liked this album a lot more than I thought I would. My few encounters with metal have not been great, so this was a pleasant surprise. A fault that I think can be found in every album of this genre is the monotonous sound throughout, which can, and did, become tiresome. And I know this is not an original thought, given it's their most popular song, but 'Enter Sandman' is great, I loved it. Three stars. (Favorite track: Enter Sandman.)
A good metallica album, though I miss their thrash days. Solid, but I might not come back to this.
I am more of the raging thrash heaviness of the first four Metallica records, rather than this big top 40 one. But I guess Enter Sandman and Unforgiven are poppy hits.
Um, a very masculine production is my first thought, in both fine and not so fine ways.
3 and a half. Enjoyed this more than I thought I would
About half the songs slap enormously, and the other half are guff. Lars is the world's worst drummer
Started off good. The songs all kind of sound the same to me.
It was fine.
It got worse from here for one of my favourite 80’s bands
I definitely enjoyed this version of Metallica a lot more than the version that created "Master of Puppets". Thrash metal is very much not my thing. I don't understand the appeal at all. But the music on this album is more focused on melody, and less on thrash elements, and ultimately it ends up being a much better piece of work. Thrash still sneaks in, but when surrounded by the more heavy rock sound, it actually works really well. "Enter Sandman" is a classic song. Everything about this song works so well from start to finish. It's dark, theatrical and foreboding, and the idea of turning the sandman into a horror story is pure genius. "Nothing Else Matters" is the other classic on this album. The opening acoustic guitar riff became compulsory learning for budding guitarists in the 90s, even if you weren't a Metallica fan, and for a good reason. The decision to soften the heaviness with orchestration is what makes this song, and coupled with that great chorus vocal, it's a different side of Metallica: restrained and refined. But, the songs surrounding these classics are where the album falls. Thrash sneaks in for full songs here and there, and a lot of the other songs don't really go anywhere, making a good chunk of the album feel quite forgettable. But, all in all, this side of Metallica, the side favouring melody over mindless thrashing, is one that I can actually listen to and enjoy.
Stand-out tracks: Enter Sandman, Sad But True, The Unforgiven, Nothing Else Matters, My Friend of Misery I'm generally not a fan of heavy metal so I knew going in that I wasn't going to like it apart from the few tracks I've already heard before. I've noticed that I'm a much bigger fan of the tracks that mix moments of high octane energy and moments of slowness and just instrumentals without the harsh vocals. Tracks that are just at a 100% from start to finish tire me out really quickly. In that sense only about half of the album is ok to me while the rest I won't be going back to, hence the average rating.
Highlights: Enter Sandman, Sad But True, The Unforgiven, Wherever May I Roam, Nothing Else Matters Interesting how their whatever-th album is a self titled one (and not a debut), but it all makes sense when you look at it through the lens of the entry point for the normie edgy metalhead - which it is. But hate for the annoying fans aside, I found the record to be very good too. It has this edginess to it, but it is also very approachable to the general masses because it takes on some elements from 80s rock hits. It's great for what it is and I wouldn't mind playing it more often if it wasn't made by Metallica - a bunch of twats who act all edgy and cool until you download their music from Napster. The lyrics are a bit too edgy for my liking so I didn't pay much mind to them. I really don't get how this shit gets infinite praise while nu metal gets slammed for the same reason. The record for me was therefore heavily carried by its sound, which did make my head bop. I have heard more interesting tracks from their other records, so I guess this wouldn't be my favourite record of theirs based on that. This record was a bit more on the tamer side of metal. That's why I'm saying it's normie friendly. For instance, does Unforgiven even count as metal? Half of the material is more of a ballad type. I won't be revisiting this record as a whole, but the highlights will definitely remain in rotation.
The more melodic songs probably better suited to me. I did like Metallica pretty well when I was younger. 3/5
A few strong tracks. Not my thing.
Revisiting this album after I last listened to it in high school. Quite nostalgic and if I remember correctly it was of my introductions to heavy metal since Metallica decided to take the more commercially accessible route with this album.
Heavy metal.
Absolutely BUZZING for this one, I really like Metallica and this album, I’ve always wanted to listen to more. Man icl I didn’t really like any of the songs other than the ones I already knew. Fav song is ‘Nothing Else Matters’.
Not fond of metal in the slightest but this was a good listen.
Solid enough in a stodgy, plodding sort of way. Dark enough to be vaguely interesting to a non-Metallica fan, but lacking enough to disappoint thrash Metallica fans.
Contains two of their better known songs but the rest is pretty average
i really liked exactly half of the songs and absolutely hated the other half. truly the most 2.5 album to have ever 2.5'd
I like Metallica, I can see the appeal of the album. It's a little too pop oriented for most of it and forgettable for the rest. It's no Master of Puppets!
6.5 - Some decent tracks. Def prefer older Metallica.
A lot less abrasive than I was expecting, definitely kept me awake on my drive to work this morning. High 3
I've gone back and forth on Metallica over the years - times when I really liked them and times where I haven't. On the Black Album, I think the better songs save the rest of the meh songs on the record. Overall they are extremely important to the genre, have some great songs and an overall strong discography. While this is no Ride The Lightning or Master of Puppets, it's still worth a listen and a pretty easy entry into their genre of metal.