Quote:
Originally Posted by The Batlord
My point is not that the songs are melodic or accessible. My point is that "Enter Sandman" is a cheap radio hit that sounds like a metalized version of Foreigner. It's tailor made to have a big riff to be played in a big venue to a bunch of *******s who would be just as happy moshing to Limp Bizkit or Linkin Park.
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I can see that, as I don't like "Enter Sandman" at all. But as I said earlier, I don't think the Black Album should be judged for its first three singles. And I think the main point is that "One" suffers from nearly the same problem (yes, even the thrashy latter half). Whether on purpose or not (and despite being a much better song), "One" has become a cheap radio hit on its own. Its sound isn't really "non-cheap/non-mainstream" enough to make a huge difference. I'm not trying to say The Black Album is better, I'm just saying the differences aren't so huge.
About the differences:
Like I said earlier, I don't think it is their best. It is their worst besides Saint Anger and ReLoad. But the initial argument that I jumped into was that AJFA and The Black Album weren't that different. I would agree though, that The Black Album sounds very different from albums 1, 2, and 3. The only glaring difference between AJFA and The Black Album is song lengths.
I think a parallel could be drawn between Metallica and In Flames. In Flames had a Black Album of sorts, Reroute to Remain. It is the album that lost some "fans" and gained a whole crap load of new ones. It also triggered a new direction for the group, one that happened to be more commercially successful. The previous album, Clayman, is very much like AJFA. It was only slightly different than Colony, but hinted at a change in the future, especially with songs like "Only for the Weak" (which you could say was the "One" of the album). As a result, R2R was indeed a change for the band, but it still sounded like In Flames at the end of the day. While many cite R2R as the transitional album, I would say it is closer to the first of the "new" In Flames sound (and it produced the first radio single as well). Clayman was the transitional album, much like AJFA was for Metallica. It sounded a lot like Colony before it, but also sounded like R2R. R2R, however, sounds nothing like anything pre-Clayman.