METALLICA "BEYOND MAGNETIC"

With very little hype, Metallica released the Beyond Magnetic EP at the end of last year. Made up of four songs that didn't make the Death Magnetic LP (produced by Rick Rubin), they played all four of these songs during their four night, 30th anniversary celebration at the Fillmore in San Francisco. (I'll be writing a separate post about that: all four shows are available at Metallica's website as paid downloads, and so far, they are worth the money).

This EP is like Reload to Death Magnetic's Load.  From the same sessions, but a bit more expansive, more jams.   I like the songs, especially the last one "Rebel Of Babylon." Like Death Magnetic, it recalls Master Of Puppets, but (sadly) without any songs that are quite that classic.

Still, it is well timed, coming shortly after the release of their double album with Lou Reed, Lulu. After that rather avant-garde project, it's good to remind everyone that Metallica is a metal band. (That said, I think Metallica made a great backing band for Lou on his Velvet Underground classics "Sweet Jane" and "White Light/White Heat.")