METALLICA: …AND DEMOS FOR ALL

The demos for Metallica’s …And Justice for All have found their way online. I can’t imagine they have done so legally, so you best go download them right quick, before the Metallawyers have them yanked down.

I first discovered these demos via Invisible Oranges, where, as is so often the case, Cosmo Lee has made some pretty interesting observations. For example:

“What fascinates me the most about these demos is Hetfield’s incomplete lyrics. We get a peek at his work process: he comes up with vocal patterns before lyrics…. ‘Harvester of Sorrow’ has basically just its title words. But even though Hetfield hasn’t found ‘Harvester’’s words yet, he sings their placeholders with utter conviction. His language is literally infantile – ‘Wa-na-na-na-na-na’ – which, in a way, sounds even more enraged.”

Okay I actually disagree with that last part — Hetfield does not sound even more enraged when singing in baby talk. He actually sounds totally ridiculous. (Although I wish he had considered using “Wa-na-na-na-na-na” instead of “Ain’t my bitch,” “You flush it out, you flush is out,” “my lifestyle determines my deathstyle,” or “what don’t kill ya make ya more strong.”) But Cosmo is right about the other stuff — it is really interesting to hear that Hetfield figures out vocal patterns before he does the lyrics.

Go download this thing, and then read the rest of Cosmo’s notes here. If you’re like me and Justice is your favorite Metallica album despite its lack of bass, or even if you love old Metallica, this is a must-listen. And if you’re that person who thinks that Load is the band’s best album — because, let’s be real, somewhere, that dude definitely exists — then just forget I said anything and go about your day, ’cause there’s obviously no getting through to you, bonehead.

-AR