Review Summary: Metallica's foray into a more blues-influenced hard rock sound is an unprecedented failure, with only two songs I actively recommend and one other that is worth a listen. Padded, bloated, and uninspired, stay well away.
Experimentation can definitely be a success. Megadeth's push towards a more commercial sound on Youthanasia was a fantastic attempt, whilst Suicide Silence's ambitious nu-metal push with their self-titled album was better than expected (although Doris remains one of the worst songs ever recorded). In the case of Metallica's 1996 album Load, however, this is not the case. There is no place whatsoever in this band's catalogue for a blues-influenced hard rock album that saps any genuine entertainment out of a band that had previously innovated the thrash metal scene and then become a standard-bearer of thrash-turned-commercial acts in the early 1990's. Put simply, Metallica died after the black album, only to be resurrected during the writing process of Death Magnetic.
At fourteen songs and just shy of 80 minutes in length, Load is an album crushed by the weight of its own ambition. Were this album an EP made up of its three strongest cuts, this would actually be a really palatable effort and one that could stand in the upper echelons of Metallica records. However, closing song Outlaw Torn actually had to be cut by two minutes in order for this album to even be pressed, and the amount of garbage padding here is evident immediately. Opener Ain't My Bitch is one of the faster songs on the album, and feels like a radio-rock-by-numbers song. The riffs are forgettable, the lyrics are braindead ("now it's time to kiss your ass goodbye"), and James Hetfield's vocals here are abyssmal. Years of roaring like an angered Satan really took their toll on his voice, and this album is the first where I find him to be unlistenable. When he isn't spewing out "it ain't my bitch-ah" and making various ridiculous noises, he is singing in the most monotonous and soulless voice in the industry, or ad-libbing as he does prior to the solo of this opening song.
James is not the only issue here, however. The songwriting here is almost devoid of any creativity whatsoever, aside from the aforementioned three songs, which we shall get to shortly. 2X4 has a mid-paced intro riff that loses my interest instantly, and Kirk insists upon abusing the wah-pedal here, which has become a trait ever since discovering it around the time of Master Of Puppets. This is a plodding song that goes absolutely nowhere. The House That Jack Built sets its dull and uninteresting tone within the first two or three seconds and doesn't recover, with what vaguely passes as a guitar riff and the most simplistic and repetitious drumming from Lars only worsened by a really annoying long note held by James before one of the stronger riffs on the album kicks in, almost giving me hope for a few seconds. Sadly, this album takes a good idea and just rides with it far beyond the point where it has outstayed its welcome, reusing the same riffs in each song ad nauseum. The House That Jack Built has two riffs that are actually rather decent, but they are abused and ran into the ground with an almost liberal glee by Hetfield and Hammett. The hooks on this album are really bad as well, and this song showcases that with its attempt at a chorus falling flat. Thorn Within and Wasting My Hate continue this trend well into the latter half of the album, with the former being a slower and completely worthless effort and the latter picking up the pace but never my interest.
Thankfully, this album is not atrocious throughout its overly bloated runtime, and three solid songs actually do their best to wrestle it from the mire. King Nothing has a riff that at least gets the head banging, and the leads over the top of the riffs are nice. James doesn't do much to embellish this song, but it at least has the guitars and some passionate drumming from Lars to fall back on. This song isn't a great one, but is servicable. Two of the longest cuts, Bleeding Me and Outlaw Torn, however, can stand proudly amongst some of the band's finest work. Bleeding Me showcases the blues influence best on this record, and has some half-decent lyrics from Hetfield for a change. The solo is also exceptional, full of emotion and containing some runs that are pleasing to the ear. Outlaw Torn, despite being the longest song on an album already far too long, is the strongest track here, and is the one that I highly recommend anyone with even a passing interest in the band to listen to. This is a hard-hitting bruiser, with a softer introduction that builds to an impressive heavier section, fading into softer verses. James' vocals here are perhaps his best since the band's earlier works, crooning with so much conviction that it's hard not to marvel at this song. The solo is brilliant, and the constant ebb and flow of the riffs really shows a band at their peak on this one song.
This record is an interesting example of experimentation gone horribly wrong. Whilst it contains two tracks that are among my favorite in the band's catalogue, and a third that is at least decent, the rest of this bloated mess can be discarded by the roadside. Fans of Metallica's early works were, rightly, horrified by this upon release, and it killed off a lot of the momentum the band had built up with the release of their eponymous album. Whilst many now look on it a little kinder, I am unable to. This is a catastrophically bad album, with only two songs I would actively encourage people to listen to.
