All we had to do was ask for a live document of how Metallica sounded after the April release of "72 Seasons" and before their Europe/U.S. tour chugged out of the station, and here it is, four songs professionally recorded on an Amsterdam soundstage. No augmentations, no audience infusions, just a band glad to be pulling together in yet another decade -- and Metallica kill 'em all.
Two songs bookend the 24 minutes with messages of continuance. From the new album, "Lux Aeterna" leaps with the youthful energy fans hoped hadn't been lost; and the concluding waltz "Nothing Else Matters," criticized as a pale sellout in 1991, rings with the sincere self-affirmation and community gratitude it always held.
In between, the band hurdle the barriers of addiction represented by "Master of Puppets" (1986) and "If Darkness Had a Son" (this year). Starting thrashy and whirling through every mood, "Master" never sounded cleaner or more confident, and we still grin at the bold midsection theft of Mick Ronson's guitar riff from David Bowie's "Andy Warhol." Although "Darkness" isn't the hookiest lure on "72 Seasons," it's the headbanginest and most rhythmically gnarly, and you gotta pump a fist to lyrics like "dragging home this heathen harvest."
Mainly, "The Amsterdam Sessions" is guitarist-singer James Hetfield, drummer Lars Ulrich, guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo rocking like a Rubik's unit. They're so glued together, in fact, that producer Greg Fidelman doesn't bother assigning each guitarist to the left or right speaker; he slides 'em back and forth.
Such confusion can be fun, since Hetfield, normally considered the rhythm guitarist, can pick a deft lead as well. Nevertheless, next request: a full video that doesn't cut around every two seconds, so you can see who's playing what.
Meanwhile, watch the official pretty-much-live video of "If Darkness Had a Son" here, and listen to "The Amsterdam Sessions" on Amazon Music if Jeff owns your soul.
Amen.