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S&M
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Price: $13.08
Price subject to change!
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Binding: Audio CD
EAN: 0075596246323
Format: Explicit Lyrics
Label: Elektra / Wea
Manufacturer: Elektra / Wea
Number Of Discs: 2
Publisher: Elektra / Wea
Release Date: 1999-11-23
Studio: Elektra / Wea
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:  
Summary: Some of Metallica's original songs are improved here...7/10
Comment:
This cd would appeal mostly to Metallica fans who want everything the band has ever done, or maybe fans of symphonies who like 'edgy' music. Sound quality on this recording is excellent (my favourite Metallica album, "Reload" has very poor sound, and I've heard very bad things about the sound on the band's new album "Death magnetic". It seems the sound quality on Metallica albums is very hit and miss. Here it's more 'hit'. Both the symphony and Metallica are clearly distinct on this cd, so one does not suffer in comparison to the other, prominence wise.
Of the songs selected for this double cd, I could have sworn I'd seen "Fade to black" on it when I looked at the track listing a while back. Maybe I was mistaken. That is arguable their best song and I think it would have worked really well on this cd. Some of my other favourite songs which missed an appearance on this cd were: "Welcome home", "Orion", "The unforgiven" and "The unforgiven II". There are probably lots of 'hardcore' Metallica fans who don't rate these songs that highly and rate more highly songs which did appear on this compilation. As I think the songs above are amongst the band's best, I'm disappointed that they didn't make it on to the album. The only other Metallica song which I consider an out and out classic, "Enter Sandman", does make the song line-up. "Memory remains" is a near classic and makes this cd as well. From their earlier albums, I don't mind songs like "The thing that should not be", "Master of puppets" and "Battery". All these songs are on this cd. Perhaps "Fight fire with fire" is in those songs' class too, and deserved to be on this album.
The only other point of comparison for this album that I have is a KISS symphony programme I saw on ABC TV in Australia (not sure how similar it is to the title that is available for purchase on dvd). My problem with some of the songs on that programme was that the orchestral arrangement actually detracted from some of the excellent KISS songs. In other words, the symphony didn't play to those songs' strengths. Perhaps that's an unfair comparison as I saw KISS on a portable tv and I heard S&M on a stereo with good headphones.
In this review's heading, I state that some of the band's original material comes out better on this than on the original album. Which is to say that songs on albums like "Load", which I really didn't find that interesting, sound more interesting with this arrangement. That includes songs such as: "No leaf clover", "Hero of the day", "Bleedin' me", "Outlaw torn" and "Sad but true".
If you're wondering if the symphonic treatment softens the sound of the band, "Battery" should dispel those fears. Of all Metallica's thrash songs, this one doesn't lose any of its accoustic brutality.
One possible gripe for this cd is that more use could have been made of the symphony. Personally, I would have liked to hear more isolated instruments carrying the melody of the song in the quieter parts. Especially if that instrument had a sound with character...I don't much about individual instruments in symphonies, but maybe something like an oboe, or a horn or something...maybe even a harp.
On one occasion, something approaching what I would have liked in that regard is achieved...in the intro for "Battery", for orchestra delivers a nice counter-balance to the thrash metal which comes after that. They provide a simple but effective arrangement for Metallica.
Since "Memory remains" is one of my picks as Metallica's best song, it's good to see that that is a hard song to stuff up...it works well symphonically too. You do get the crowd singing along the melody to that song, along with the symphony.
Which brings me to another gripe: crowd involvement would have been better on the recording if the microphones were nearer the audience or something. Iron Maiden's otherwise mediocre song "Fear of the dark" is turned into pretty much a classic by the crowd singing the melody in their "Rock in Rio" concert. That recording really captured the crowd's passion really well.
If you're after versions of songs which don't take liberties, then maybe this cd isn't for you. Hetfield occasionally stays silent so that the crowd can sing some of the lyrics of the song. Occasionally he adlibs or encourages the crowd, which may annoy some people who'd rather hear Hetfield keep to the script of the song.
Even though I'm not heavily into heavy metal, heavy metal albums which I highly recommend are:
Metallica: Reload (which is a great hard rock album); Master of puppets (their best early album) and The Black Album.
Coldseed: Completion makes the tragedy (a great debut album with lots of stylistic variation in the song list. Another two albums like that from them and I'd rate them as highly as Metallica!).
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great CD, stands the test of time
Comment: I wouldn't really rate this as a "true" live album as the symphony concept was a rare event, and not something that truly portrays the songs as you would here them if Metallica was touring today.
S&M came out when i was in high school. Being a band dork, this was a great fusion of something I was fairly familiar with (classical ensembles) and Metallica, something I was just starting to get a taste for (its hard to dive right in when they were coming off of crapfests like Load and Re-load!) For all their missteps in the studio, they still had a great live act and a real wealth of great material. This turned me on to metal in all its forms and potential.
The first three tracks, this start's out with Morricone's "Ecstasy of gold", were a real challenge for me. Cthulu is a very long instrumental, and I feel like the orchestra helps to keep this song from getting monotonous(as sometimes Metallica tends to repeat the same riff to death). Then you come to Master of Puppets, now this is where everything comes together, as James finally starts singing. You started on with just the orchestra, then you add the band, and finally the vocals. Now that all three are playing along (with a little help from the crowd acting as a massive choir) you really start to have fun with it.
Others have commented about all the songs, but I just wanted to finally mention the real peak of the album for me is "Hero of the Day". For all I care this is the definitive version. The orchestra almost changes the meaning of the song, that's how integral they are to this arrangement. It turns it from what I feel is basically a bitter/beaten veteran's song into a song about loss and redemption, the orchestra acting as some sort voice on high. I get chills when i hear this version. love it!!
This was a great disc to buy back when it came out, and I would still recommend it to Metallica fans today.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Why???
Comment: Metallica continues thier downward spiral with...A SYMPHONY???
Nothing like putting all your recent failures to the score of an orchestra.
I'm besides myself even trying to review this tragedy.
The new songs sound even worse. And classic Metallica is made a mockery of.
And if you didn't think it could get worse.
Metallica decided to inflict St. Anger upon the world.
This album is completly irrevelant.
Avoid like the plague.
Customer Rating:
Summary: MUCH BETTER THAN YOU EXPECT....
Comment:
When this album first came out, I wasn't sure I was going to like it. I wasn't entirely into the new directions the band had already followed, and I thought that this would be a new step down for the band.
However, this is one of the better Metallica projects of the later years. It's not insane metal like any of the bands classic eighties outings, but it takes the goods and does a little something different with them. The SanFran Orchestra does a fine job arranging some classic Metallica tunes, and rather than just present the project as symphonic Metallica, they include the actual band as well, so you get some guitars in the mix. Other songs work better than others, but a good symphonic CALL OF KTULU shant be overlooked, nor should the track that was recorded originally for the album titled NO LEAF CLOVER. I was totally amazed at how much that song rocked when I first heard it. Easily one of the most inspired Metallica tunes of that decade.
Anyway, I see a lot of people bashing this one, and I can't agree. There are symphonic rock projects that really hit the fan (Kiss Alive IV for instance) but this one turned out to be pretty good, and a highlight in the catalougue of post hey-day Metallica albums.
Customer Rating:
Summary: awesome cd one of the better live albums I've heard
Comment: Live albums usually aren't my thing, however I must disagree because I love every live Rush album and the Rage Against the Machine Live At the grand Olympic Auditorium, but now moving on to this cd it rocks. The orchestra gives these songs new life and it sounds great. I saw Metallica quite awhile ago and they were terrible so I always use to avoid this cd but a couple weeks ago I decide to give it another chance since this is there only live album and I don't see any sign of a greatest hits cd coming along any time soon so this as close as your gonna get to a greatest hits album. IF your a die hard fan of Metallica and don't care that they're sell outs and there still a great band pick this one up. My favorites are Battery, MOP, Nothing Else Matters and Enter Sandman(Enter Sandman is my least favorite tallica song). If you have the disc give it another listen because you might be surprised of how good an album it really is.
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Editorial Reviews:
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Limited edition release (1,000 copies only) featuring Metallica's 1999 outing, a set of playing cards featuring the aces in the deck as specially designed caricatures of the band's members, plus a 2000-2001 calendar with all of the lyrics from the 'S&M' album, a silk screened black t-shirt (with the 'S&M' logo in red on the front & a soloist in red on the back) and a poster with the four aforementioned caricatures. Comes packaged in a fine weave, fabric-finished black box with silver lettering and a white satin interior (that doubles as a display case). Also contains a sheet music certificate. Black cloth covered box dimensions in inches 11x11x4 approximately. CD is packaged in double slim line jewel case. Plain slipcase covers entire package.
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