Rick Beato in 2018: After the verse comes the chorus. Check out the chorus. Rickt Beato in 2020: It is that dissonant 7th major chord that really gives the harmonic part of the bridge section that extra blues feeling of despair, which is not really what the band is known for, but defines this genre throughout the 90s and is a trademark of this producer who actually takes his coffee with two sugar and no cream, which I found really interesting. Love the channel man, keep up the crazy in-depth stuff!
This album really was a pinnacle of recording history. It is a masterpiece. As an early Met fan, you might have been disappointed in the results, but from a production standpoint it was a stroke of genius. James, Lars and Bob Rock knew exactly what they were doing, and the world responded. This album made metal palatable to the world. If you even remotely like any of the variations of metal that now exist, in part, you owe a debt to this album. As a 14 year-old kid, hearing Enter Sandman on the radio literally changed my life. I dropped sports, pop music and rap, and gravitated toward metal music, learning to play bass, guitar, and drums. Everyone my age wanted to be Metallica when the black album dropped, and Enter Sandman was the bait.
I totally agree with you. The sonic signature of that album in my opinion was ahead of its time, almost futuristic. Even after 27 years it sounds as if it was just recorded a month ago. Also, I'm a huge Metallica fan and I really like the black Album. The composition of the songs were instrumentally much simpler than on previous albums but they really put the most effort into capturing a specific sound and quality. I believe Bob Rock said in an interview that his goal was to capture the sound and energy Metallica had it their live shows. In my opinion the Black Album is one in the top 5 best metal albums of all time.
Metal was already palatable to the world. See Pyromania, a few lps's from VH, Love at First Sting, and many more. Metallica was known as Speed Metal until they went mainstream.
Metallica became a heavy metal (no longer thrash metal) band with this record. A lot of bands should be thankful that the Black Album came out because it essentially opened the floodgates of metal to innumerable people who hasn't experienced metal in their lives yet. This album is a masterpiece in metal recording .
@@thunkjunk They can make music the way they want, there is no hidden agenda to make money...Black has the best sound of all the albums because of their success before it.. and then they started to experiment more, after they passed their prime in mid 30s...
Dude.. I started playing guitar at 12 in 2000.. Thru my mid-teens and during high school, I wrote music non-stop. I learned bass, basic drums and later in my 20s, basic piano. I just wanted to be able to put tracks along with my guitar tracks that werent horrible.. And 20 years later from starting guitar.. its all STILL overwhelming, haha.
Don't worry. It is also overwhelming for most musicians. Most of them are not classically trained or educated to that level, they just know what sounds good.
He truly has become absolutely horrendous the last 20+ years and its baffling really because his early work was solid. He always had horrible vibrato for sure but his playing had some thought and grace to it.
I prefer the songs from Metallica's first four records to The Black Album, but I have to agree that the production on this album is simply magical. It sounds *_enormous_* .
That’s the whole deal with these series- it’s not just about the writing but also the production. That’s why Rick picked Petty, Blink-182, Soundgarden, etc songs!
Black Album was a great Metallica record. You don't just "decide to sell out" and write fantastic songs like that. It's heavy, riffy, grooves and has all of the elements of a complete album. It became big as a function of people liking it. Heavy music in general was in (grunge, GnR, other metal) and this album caught lightning in a bottle. I love the previous albums as well but there's no point in denying the greatness of this record. That said, I don't need to hear "Enter Sandman" or "Unforgiven" ever again. Played to death on the radio.
Agreed. To call this a sell out is a big disservice to the the band. But what they don't get is that not just any band can pull off what they did on The Black Album. This opportunity was not sitting there for other contemporaries like Slayer, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, etc. Great as they are in the metal genre, they don't have the skill or the tools to make the crossover. Metallica sowed the seeds subtly over the years, whether they knew it or not. They were writing stadium bangers that would help to transition into the next phase of their career when they became a permanent arena / stadium band (For Whom the Bell Tolls, Creeping Death, Seek & Destroy, Fade to Black, etc.) The stuff like Enter Sandman, Sad But True, Wherever I May Roam, etc. sound like distilled versions of older stuff, in a good way of course. They wanted to simplify themselves and go in a new direction after playing those complex long songs during the Damaged Justice Tour. This was lightning in a bottle. James Hetfield peaked at that point too and that squeaky young voice turned into a monster stadium rock voice in 1989. I think James Hetfield between 1989 and 1994 is the peak heavy metal frontman of all time. He was that good.
I hate how people attack Bob Rock. Years after JUSTICE people complained that you couldn't hear Jason. I love that album but you can't hear him. All Bob did was come in and take the songs Metallica had and made them sound perfect as far as the recordings. But for some reason they hate him because of the songs. All he did was take the songs that Metallica brought to the sessions and make sound perfect. He didn't write the songs. If you hate the album for the music blame Metallica. If you hate the record for production quality, you're an idiot. I admit it's not my favorite record musically by them, but the quality of the recordings is masterful. Respect to Bob Rock.
I have to agree... And I think Bob Rock said it best about the hating on him when he said "If you think I EVER could have pushed THOSE guys into something that they didnt already want to do, then you know nothing about Lars or James or Metallica." Granted, the fleas come with the dog with what everyone wanted, but all Bob did was EXACTLY what James and Lars wanted. James wanted massive-sounding layers of tight guitar tracks, and Lars wanted a more basic but wide-spectrum sounding drum sound that could fill a planet. I would say they achieved all.
I know, the production of this album can be compared to the production of "The Dark Side of the Moon". Youc can't pretend that Metallica was gonna be Thrash or Speed even in the late 80's, that is called "evolution". .
I am addicted to Rick's videos. He is so stunningly knowledgeable about music - the history and personalities, production techniques, instrumentation, melody and harmony, music theory - is there any facet of the field that he doesn't intimately understand? This guy is a goddamn national treasure.
This guy is amazing! I like the way he dissects these songs and puts more background on them. Very interesting and informative. Makes you appreciate the artists and the songs even more. Great job Rick!
I love this kind of in depth break down analysis of music. Especially songs that are very popular. To hear parts of these songs isolated along with expert analysis is in my opinion a great way to learn how the art of music composition is generated/created. Having these analysis done by a genuine master musician is such a great lesson in song structure
I too like Metallica's older stuff better, but comparatively speaking, the recording and production quality went WAY UP on this record. The instruments sounded more distinctive, the bass was fuller without being boomy, and the stereo imaging was better on high-end equipment like Proceed, Krell Linn, Naim, and Audio Research which I sold at the time.
I never liked the drum sound on "...and justice for all." To me it sounded like Lars was hitting his drums with twigs, and the guitars were just to fat compared to the rest. And they muted Newsted on that one? Is that true?
Yeah, musically they were much better on the first 4 albums, but you have to be delusional or deaf to claim that Justice sounds better than the Black Album
You are so knowleadgeable, experienced, professional and passionate, that having them altogether, almost look out of the rock world for me! Impressive!
We all have our opinions on which album is their "Led Zeppelin IV", and there's great arguments to all the debates. But for me, I was 15 when Ride The Lightning was released and it had the most impact of anything on me since Black Sabbath's self titled album. I was so glam metal at that point. Crue, WASP, Ratt, etc. and the RTL album snapped me out of the glam scene and into the thrash. It also is what made me pick up a guitar. The instrumental Call of Ktulu track grabbed me by the ass and never let go.
This song is written just like a roller coaster. There is the foreboding of the lift hill, the delivery of the first drop, some ancillary thrills before a low section and the grand finale right before a brake run. The precision of the song is what is impressive. They aren't going for high art here. It's supposed to be entertaining. It delivers everything it aims to deliver.
amazing work Rick I'm not a musician but a music lover, your explanations bring a whole new appreciation to the music I will always love to listen to. thanks man
Say what you will about this album compared to older stuff and so on, but there's no denying that the whole album sounds MASSIVE. Absolutely one of the most powerful-sounding albums of all time.
Agree haha 90% didn't got the point this video it's about sound and production. Some can like more Master of puppets or even St. Anger that would be just a personal opinion. But not change the fact that the Black Album it's a milestone for the recordings, every sound engineer dream to produce such top notch quality recording (and still sound great nowdays too).
@Austin Lucksted Pro Tools or cake walk cannot really break a cooked mix into its different tracks like that. Rick has access to those tracks if he ask for them. He's in the business of studio production ya know? Connection...
The sound of this album was absolutely insane; it's been one of my trusted reference discs for evaluating new audio equipment for almost 3 decades now.
Wow I LOVE this series! Rick really provides a wealth of knowledge and insight into great song writing/arranging, instrument playing and production concepts. I think I've binged almost every episode over the past few days. I didn't watch them in order and this was actually one of the last videos in the series I watched. We got a great rundown of why the production values made this song great. To me though, it's really all about the songwriting/arranging. Most of the episodes we get lots of that type of explanation. One surprising omission in the analysis of this song is James Hetfield's master of motif development. The initial clean guitar part is really the main riff, obviously. Not so obvious is that once the heavy guitars come in (still in the intro), the riff is fragmented and developed. It begins by chugging on the palm muted low E, then hitting the E up an octave at the end of each measure (without palm muting). That's a developed riff based on the very first 2 notes we heard in the clean intro (low E to an E up an octave) Every several measures it gradually adds notes from that initial clean part until the band plays the main heavy groove, which is almost a note for note "heavy version" of that initial clean part. This is very similar to how Beethoven, Bach and Brahms got tons of mileage out of little ideas (motifs). Hetfield does things like this all the time, but I can't think of a better example than this song. Pushing this even further, the prechorus riff is note-for-note compared to the intro, just very cleverly up a whole step (temporary modulation from Em to F# minor). I think this is a huge part of What Makes This Song Great for Enter Sandman. Sorry for the rant :-) and rock on Rick! You're doing such a great thing by providing college level education to the masses for free. I think I should probably start supporting you by getting a club membership. Who knows, maybe your influence will help make pop good again :-) If enough up and comers can learn about GOOD music by watching your stuff, maybe the future will be brighter!
9:00 doesn't sound double tracked at all. But then it doesn't sound pseudo double tracked either. There's no duplicate of the main track underneath that I can hear. No phasing caused by adding a copy of it. Just a loud, bad-ass vocalist and some reverb. But maybe there is some chorus type thing added in very subtlely.
Rick, I recently discovered your channel and absolutely love it. I’m not a musician but really appreciate music. My three kids are learning piano and we really enjoy watching your detailed analysis. Keep it up! You rock!
As a longtime audiophile, I think this record is a sound masterpiece. I normally used Steely Dan stuff to demo gear, but if I wanted something heavy, this would be the one. Plus I think 'Sad But True' is just masterful bit of songwriting. It is a man's soul laid bare in a really powerful way.The heaviness adds perfectly to the truth of the lyrics.
Absolutely agree with what you said about Sad But True. That "I'm your dream, mind astray, I'm your eyes while you're away" part always gives me goosebumps, no matter how many times I've heard it. Plus the riff at the beginning hits you like a freight train.
Nice in depth review of the song. This song was the reason to leave my classical guitar for what it was and pick up the electric guitar in 1991 :-) Oh and uh 10:48 is actually the bass drum and the crash together ;-) Lars does however use the snare and crash together a lot too though, as you can hear in other parts of this song. Really like the massive drum sounds on this record! And James' voice is so amazing in this song! It has that nice eerie vibe to it, just like in Master op Puppets. Yeaheeaaaahh!
Really loved this video! I must have watched the "A year and a half" videos a hundred times, and it still blows my mind how tight and punchy Jasons bass was, and how the rhythm guitars can get so chunky. Everything on this album is fantastic, and I love it to death. Awesome video, thank you!
This guy is my idol. Knows literally everything about producing and playing and plays like a 100 instruments himself :D Oh and that studio is beautiful too. Amazing channel.
This was GREAT! I was 15 in 92, and this was one of the first songs my first band played. We did pretty good at it too, but I rushed the hell out of this song, and added a sixteenth note double bass run on the section right before the outro. I also played a ride cymbal during the pre-chorus sections. The closest I ever came to that snare sound acoustically was with my 5×14 1960's Slingerland chrome over brass snare, with a clear Remo C.S. Batter head, and Ambassador snare side. Thanks, Rick. A lot of memories there. I have some great memories with that album, and sort of growing up with Metallica in general.
The guitars on Sad But True, especially before the vocals, are the heaviest I have ever heard. But that's because a stellar producer like Bob Rock knew how to layer guitars played through the smaller studio monitor speakers and overdriven, slightly undermixed with the original guitars would create what sounds like an approaching Godzilla through the streets of downtown Tokyo!
I'll always remember the first time I heard this record. My boyfriend, now husband, bought the the single and we played on the record player in the front room. I was so excited and I loved it from the off. This song was loved by so many in the rock scene at the time. In 1992, while we were at the monsters of rock festival, this song was played between bands. I'll always remember singing along with everyone else. It's one of the many memories I have that I treasure from festivals and gigs over the years.
Evolve or die off. Music is therapy. Sometimes that therapy doesnt work. And the band falls apart. Sometimes that therapy does work, and the band evolves. Go dig up your best buddy from highschool who you partied with. Hang with him for a day. If he is married and settled down, he evolved, and survived. If he still parties, and you cant stand it.... you evolved. This is one of the greatest albums of all time. My personal favorite.
Hi Rick! I like this series, but I feel it could have more of your opinions and comments. For instance, most of the time we just hear the soloed stems and that's it, we move on to the next part. But what makes it great? How was this sound achieved? Why was it the best choice, or could it have been improved? We get some of these answers sometimes and it's great, but most of the time we're just left hanging.
Immense production on this album! People still accuse them of "selling out" on the record, well I'm unable to make comment on that but what I do know is that it was this record that was my gateway to everything that came before it...and for that I'll always be thankful!
While master of puppets and justice are probably my two favorite albums from these guys, musically, you can’t touch this album, sonically. To date, I’m not sure a fuller, more realistic heavy guitar tone exists. You can tell that bob and his engineers really went for broke. It sounds enormous through any system.
Skeptical Narratives - MOP is just an 80s generic guitar tone. RTL and black album have the best tones, as well as justice, but justice’s tone is sort of brittle
Damn Jason's bass is thumping on this album. The production and playing just make me zoom in on it during a listen, even though it's still sitting under the mix like it should be. If you ever get a chance to listen to the 5.1 mix on a good 5.1 setup, there are parts I never knew of, like a thunderous bass section in Roam that will shake your house off the foundation.
Wow ein echt großartiges Video. Was mir ein kleines schönes Detail des Songs erst so richtig verdeutlicht hat, das ich bisher immer überhört habe. Hätte ich echt nicht gedacht und das obwohl ich ein sehr gutes Gehör habe und bei Songs eigendlich sehr genau hin höre. Respekt ! Danke dafür !
Folks don't forget. This is video #11 in a new series in which Rick Beato is still quite new to music composition analyzer/video host. And it shows RB's progression from then to where he is today. And no one on RUclips comes close to his What Makes this Song Great Series...👍🎵🎶🎼
tbh, remove Kirk and Lars and the band is already way better imagine all the virtuoso guitarists and drummers who's got chops and pocket for days that would want to be part of something that could turn out to be epic
Kirk plays a very distinctive style. Sometimes his solos erupt in an unexpected way, grabbing the listener's attention. It can be rather explosive. He's not always a technician, but his style is easily distinguishable, like Steve Howe and BB King are to their genres. I think it serves this music very well.
David Flint I would love that too but idk how much of that stuff was even multitracked. I think a lot of those old records were all about careful mic placement (and levels, eq etc) and then just recording the whole thing live to tape
The clean guitars over the second half of the bridge sound acoustic - but with a slight bit of chorus on them, and slightly palm muted - this combined with a faint warble/harmonic as if recorded on a reel to reel tape (which it was), it creates this unbelievable tension and anticipation, even creepiness, when played over the rhythm guitars' chord ringing out. God DAMN, they knew what they were doing with this one. In rock or metal, the greatest production value of all time. James's vocals had rasp without sacrificing power, and in the lower registers, overtones that call to mind throat-singing technique (as you pointed out). Not to mention, the second hugest drum sound of all time (second only to Bonzo). This album will truly live forever.
Having listened to this song a thousand times since its release back in 1991, this dissection reveals even more hidden gems. The "take" of "take my hand" part (8:37) which reveals a guitar in the midst of the vocal harmony was just awesome. Thanks so much for the parametrisation 🤓
This song was so over-played that it quickly went out of favor with me- I really began to dislike it. It became my "Stairway to Heaven" unfortunately. Thanks for making me listen to this in a new way and enjoy it again, Rick!
It would actually be better received if they redid the drum parts and had James sing...well, not like he just got out of rehab. The guitar work and songwriting is actually pretty good.
Omg, Cemetery Gates would actually be amazing. One of my favorite guitar solos from Dime (intro and main solo). Then we got Rex kickin ass on the intro acoustic and Phil kickin ass on the outro screams!!!
I’ve been working out this song from the first time I heard it, have played it in bands, played it with friends, played it in headphones and on every system I’ve ever owned and it’s just still so incredibly powerful and tight. The complexity of the vocals and layered guitars is just masterful. You can goof on it by playing the four notes in the beginning like a doofus or you can try to recreate it true to the original and be wowed by its craftsmanship.
I LOVE METALLICA, THEY'RE MY ALL TIME FAVORITE BAND, ALWAYS WILL BE, AND I LISTENED TO THIS ALBUM A MILLION TIMES WHILE IN HIGH SCHOOL! I ACTUALLY WORE OUT TWO CASSETTES BEFORE UPGRADING TO THE CD!!! PROUD TO SAY THAT I'VE SEEN THEM LIVE AND THEY ARE BEYOND AWESOME LIVE! I FEEL LUCKY THAT I WAS BORN AT EXACTLY THE RIGHT TIME TO EXPERIENCE THE BEST MUSIC IN THE ENTIRE GALAXY!
I'm still in love with all the tones on this album. The classy room ambience (even the heavy guitars, I think) must be part of it, but I think there's some unusual delay effects going on - like very short delay times - on the vocals and the heavy and clean guitars. It might just be the double/triple-tracking ("The Thickener"!) but I suspect it's more than that.
I love these videos because they make me appreciate the music even more by introducing me to the subtleties that I never knew were there. Kudos to Rick!
To be fair, it's a guitar band, first and foremost...if you had a prog drummer overplaying and not hitting hard enough, the material would immediately fall apart. Needs a concrete foundation. Play to the music
@@danymalsound i think the closest Lars ever got to "progressive" was on the "Justice" album. On songs like "Eye of the Beholder" & even though his drums, cymbals & hi-hat were apparently recorded on different tracks, at times. I think that's kind of cheating, though it sounds cool. Plus it helped me get better by trying to literally play double bass, hi-hat "splashes" & cymbal chokes to the recorded song. I was playing it myself in high school, thanks to Lars & my lack of knowledge regarding how the album was recorded at the time.
![Blox Fruits Dragon Rework Update [Full Stream]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/EqDAp8udhm0/mqdefault.jpg)
Rick Beato in 2018: After the verse comes the chorus. Check out the chorus.
Rickt Beato in 2020: It is that dissonant 7th major chord that really gives the harmonic part of the bridge section that extra blues feeling of despair, which is not really what the band is known for, but defines this genre throughout the 90s and is a trademark of this producer who actually takes his coffee with two sugar and no cream, which I found really interesting.
Love the channel man, keep up the crazy in-depth stuff!
2018 was the buzzy fuzzy, 2020 is the hindsight
The 2020 Rick actually knows how many times it took James to record the vocals
You forgot to mention that time that he met X Y Z person involved in the record
Sugar and no cream hahahaha
@@markoobradovic148🤣🤣🤣bruh this comment section
Halfway through the intro, a wah guitar enters...and it never left.
Joel Rodely This deserves more upvotes!
michel jonasson this isn’t reddit
@@johnnybgood774 and jagmeat for all
Kirk actually used wah way before the Black Album
@@gyulagyorffy5937 he always used it.
This album really was a pinnacle of recording history. It is a masterpiece. As an early Met fan, you might have been disappointed in the results, but from a production standpoint it was a stroke of genius. James, Lars and Bob Rock knew exactly what they were doing, and the world responded. This album made metal palatable to the world. If you even remotely like any of the variations of metal that now exist, in part, you owe a debt to this album. As a 14 year-old kid, hearing Enter Sandman on the radio literally changed my life. I dropped sports, pop music and rap, and gravitated toward metal music, learning to play bass, guitar, and drums. Everyone my age wanted to be Metallica when the black album dropped, and Enter Sandman was the bait.
You are right
I totally agree with you. The sonic signature of that album in my opinion was ahead of its time, almost futuristic. Even after 27 years it sounds as if it was just recorded a month ago. Also, I'm a huge Metallica fan and I really like the black Album. The composition of the songs were instrumentally much simpler than on previous albums but they really put the most effort into capturing a specific sound and quality. I believe Bob Rock said in an interview that his goal was to capture the sound and energy Metallica had it their live shows.
In my opinion the Black Album is one in the top 5 best metal albums of all time.
Noooo
Metal was already palatable to the world. See Pyromania, a few lps's from VH, Love at First Sting, and many more.
Metallica was known as Speed Metal until they went mainstream.
@@MrJSpicoli those bands you mentioned weren't really metal, Metallica was heavier.
It is priceless; how you don’t say a word about that solo.
yeah-ah... I agree
Either he didn’t like it or he was embarrassed not to be able to demonstrate how to play it... :)
@@fchucid In the mix it sounds great. It's actually pretty sloppy when soloed and not that hard at all to play.
Sloppy solo
Chris N. Who cares if its easy. Its a great solo like most of kirks
Metallica became a heavy metal (no longer thrash metal) band with this record. A lot of bands should be thankful that the Black Album came out because it essentially opened the floodgates of metal to innumerable people who hasn't experienced metal in their lives yet. This album is a masterpiece in metal recording .
That was the album that meant the era of metal was over and music is just a commercial enterprise.
@@thunkjunk They can make music the way they want, there is no hidden agenda to make money...Black has the best sound of all the albums because of their success before it.. and then they started to experiment more, after they passed their prime in mid 30s...
@@jutjub22 I disagree with most of what you said.
@@thunkjunk I know :)
@@jutjub22 I agree with everything you said :)
Jason is so underrated. He's top 5 pick style bass players all time, it's so heavy but outrageously clean for a pick.
Yup, along with Dave Ellefson, Andy West, Carl-Cadden James. D.D. Verni ain't too shabby, either.
Never realized how technical music was, from an average fan it is overwhelming
Dude.. I started playing guitar at 12 in 2000.. Thru my mid-teens and during high school, I wrote music non-stop. I learned bass, basic drums and later in my 20s, basic piano. I just wanted to be able to put tracks along with my guitar tracks that werent horrible.. And 20 years later from starting guitar.. its all STILL overwhelming, haha.
I mean this is still a pretty comercialised track meaning its pretty simple.
Don't worry. It is also overwhelming for most musicians. Most of them are not classically trained or educated to that level, they just know what sounds good.
if you think this was technical listen to and justice for all
Definitely not technical. "Metal" is the furthest thing you could consider from technical mastery.
"Then a wah guitar comes in... E minor chord."
Every Kirk Hammett part for the next decade.
😂😂😂😂
And the previous one
Decades. Not decade
@@johnnybgood774 saint wanker
He truly has become absolutely horrendous the last 20+ years and its baffling really because his early work was solid. He always had horrible vibrato for sure but his playing had some thought and grace to it.
You know its Hetfield when every word ends with a "-eh" or "ah" sound, i.e; "Hand-eh," "Bed-ah."
Thank yeeehh
Greatah commentah yeahah
Ooooh-ah!
that all started with this album.
They were initially going to be called metallic but James couldn't pronounce it
Loved listening to the isolated bass. Great sound and recording.
Spector NS2...no other tone like it.
I prefer the songs from Metallica's first four records to The Black Album, but I have to agree that the production on this album is simply magical. It sounds *_enormous_* .
Sir Psycho Sexy from thrash to metal.
I'm in the same camp. It was the lyrics of Masters and Justice in particular that make them stand out to me. But the black album does sound nice
That’s the whole deal with these series- it’s not just about the writing but also the production.
That’s why Rick picked Petty, Blink-182, Soundgarden, etc songs!
Correct!
Whatever people say about The Black Album, it's still a great album.
This Black Album was the album that introduced me to Metallica. 1991 and I was 14.
I love it to this day.
I was 15 then. Great times. Hard to believe it's been 30 something Yeats 😮
Black Album was a great Metallica record. You don't just "decide to sell out" and write fantastic songs like that. It's heavy, riffy, grooves and has all of the elements of a complete album. It became big as a function of people liking it. Heavy music in general was in (grunge, GnR, other metal) and this album caught lightning in a bottle. I love the previous albums as well but there's no point in denying the greatness of this record. That said, I don't need to hear "Enter Sandman" or "Unforgiven" ever again. Played to death on the radio.
Agreed. To call this a sell out is a big disservice to the the band. But what they don't get is that not just any band can pull off what they did on The Black Album. This opportunity was not sitting there for other contemporaries like Slayer, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, etc. Great as they are in the metal genre, they don't have the skill or the tools to make the crossover. Metallica sowed the seeds subtly over the years, whether they knew it or not. They were writing stadium bangers that would help to transition into the next phase of their career when they became a permanent arena / stadium band (For Whom the Bell Tolls, Creeping Death, Seek & Destroy, Fade to Black, etc.) The stuff like Enter Sandman, Sad But True, Wherever I May Roam, etc. sound like distilled versions of older stuff, in a good way of course.
They wanted to simplify themselves and go in a new direction after playing those complex long songs during the Damaged Justice Tour. This was lightning in a bottle. James Hetfield peaked at that point too and that squeaky young voice turned into a monster stadium rock voice in 1989. I think James Hetfield between 1989 and 1994 is the peak heavy metal frontman of all time. He was that good.
Couldn’t be put any better
All the odd numbers were my favorites. The never played on the radio ones. "of Wolf and Man" damn!
Why'd you put "decide to sell out" in quotes? You didn't quote anyone or use the phrase in an idiosyncratic way.
Load was the album where they sold out.
The most well produced metal album ever. The tone, drum , bass sound super great
You mentioned the simplicity of the fills. Simplicity is a beautiful thing when executed perfectly...and that's true with everything.
I hate how people attack Bob Rock. Years after JUSTICE people complained that you couldn't hear Jason. I love that album but you can't hear him. All Bob did was come in and take the songs Metallica had and made them sound perfect as far as the recordings. But for some reason they hate him because of the songs. All he did was take the songs that Metallica brought to the sessions and make sound perfect. He didn't write the songs. If you hate the album for the music blame Metallica. If you hate the record for production quality, you're an idiot. I admit it's not my favorite record musically by them, but the quality of the recordings is masterful. Respect to Bob Rock.
NumB sKuLL yes no big blame to him. It's just a bit dull, really.
I have to agree... And I think Bob Rock said it best about the hating on him when he said "If you think I EVER could have pushed THOSE guys into something that they didnt already want to do, then you know nothing about Lars or James or Metallica." Granted, the fleas come with the dog with what everyone wanted, but all Bob did was EXACTLY what James and Lars wanted. James wanted massive-sounding layers of tight guitar tracks, and Lars wanted a more basic but wide-spectrum sounding drum sound that could fill a planet. I would say they achieved all.
I know, the production of this album can be compared to the production of "The Dark Side of the Moon". Youc can't pretend that Metallica was gonna be Thrash or Speed even in the late 80's, that is called "evolution".
.
True but Bob is pretty much responsible for James developing the whole "Ooo Ooo ooo" "Yeah Yeah" style that he didn't do in their earlier albums
@@AdamYoudell adam, I havent seen the movie for a long time, but how can you say that Bob is responsible?? Was that in the movie?
A unique experience is what I am so thankful for. To be able to hear classic songs in this way is just amazing. Thank you Rick.
The God That Failed is the absolute hidden gem on that album.
And don’t tread on me
Through The Never
Of Wolf And Man
Struggle within
The whole album is awesome
I was a freshman in high school when this album came out. I walked 6 miles one way to the record store to buy it.
Pretty sure I was too
good buy
and then your disappointment was immeasurable and your day ruined?
so you did not walk back home - you are still at the record store?
Uphill both ways!
When this album dropped Metallica basically took over the galaxy.
@Lucas Lucas Lucas it may not be thrash but it sounds fucking good
nah. The universe shifted when the video for 'one' dropped .... they becamse the undisputed masters of metal after that, I remember it well.
@Lucas Lucas Lucas I like Metallica and ABBBA LOL
in 1991 it didnt drop. it was released, the internet didnt even exist.
Next time use "," so we can understand you.
"in the chorus, the whole band plays together"
Cut to Hetfield playing by himself and Lars sitting on the couch. Haha
MAGIC!
Lars can play his drums just by imagination. Man... it's Lars!
I am addicted to Rick's videos. He is so stunningly knowledgeable about music - the history and personalities, production techniques, instrumentation, melody and harmony, music theory - is there any facet of the field that he doesn't intimately understand? This guy is a goddamn national treasure.
The well thought out dissection of these songs that are such an integral part of our lives really makes me appreciate the music even more.
This guy is amazing! I like the way he dissects these songs and puts more background on them. Very interesting and informative. Makes you appreciate the artists and the songs even more. Great job Rick!
I love this kind of in depth break down analysis of music. Especially songs that are very popular. To hear parts of these songs isolated along with expert analysis is in my opinion a great way to learn how the art of music composition is generated/created. Having these analysis done by a genuine master musician is such a great lesson in song structure
I too like Metallica's older stuff better, but comparatively speaking, the recording and production quality went WAY UP on this record. The instruments sounded more distinctive, the bass was fuller without being boomy, and the stereo imaging was better on high-end equipment like Proceed, Krell Linn, Naim, and Audio Research which I sold at the time.
I'm sure the fact that they unmuted the bass this time around also helped! :)
I agree...this album was a huge leap for them.
I never liked the drum sound on "...and justice for all." To me it sounded like Lars was hitting his drums with twigs, and the guitars were just to fat compared to the rest. And they muted Newsted on that one? Is that true?
iseeu1980 look for Justice for Newstead
Metallica´s old stuff? Like Load and ReLoad wich are already old albums? or what? XD
Yeah, musically they were much better on the first 4 albums, but you have to be delusional or deaf to claim that Justice sounds better than the Black Album
The effort that went into that album is absolutely unreal! \m/
You are so knowleadgeable, experienced, professional and passionate, that having them altogether, almost look out of the rock world for me! Impressive!
We all have our opinions on which album is their "Led Zeppelin IV", and there's great arguments to all the debates. But for me, I was 15 when Ride The Lightning was released and it had the most impact of anything on me since Black Sabbath's self titled album. I was so glam metal at that point. Crue, WASP, Ratt, etc. and the RTL album snapped me out of the glam scene and into the thrash. It also is what made me pick up a guitar. The instrumental Call of Ktulu track grabbed me by the ass and never let go.
This song is written just like a roller coaster. There is the foreboding of the lift hill, the delivery of the first drop, some ancillary thrills before a low section and the grand finale right before a brake run. The precision of the song is what is impressive. They aren't going for high art here. It's supposed to be entertaining. It delivers everything it aims to deliver.
RIFF BEATO
amazing work Rick I'm not a musician but a music lover, your explanations bring a whole new appreciation to the music I will always love to listen to. thanks man
Say what you will about this album compared to older stuff and so on, but there's no denying that the whole album sounds MASSIVE. Absolutely one of the most powerful-sounding albums of all time.
Dear commentators, the title is not “what makes this Metallica’s greatest song.”
Agree haha 90% didn't got the point this video it's about sound and production. Some can like more Master of puppets or even St. Anger that would be just a personal opinion. But not change the fact that the Black Album it's a milestone for the recordings, every sound engineer dream to produce such top notch quality recording (and still sound great nowdays too).
Hey Rick, throw me a bone here, where the hell do you get the individual tracks, learning these songs would awesome with isolated tracks!!!
@Austin Lucksted Pro Tools or cake walk cannot really break a cooked mix into its different tracks like that. Rick has access to those tracks if he ask for them. He's in the business of studio production ya know? Connection...
It kind of is though :P
(Whether they made better isn't important)
No that's unforgiven
Rick, you’re so talented that you’re intimidating! So talented, dude!
Watched 2 videos. Subscribed. Your musical knowledge and explanations of this type are so much fun to listen to. Great content!!
Such a great sound on those drums. And the drum parts may be simple but they're so clear and effective.
The sound of this album was absolutely insane; it's been one of my trusted reference discs for evaluating new audio equipment for almost 3 decades now.
Wow I LOVE this series! Rick really provides a wealth of knowledge and insight into great song writing/arranging, instrument playing and production concepts.
I think I've binged almost every episode over the past few days. I didn't watch them in order and this was actually one of the last videos in the series I watched.
We got a great rundown of why the production values made this song great. To me though, it's really all about the songwriting/arranging. Most of the episodes we get lots of that type of explanation. One surprising omission in the analysis of this song is James Hetfield's master of motif development.
The initial clean guitar part is really the main riff, obviously. Not so obvious is that once the heavy guitars come in (still in the intro), the riff is fragmented and developed. It begins by chugging on the palm muted low E, then hitting the E up an octave at the end of each measure (without palm muting). That's a developed riff based on the very first 2 notes we heard in the clean intro (low E to an E up an octave) Every several measures it gradually adds notes from that initial clean part until the band plays the main heavy groove, which is almost a note for note "heavy version" of that initial clean part. This is very similar to how Beethoven, Bach and Brahms got tons of mileage out of little ideas (motifs). Hetfield does things like this all the time, but I can't think of a better example than this song. Pushing this even further, the prechorus riff is note-for-note compared to the intro, just very cleverly up a whole step (temporary modulation from Em to F# minor). I think this is a huge part of What Makes This Song Great for Enter Sandman.
Sorry for the rant :-) and rock on Rick! You're doing such a great thing by providing college level education to the masses for free. I think I should probably start supporting you by getting a club membership. Who knows, maybe your influence will help make pop good again :-) If enough up and comers can learn about GOOD music by watching your stuff, maybe the future will be brighter!
9:00 doesn't sound double tracked at all. But then it doesn't sound pseudo double tracked either. There's no duplicate of the main track underneath that I can hear. No phasing caused by adding a copy of it. Just a loud, bad-ass vocalist and some reverb. But maybe there is some chorus type thing added in very subtlely.
VERY possible. Bob Rock brought in a heap of effects processing units, and knew how to use them effectively.
Actual lyrics are "Roff to Never Never Lannndah"
That's what I always hear
Srong with that?
yeah yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Lantake my haaanndd
haha i laughed!xD
Kirk went Jimi Hendrix on that wah solo. This is awesome Rick! Thank you Sir.
Rick I've learned a lot about music with this series, really love your channel, please do some Rush song!
I absolutely love the way the drums sound on this record. Epic.
Rick,
I recently discovered your channel and absolutely love it. I’m not a musician but really appreciate music. My three kids are learning piano and we really enjoy watching your detailed analysis. Keep it up! You rock!
As a longtime audiophile, I think this record is a sound masterpiece. I normally used Steely Dan stuff to demo gear, but if I wanted something heavy, this would be the one. Plus I think 'Sad But True' is just masterful bit of songwriting. It is a man's soul laid bare in a really powerful way.The heaviness adds perfectly to the truth of the lyrics.
Absolutely agree with what you said about Sad But True. That "I'm your dream, mind astray, I'm your eyes while you're away" part always gives me goosebumps, no matter how many times I've heard it. Plus the riff at the beginning hits you like a freight train.
Nice in depth review of the song. This song was the reason to leave my classical guitar for what it was and pick up the electric guitar in 1991 :-)
Oh and uh 10:48 is actually the bass drum and the crash together ;-) Lars does however use the snare and crash together a lot too though, as you can hear in other parts of this song. Really like the massive drum sounds on this record! And James' voice is so amazing in this song! It has that nice eerie vibe to it, just like in Master op Puppets. Yeaheeaaaahh!
Sounds like an Eventide H3000 layered with several diatonic harmony settings on the vocal during “take my hand” (not speaking of the ending).
That's possible. You can see an Eventide rack unit in the control room when they were recording this album. It likely was part of Bob Rock's kit.
Rick, you know how everytime you hear a song you hear different things? you just brought back so many memories.Thanks.
Really loved this video! I must have watched the "A year and a half" videos a hundred times, and it still blows my mind how tight and punchy Jasons bass was, and how the rhythm guitars can get so chunky. Everything on this album is fantastic, and I love it to death. Awesome video, thank you!
Your ears are really good! I was blown away when I found the harmony vocals! WOW!
My favorite episode so far.
The voice from James never ceases to amuse me. What a singer!
Keep up the great work Rick, big fan
Shaped my teens, this did. Incredibly well produced. Thanks.
This guy is my idol. Knows literally everything about producing and playing and plays like a 100 instruments himself :D Oh and that studio is beautiful too. Amazing channel.
This was GREAT!
I was 15 in 92, and this was one of the first songs my first band played. We did pretty good at it too, but I rushed the hell out of this song, and added a sixteenth note double bass run on the section right before the outro. I also played a ride cymbal during the pre-chorus sections.
The closest I ever came to that snare sound acoustically was with my 5×14 1960's Slingerland chrome over brass snare, with a clear Remo C.S. Batter head, and Ambassador snare side.
Thanks, Rick. A lot of memories there. I have some great memories with that album, and sort of growing up with Metallica in general.
The guitars on Sad But True, especially before the vocals, are the heaviest I have ever heard. But that's because a stellar producer like Bob Rock knew how to layer guitars played through the smaller studio monitor speakers and overdriven, slightly undermixed with the original guitars would create what sounds like an approaching Godzilla through the streets of downtown Tokyo!
That's a great comparison :D And I couldn't agree more!
The guitar is tuned down a full tone I think
@@martinroy9991 yes
All of the singles on this album are worthy of analysis.
Thw whole album indeed, Amazing album and one of the greatest of Metal
wow, the bass parts are crazy good. respect.
I'll always remember the first time I heard this record. My boyfriend, now husband, bought the the single and we played on the record player in the front room. I was so excited and I loved it from the off. This song was loved by so many in the rock scene at the time. In 1992, while we were at the monsters of rock festival, this song was played between bands. I'll always remember singing along with everyone else. It's one of the many memories I have that I treasure from festivals and gigs over the years.
I like how u isolate the different parts, shows how good each individual part is and then how with the whole band it goes next level. Thanks Rick.
10:58 sounds like a hi-hat, not a crash cymbol.
I am 99.99% it is a bassdrum/crash there. However the snare/crash combination does happen quite a few times throughout the song.
Evolve or die off.
Music is therapy. Sometimes that therapy doesnt work. And the band falls apart.
Sometimes that therapy does work, and the band evolves.
Go dig up your best buddy from highschool who you partied with. Hang with him for a day.
If he is married and settled down, he evolved, and survived.
If he still parties, and you cant stand it.... you evolved.
This is one of the greatest albums of all time. My personal favorite.
Great point
Evolve or die off that's perfect very well said my friend
Just1Spark, I never went to highschool, never been to a party either. Does this mean I can't evolve? 🤔
Well said, holy shite
its good album, but Master of Puppets, and Ride the Lightning are definitely better. id also say Kill 'em All and Justice slightly better too.
Hi Rick! I like this series, but I feel it could have more of your opinions and comments. For instance, most of the time we just hear the soloed stems and that's it, we move on to the next part.
But what makes it great? How was this sound achieved? Why was it the best choice, or could it have been improved?
We get some of these answers sometimes and it's great, but most of the time we're just left hanging.
That soft vibrato when James starts singing is perfect.
Immense production on this album! People still accuse them of "selling out" on the record, well I'm unable to make comment on that but what I do know is that it was this record that was my gateway to everything that came before it...and for that I'll always be thankful!
While master of puppets and justice are probably my two favorite albums from these guys, musically, you can’t touch this album, sonically. To date, I’m not sure a fuller, more realistic heavy guitar tone exists. You can tell that bob and his engineers really went for broke. It sounds enormous through any system.
Nah, I prefer the Marshall rhythm guitar tone of Puppets way better. More authentic sounding than the Boogies.
@@alienrefugee51 master of puppets uses a mesa boogie mark iic+ not Marshalls
Even on my phone speaker it sounds badass
Y’all are trippin Ride the Lightning is the best and most complete Metallica Album
Skeptical Narratives - MOP is just an 80s generic guitar tone. RTL and black album have the best tones, as well as justice, but justice’s tone is sort of brittle
Please do Paranoid android
Ben Young he did eventually it was amazing
Please do Boston - Foreplay/LongTime. That song is AMAZING!
Damn Jason's bass is thumping on this album. The production and playing just make me zoom in on it during a listen, even though it's still sitting under the mix like it should be. If you ever get a chance to listen to the 5.1 mix on a good 5.1 setup, there are parts I never knew of, like a thunderous bass section in Roam that will shake your house off the foundation.
It's almost like they overcompensated for it not being in the mix for AJFA. lol
Wow ein echt großartiges Video. Was mir ein kleines schönes Detail des Songs erst so richtig verdeutlicht hat, das ich bisher immer überhört habe. Hätte ich echt nicht gedacht und das obwohl ich ein sehr gutes Gehör habe und bei Songs eigendlich sehr genau hin höre. Respekt ! Danke dafür !
Folks don't forget. This is video #11 in a new series in which Rick Beato is still quite new to music composition analyzer/video host. And it shows RB's progression from then to where he is today. And no one on RUclips comes close to his What Makes this Song Great Series...👍🎵🎶🎼
Best sounding metal album of all time. The bass on Wherever I May Roam is earth shattering.
Wherever I May Roam in general is earth-shattering \m/
i think that goes to rust in peace or an justice for all those are some albums where all the songs make you blow your load
@@spaghettisauce445 I'm talking about the production, the sound of the album. There are other better overall metal albums than that one
James’ vocals are CRAZY good!!!
I like this comment, not only because I agree with it, but also because anyone who knows how to use apostrophes this correctly is a friend!
This song is ominous yet so danceable too and no one can tell me otherwise. Especially Jason Newsted's bass parts.
Bob Rock promised he'd make them sound huge on the record and he delivered. You're right about everything you say about this album.
Man, Hetfield is so underrated, he is so talented
Juan_RockGuitar He IS Metallica. Everyone else is replaceable, and some need replacing.
Absolutely! The guy is great, I'm not even a Metallica fan and think is a shame people overlook his musicianship so much
Agreed. I think every member deserves recognition, but just imagine a world class lead guitar player instead of Kirk...
tbh, remove Kirk and Lars and the band is already way better
imagine all the virtuoso guitarists and drummers who's got chops and pocket for days that would want to be part of something that could turn out to be epic
Kirk plays a very distinctive style. Sometimes his solos erupt in an unexpected way, grabbing the listener's attention. It can be rather explosive. He's not always a technician, but his style is easily distinguishable, like Steve Howe and BB King are to their genres. I think it serves this music very well.
Can you please break down Orion by Metallica. I love how deep you dice ...def subbed and have been watching all the episodes
another 15 minutes of fun. thank you. how about doing something on some old jazz standards?
David Flint I would love that too but idk how much of that stuff was even multitracked. I think a lot of those old records were all about careful mic placement (and levels, eq etc) and then just recording the whole thing live to tape
prufrockrenegade that is true. But I was thinking more of an analysis of arrangements somehow. I’m not sure. Just a thought
The clean guitars over the second half of the bridge sound acoustic - but with a slight bit of chorus on them, and slightly palm muted - this combined with a faint warble/harmonic as if recorded on a reel to reel tape (which it was), it creates this unbelievable tension and anticipation, even creepiness, when played over the rhythm guitars' chord ringing out.
God DAMN, they knew what they were doing with this one. In rock or metal, the greatest production value of all time.
James's vocals had rasp without sacrificing power, and in the lower registers, overtones that call to mind throat-singing technique (as you pointed out). Not to mention, the second hugest drum sound of all time (second only to Bonzo).
This album will truly live forever.
Having listened to this song a thousand times since its release back in 1991, this dissection reveals even more hidden gems. The "take" of "take my hand" part (8:37) which reveals a guitar in the midst of the vocal harmony was just awesome. Thanks so much for the parametrisation 🤓
This song was so over-played that it quickly went out of favor with me- I really began to dislike it. It became my "Stairway to Heaven" unfortunately. Thanks for making me listen to this in a new way and enjoy it again, Rick!
Right there with you man
It's always nice to hear things with new ears again. Took me a bit to realise what a great, classic song Sandman is.
"that snare that doesnt sound like anything you've ever heard before"
Looking at you, St. Anger!!! LOL
Ping!!! Ping!!! Ping!!! Ping!!!
First thing that came to my mind when he said that! 🤣🤣
Wow someone brought up saint pile of total garbage, saint anger. That is how people felt when they heard it.
It would actually be better received if they redid the drum parts and had James sing...well, not like he just got out of rehab. The guitar work and songwriting is actually pretty good.
@@joelcastro-reyes1667 and let kirk solo, and also let james's guitar be the main (or at least like a 50-50) rythm thing instead of lars's drums
14:31 - New txt msg notification sound.
I just found your channel and it’s honestly one of if not the most prolific and versatile music channels on youtube, keep it up 🙏🏼🤘🏼
I've always thought the rhythm is so much fun, finally when the vocalist comes in its impressively cohesive with everything going on.
Pls do one episode of Pantera!! Love your videos
Yes!!! Walk!!
Air Guitar Cemetery Gates or Domination would be a better choice in my opinion
Omg, Cemetery Gates would actually be amazing. One of my favorite guitar solos from Dime (intro and main solo). Then we got Rex kickin ass on the intro acoustic and Phil kickin ass on the outro screams!!!
TheLameloid Yes! That could be another really nice choice
Regular People and/or 10's would be great as well!
Hi Rick! any thoughts on Kirk Hammet's solo? It was like "ok so that's the solo, let's move on" lol
Here's a vote for The Mars Volta, Tetragrammaton. Should be fun to dissect.
I’ve been working out this song from the first time I heard it, have played it in bands, played it with friends, played it in headphones and on every system I’ve ever owned and it’s just still so incredibly powerful and tight. The complexity of the vocals and layered guitars is just masterful. You can goof on it by playing the four notes in the beginning like a doofus or you can try to recreate it true to the original and be wowed by its craftsmanship.
i love the snare sound off this album im not experienced in music production but i LOVE how the drums sound (especially the snare)
Good job. Do you do one on Achilles Last Stand by Zep?
NTA Design Ltd that would be sick or song remains
please do Aerosmith!
I LOVE METALLICA, THEY'RE MY ALL TIME FAVORITE BAND, ALWAYS WILL BE, AND I LISTENED TO THIS ALBUM A MILLION TIMES WHILE IN HIGH SCHOOL! I ACTUALLY WORE OUT TWO CASSETTES BEFORE UPGRADING TO THE CD!!! PROUD TO SAY THAT I'VE SEEN THEM LIVE AND THEY ARE BEYOND AWESOME LIVE! I FEEL LUCKY THAT I WAS BORN AT EXACTLY THE RIGHT TIME TO EXPERIENCE THE BEST MUSIC IN THE ENTIRE GALAXY!
I'm still in love with all the tones on this album. The classy room ambience (even the heavy guitars, I think) must be part of it, but I think there's some unusual delay effects going on - like very short delay times - on the vocals and the heavy and clean guitars. It might just be the double/triple-tracking ("The Thickener"!) but I suspect it's more than that.
I love these videos because they make me appreciate the music even more by introducing me to the subtleties that I never knew were there. Kudos to Rick!
Van Halen...please please please!!!
oh yes please
Not panama!!! Unchained, Mean street or I’m the one
Ain't Talkin About Love
YES...and PLEASE DO NOT DO JUMP for gosh sakes!
9:13 could be a vocal effect, I heard it too, but it feels like an artifacted suboctave generator or something.
"I call these caveman fills" And I add, because Lars IS a f*cking caveman XD
So, first you watch BigMacDavis and now you listen to Metallica. Are you following me?
@Ryan Kelly 22 (STUDENT) XD
To be fair, it's a guitar band, first and foremost...if you had a prog drummer overplaying and not hitting hard enough, the material would immediately fall apart. Needs a concrete foundation. Play to the music
@@danymalsound Nobody says it sounds bad. In fact, it perfectly suits the band as you said
@@danymalsound i think the closest Lars ever got to "progressive" was on the "Justice" album. On songs like "Eye of the Beholder" & even though his drums, cymbals & hi-hat were apparently recorded on different tracks, at times. I think that's kind of cheating, though it sounds cool.
Plus it helped me get better by trying to literally play double bass, hi-hat "splashes" & cymbal chokes to the recorded song. I was playing it myself in high school, thanks to Lars & my lack of knowledge regarding how the album was recorded at the time.
Happy that you mentioned AC/DC about the drums because it was exactly what i thought when i first heard it.
Stumbled the first time over your Apple rant videos... and now I see that you are a even cooler dude. subbed