Undoubtedly, St. Anger is the most hated album by metal purists; however, both its sound and story are very interesting. The band was facing internal issues, with Jason Newsted (their previous bassist) leaving the band, and Bob Rock (the band’s producer since 1990) taking on bass duties for the album. Simultaneously, James Hetfield (guitar and vocals) took a full year to undergo rehabilitation, amidst the album’s recording, making the process even more tedious. By 2003, the sound of ‘Nu Metal’ was, as the name suggests, an innovation within the genre. Metallica embraced the trend, resulting in a very distinctive sound.
What can we hear?
A very interesting sound, under the production of Bob Rock. If there’s one thing to admire about this album, it’s Metallica’s courage to embrace the popular trends of the moment and process them to create a distinctive mark. The tunings are lower than usual for the band, the riffs are energetic, as is the bass, which is always present, enhancing each of the presented songs.
The drumming, from our perspective, is one of the most notable aspects of this album, in addition to its controversial snare sound with a very loose snares, we can observe an excellent level from Lars Ulrich, who demonstrates very good speed, especially in the double bass pedal. The production of his instrument is also excellent, highlighting the shimmer of the cymbals and the dynamics of the bass drum, always tied in with the bass.
James Hetfield changed his vocal style considerably to give the band a more ‘Garage’ sound on this album. It’s melodic but also haunting and even guttural, perfectly representing the moment the band was going through. For them, it was a new awakening, moving away from excesses to finally live a balance between Rock N’ Roll and their personal lives.
It’s worth noting that the band hired psychologist Phil Towle to try to resolve their internal conflicts, as this also influenced their sound. You can hear a release of years’ worth of accumulated anger reflected in each of the tracks.
A band on the verge of breaking up
We understand that if you listen to St. Anger without understanding the context, it can be difficult to comprehend. However, today we can say that it was the album that saved Metallica from breaking up. To better understand this album, we highly recommend watching the documentary ‘Some Kind Of Monster’ available on Netflix. To be honest, we couldn’t fully appreciate this album until years after watching the documentary.
In a way, we can hear the crisis in the band’s sound acquired in 2003, where, notably, for the first time, we don’t hear a guitar solo, something unusual for the band. Metallica dared to completely change their sound, resulting in an album that will forever be part of the band’s history.
As musicians, we also understand that it must be a truly enriching experience in every sense to explore new things just for the sheer joy of doing something different: sounds, textures, and even instruments. In some songs, we can hear 7-string guitars, which were very trendy at that time, thanks to bands like Korn.
A sound not understood by many
And rightfully so, as we cannot compare the previous gems presented by the band with St. Anger. But here lies the fine point: not comparing it, just enjoying it. It’s an album without memorable riffs, without solos, and honestly, without spectacular touches. However, the interesting aspect lies in its backstory and its particular sound, which we personally consider well achieved.
And you, what do you think of St. Anger? Do you agree with us? Leave us your comments!
