Metallica's 12th studio album, 72 Seasons, marks the band's first record in six years. The 77-minute album, featuring 12 tracks, is produced by Greg Fidelman, James Hetfield, and Lars Ulrich, following Fidelman's work on their previous album, "Hardwired... to Self-Destruct." The album, available in various formats, showcases a new video for their first released track, "Lux Æterna," directed by Tim Saccenti, using cutting-edge technology. Grammy-winning designer David Turner handles album art and design. As James Hetfield explains, the title, 72 Seasons, represents the first 18 years of life that shape our identities. Alongside the album release, Metallica has announced their M72 Tour with 46 unique shows in 22 cities worldwide, with tickets now available.
What Worked
This far into their career, and having returned to their thrash metal roots after the 1990s shift to more radio-friendly hard rock, Metallica have little to prove. The band delivers when it counts, like on the lead single "Lux AEterna," a three-and-half-minute scorcher. At other points on the album, the past and present align nicely. "If Darkness Had a Son" could have been an album track on Master of Puppets, while the galloping "Room of Mirrors" injects some much-needed New Wave of British Heavy Metal vibes.
What Didn't Work
Like their previous 2000's releases, the over-compressed comeback Death Magnetic, and overly-long Hardwired...to Self-Destruct, the band fails to edit themselves. What could have been a killer 44-minute record turns into a slog with at least 30 minutes of unnecessary extra sections that push the running times into the bloated five-to-seven-minute range.
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