One of the “weakest” albums Metallica ever released has been defended by fans as they say that if another band released it, it would be considered an “instant classic”.
Where many may believe Lulu, the Lou Reed-featuring album, is the worst in class for Metallica, fans on the r/Metallica subreddit say St. Anger is a stretch worse. The 2003 release from Metallica received polarising reviews at the time of release and is still a contentious album for hardcore listeners of the band. A fan has suggested, however, that the album is responsible for some of the band’s very best songs, with the tracks sorely overlooked given the lack of quality found on the album. The original post reads: “It’s definitely the weakest album in my opinion (because Lulu doesn’t exist), but I feel like it is very overhated, much like Load when it came out.
“Sure, a few songs are not Metallica style, but I feel like if the album were released by any other band, it would have been an instant classic. Plus I think Frantic, Some Kind of Monster, and Sweet Amber are amazing songs. They might not be as good as most of Metallica’s other songs, but they are still brilliant. Most people (including me) don’t really like the production quality of the songs.
“There are no solos, the riffs sound very dirty, and the snare drum sounds like it’s in pain, but that’s just the style of it, amd if you ignore the way you want it to sound and just losten to it for what it is you’ll find that it’s actually great, and definitely doesn’t deserve all the hate the album gets.”
Fans have since agreed with this assessment of St. Anger and wondered whether the album would fare better if it were released now. One user pointed to what went wrong for St. Anger, writing: “I think they could have been great songs if Metallica weren’t going through an identity crisis at the time.
“There’s some killer riffs and songs and some complete ass songs. If they stuck with thrash, instead of ‘being nu metal’, it would be a great album.” Another suggested the trouble for St. Anger was the lyrics and length of each song. They wrote: “The lyrics mostly stink and the songs are too long, but there are some great riffs.”
A third added: “I think this is a record that needs to be looked at in context. I feel like you also have to watch the Some Kind of Monster documentary, which adds so much perspective. I don’t think they were out to make the best possible album they could. They NEEDED to make a record to prove to each other that they can co-exist.
“Achieving that effectively saved their relationships with each other and, essentially, the band. That being said, I really enjoyed the record when it came out, and I still do. The title track rips, and songs like Dirty Window and Sweet Amber aren’t ones to sleep on. Finishing the album also led to Robert Trujillo and three killer studio albums that followed.”
Some listeners were left trying to convince themselves of the quality of St. Anger, though say it took some time. One listener recalled: “I was 23 when it came out and listened to it constantly, trying to convince myself that it really was worth the wait, because I became a fan after ReLoad so this was huge – the first original album during my fandom.
“Looking back now, I’m much more honest with myself and able to be critical of the band in a way I wasn’t able to be in my early 20s, so I can objectively say that I do not like the album and don’t pay it much attention.
“I remember really gravitating toward the title track, Frantic, Some Kind of Monster, Sweet Amber, and All Within My Hands, but I don’t remember the last time I actually heard any of those songs. When I play them over in my head it reminds me of a very particular time in my life so it has that sort of sentimental/nostalgic value for me at least, but that’s about it.”
