Axl’s first salvo at radio from the more-and-more-likely-to-actually-come-out-no-I-can’t-believe-it-either album Chinese Democracy hit the active rock stations of America hard last week, and this week brought a few news outlets claiming that the title track was, in fact, a bona fide, many-years-in-the-making hit. But is it?
Celestial-jukebox outfit eCast has released its listing of the most popular new music played during September, and there’s one band that dominates above all others: Metallica, which grabs six slots on the ten-spot chart. (Ne-Yo placed two songs on the chart from his better-with-every-listen Year Of The Gentleman, which warms my heart.) eCast chalks up the Metallica love to the bad economy, and people wanting to work through their financial insecurities via the incessant banging of their heads, but I like to think that the mass Metallica listening was actually the result of people trying to figure out if it was their stereo or something else that made the album sound not all that great. Full chart after the jump!
Coolfer reports today on Warner Music Group’s successful September, during which it pulled ahead of Sony BMG to have the second-highest marketshare of giant music conglomerates. But how long is WMG’s luck likely to last?
The controversy over Metallica’s Death Magnetic and its supposedly ear-fatiguing lack of dynamic range is still-simmering , so we decided to ask some industry professionals about the row and, more importantly, the trend in mastering toward making records louder, brighter, and less dynamic. I talked to three professionals–two well-known engineer/producers and one very well-respected mastering engineer–about the Metallica Mastering Mess. After the jump we find out if all that Internet arguing is over a real problem, or if it just adds up to so much noise.
Sure, even people who enjoy Metallica’s Death Magnetic have been quibbling about the sound quality on Metallica’s newest album, saying that it’s lacking in dynamics and that the version recorded for a freaking video game sounds better, but outspoken drummer Lars Ulrich is sticking his fingers in his ears and telling all the naysayers to shut up shut up shut shut shut up. “Listen,” Ulrich told Blender‘s blog, “there’s nothing up with the audio quality. It’s 2008, and that’s how we make records.” Oh, you bet he had more to say.
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The first thing I thought when I heard Metallica’s Death Magnetic was, “All right! This is more like it! This sounds pretty freaking great!” The next thing I thought was, “Boy, does this sound shrill!” Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who thought so, as the Internet is abuzz with talk that Metallica’s Death Magnetic is a well-produced record that still sounds crappy. The band has been fighting back via its manager, who assures us that 98% of listener response to the album has been “overwhelmingly positive,” based on what is probably very scientific research. Count me among the 2% that has a problem with the album’s dynamic range, or lack thereof.
Once again, we present Rock-Critically Correct, a feature in which the most recent issues of Rolling Stone, Blender, Vibe, and Spin are given a once-over by a writer who’s contributed to many of those magazines, as well as a few others! In this installment, he looks at the new issue of Rolling Stone:
Many people find it hard to tell the great from the godawful when it comes to 21st-century mainstream rock. To help figure out which is which, here’s “Corporate Rock Still Sells,” where Al Shipley examines what’s good, bad, and ugly in the world of rock and roll. This time around, he looks at new singles from Rage Against The Machine’s frontman, a ’90s one-hit wonder, and Metallica:
Jeff Beck, Chic, Wanda Jackson, Little Anthony and the Imperials, Metallica, Run-DMC, the Stooges, War, and Bobby Womack are this year’s nominees for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame; five of them will be inducted next April after balloting concludes in January. This year’s list of nominees is almost more notable for who isn’t on it than who is; the list of eligible artists who were snubbed by the dudes who want to codify their definition of “rock and roll” includes inarguably influential artists like Slayer, the Cure, and–once again–Rush. Click through for our list of the six highest-profile acts who didn’t make the ballot, and vote for who you think was the most robbed. Once the votes are tallied, we can march on the Rolling Stone offices and plead for justice!
