S & M [Box set]

What they did was produce a surprisingly good live (yes live) album, along with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. Confused? Well, it was somewhat of a rather epic experiment, and one that gladly paid off. Metallica played many of their classics (some open for debate however), and the Orchestra would play along with them. But come on, let's get this straight. Classical and metal just shouldn’t go together, they really shouldn't. But give this a listen and you will find that all the speculations are wrong - this is an incredible album.

The thing is, I am not the greatest fan of live albums. In fact I hate the majority of them. Yet this is in a different league. The quality is that great that you hardly notice the fact that it is a live album. It's so clean, the only thing that really gives it away is the presence of the cheering crowd.

What could have been a total disaster is turned into a deeply atmospheric and satisfying selection of tracks, and a lot of which improve on the originals. The orchestra provides the perfect atmosphere at times, blending in well with the guitars. A good example of this can be found in the song One, where towards the end the tone of the song changes and speed increases. The only downside is that at times the orchestra can be a little too overpowering, which in turn drowns out the guitars.

As far as the track listing goes, they have included many classics, including Enter Sandman (saved for last), Master Of Puppets, For Whom The Bell Tolls, Nothing Else Matters, One and Until It Sleeps. Unfortunately, absolutely nothing was included from Kill 'Em All, and there are a few songs that would of been perfectly suited for this album but never made it - where is The Unforgiven? As I said, a lot of the tracks do actually improve on their originals but there are exceptions. The Memory Remains, although an excellent song, isn't a favourite on this disc, and Enter Sandman just isn't the same. Having said that, The Call Of Ktulu is one of the highlights, vastly improving the 1984 original. The atmosphere is greatly improved, as is the quality resulting in a 9 minute masterpiece.

Also included on this album are 2 brand new tracks, exclusive to S&M. They are No Leaf Clover and Human. They are not timeless classics by any means, but No Leaf Clover is pretty good and Human is just ok.

All in all, this is one of Metallica's best releases to date, especially when you consider the release of it, at a time when Metallica were thought to of been going downhill. In fact, you could say it increased their respect at the time, brought back some old fans and even new fans. The track listing could of been a little better, but you simply cannot do without listening to one of Metallica's most famous and epic albums. It really is that good - and I hate live albums.