WildRanger
Nomad
So what are your thoughts on Kirk?
I echo that sentiment.On first five albums he was good/great.
Me tooWell, I prefer James Hetfield.
I feel that Lars is the weakest link, especially after AJFA. He was great on that album and was heightening his potential, but on the albums after, he got lazy and started to be a prick.The most overrated guitarist in metal. He's a super nice guy and I love the energy he brings to Metallica but I could count on one hand the solos I actually like from him. Definitely the weakest link in Metallica especially as the band has progressed.
True, he does contribute a lot to the songwriting process.Lars is a key component in the writing process, though. Kirk usually just shows up and does the solos, with some contributions. Lars's drumming can be annoying sometimes but usually it's not flat-out bad. 72 Seasons was the first time where it was straight-up unbearable and that's mostly down to the production IMO. And say what you want about The Black Album but his drum sound is such an integral part of the album and adds a lot of power that works in a pretty unique way to offset the quieter moments in songs like "The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters" and amps up the intensity in bangers like "Enter Sandman" and "Sad But True". Also a big influence on the genre as a whole going forward. He's definitely far from perfect and he's definitely a bit lazy but he can usually put together a solid enough performance that suits the songs. Even on St. Anger.
Yeah the drum sound was ridiculously bad, hi-hat sounded like fucking "Jingle Bells". It wouldn't have been the end of the world if the mix was better but that was more water than a Bud Light.Maybe I'm hating on Lars more due to recency bias of the bland and bad 72 Seasons album
And I bet the mixers/producer used pro tools or AI to fix his playing on every track. But those drums are so annoying and awfully mixed.Yeah the drum sound was ridiculously bad, hi-hat sounded like fucking "Jingle Bells". It wouldn't have been the end of the world if the mix was better but that was more water than a Bud Light.