Elektra Records - 1988
10/10
Working behind two albums that more or less offered the same taste of thrash under mildly varied guise, Metallica came into the end of the decade in the same fashion of many of their peers. By that, I mean they co-opted the final blow of cold war/nuclear fallout propaganda mixed with general political corruption, and a side of slightly progressive songwriting. Though I use that term pretty liberally, And Justice For All comes close in the same way that Iron Maiden’s Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son did the same year in terms of longer songs with useful repetition and irregular rhythms. Despite this, there’s no loss of fury and rage that was presented on the record prior, combining all of these aspects to hold the title of my favorite record by the band.
Most criticisms outside of the lack of bass (how original) align themselves with these very aspects that I praise, rather than complain about. Moreover, I would argue that Lars’s drumming is some of the best here, not the worst. It’s accented by the dryer production, clicking through with a powerful ear for rhythm alongside the jarring riff structures. His fills are also notable, highlighted in the title track and the instrumental “To Live Is To Die,” boosted by their longer runtimes. Actually, the explosive drumwork accents the energetic release opening things up on “Blackened.” This song in general does an incredible job of setting the state with all of its lyrical aggression and hoarse vocal delivery.
With that, I think everything mentioned thus far is also enhanced with the flatter production. The absence of audible bass subtracts nothing from the songwriting or the flow, and the burning riff tones under advanced leads do this justice (ha). Songs like the doomy “Harvester Of Sorrow” boast another layer of heaviness thanks to that, which has the same effect on “The Shortest Straw.” This one has some of the tightest chops in terms of aggressive speed meeting intricacy, breaking in higher layers of intensity as the song progresses. The shifts are very subtle though, especially because it slowly ascends in pitch, not speed; a unique touch, if you ask me.
Let it be telling that we still haven’t touched all of my favorite tracks yet. And Justice For All works wonders sequentially, held up by the foundation that built everything thus far discussed, but its individual outlier songs are supreme. For starters, “The Frayed Ends Of Sanity” not only rakes in blistering suspense, several different speeds, and the most advanced solo on the record, but it also channels feelings of insanity through this and James’s menacing delivery. If I had to pick a favorite Metallica song of all time, that’s it. On the topic of emotion, “One” drives in the opposite direction, using some of Kirk’s cleanest and swift leads to convey hopelessness that still swings back into the groove of things; truly a great way of utilizing guitar licks in place of extra lyrics, making a nice balance. “Eye Of The Beholder” touches a similar cadence to “The Shortest Straw” just with its attitude concealed, and closer “Dyers Eve” lets out a personal barrage of rage that packs all of this influence into a dense, five-minute jawbreaker.
If anything, the lack of bass, the dryer production, the repetitiveness, or whatever else someone might complain about only shows that the band was able to touch their peak without needing assistance from compelling bass, better production, and straightforward writing. It’s really the last Metallica album that falls into my category of having no real complaints, or very minor ones. This wouldn’t happen again until Death Magnetic two decades later, one that I see as this disc’s true successor. I have a soft spot for plenty of things between the two, but the energy is miles apart, and I’m glad they could finish off their four-record streak of classic perfection with a bang.
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