A Successful Reconnection with the Past - A Review of Metallica's Some Kind of Monster

Some Kind of Monster is one of the most valuable extended plays thrash metal legends Metallica have ever released. The title track is taken from the group's controversial St. Anger studio record and also supports documentary film Metallica: Some Kind of Monster that portrays the band's most recent challenges and struggles.

The title song is indeed difficult to digest. The track suffers from canny drum sounds, particularly low riffs, out-of-tone vocals, repetitive songwriting and a challenging length of eight and a half minutes. However, this song represents authentically the difficulties the band has recently been going through both instrumentally and lyrically. Interestingly, this wonderful little extended play also features an alternative version of the title song that is only half as long, features much more natural drum sound and avoids repetitive passages. This version makes the controversial original song a quite decent tune that should appeal to more fans of old and new date.

The heartpieces of this release are however six live songs recorded in three different locations on the same day in Paris, France to promote the release of St. Anger. All six songs are taken from the band's legendary first three studio records Kill 'em All, Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets. They feature a few hidden gems and frequently overlooked selections such as intense, rhythmic and short "Motorbreath", fast-paced, liberating and pitiless "Damage Inc." and catchy, groovy and playful "Leper Messiah". The band's performances might not be as tight as in its greatest days but the group chemistry is nonetheless natural and the interactions with the French fans are truly entertaining. The production is authentic, energetic and raw which suits the material from the early years splendidly. Any collector, fan and sympathizer of the band should listen to these timeless live cuts.

At the end of the day, Metallica's Some Kind of Monster features forty-three minutes of entertainment with two wildly different versions of the title track and six live cuts focusing on the band's early years and at times overlooked material. This release has been unfairly judged and overlooked due to its relation to controversially discussed studio effort St. Anger and debatable documentary Metallica: Some Kind of Monster. This extended play however deserves to be revisited and has actually aged very well. Some Kind of Monster offers relentless thrash metal of a very good to great quality.