by Erik Batkiewicz
After the massive commercial success of Metallica’s 1991 self-titled album, a.k.a The Black Album, fans were eager for the long-awaited follow-up album, but they had to wait 5 long years for it. Despite receiving mixed reviews, Load debuted at #1 on the Billboard chart on June 8th, 1996. In the simplest terms, critics loved it and fans hated it. There are two reasons why fans didn’t initially accept this album.
Change in Sound
Metallica’s Black Album was a major shift from their melodic and intricate sound from the previous four albums. That change led to major mainstream success (even today). By the time Load was released, Metallica went through another sound change, drifting even further away from their metal roots. Metallica went to more of a hard rock, blues, and even country sound in this album (I’ll get to that soon). Songs like “Mama Said,” a country/blues ballad perfectly encapsulates their mentality with this album.
Another example of the “twangy” or “stink-face” sound can be heard on songs like “Ronnie,” or “2×4.” These songs are sluggish and a bit grittier regarding their riffs and lyrics. However, one could argue that Metallica didn’t go completely off the deep end and still showed elements from their previous work. Songs like “King Nothing” and “Ain’t my Bitch” show they could write metal parts in songs. As mentioned before, Metallica wanted to take another step further away from the original thrashy sound they were known for.
Cultural Shifts
By 1996, grunge ruled the music world. Bands like Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Pearl Jam topped the charts. Metal took a step back in popularity, and some fans were convinced it was dying or it wasn’t cool anymore. Producer Bob Rock and Metallica completely conformed to that ideology (the reason why they changed their sound again). Some components of a “metal ideology” are aggression, wearing leather, and long hair. Metallica cut their hair, traded their leather jackets for suits, and became subjectively “softer” with their music. If you don’t believe me, look up photos of the band before 1996 and then look at photos when Load was released. During that time, countless Metallica fans rejected their new look and new sound because they weren’t a part of the metal look that once appealed to them.
Decades later, fans have come around to Load, respecting it not as a metal album, but as a hard rock album. At times, I think that’s the biggest difference between a metal fan and a Metallica fan. As a Metallica fan, some extremely underrated songs like “Bleeding Me” and “The Outlaw Torn” are filled with soul and groove. In those songs, James Hetfield, co-founder, vocalist, and rhythm guitarist, describes his internal struggles and issues in his own life, which is really touching. For me, it took a little while to come around to Load, but digesting it as a music lover and understanding the timing of this album, it becomes an easier listen.
