When it took Metallica 8 years to release the album Hardwired after their former release Death Magnetic, frontman James Hetfield admitted that gap was "too long" and vowed not to make fans wait like that again. Well, he technically lived up to his promise, considering that it only took 7 years to release their newest album, 72 Seasons. The band's 11th studio LP, 72 Seasons had been reasonably arising lots of hype in the music community, so why not accompany the album's release with an event only seen in theaters? 72 Seasons - The Global Premiere offered fans to "watch" the album in its entirety in theaters a week before the music was released, accompanied by interviews and a behind-the-scenes look at the album's production. This all seems promising, considering how every single song on the Hardwired album had its own music video, and considering Metallica's rich history and influence to modern music. Maybe they shouldn't have charged $25 bucks for an unfinished product.
To speak briefly about the music itself, coming from a lifelong fan of Metallica's music, the album as a whole is fine. There are more good songs than bad, and for the first time in decades there really aren't any bad song at all to complain about, but the album as a whole mostly sounds the same and could be elevated by a ballad or two to break up the pace. Some passion shines through the music and it finally sounds as if Metallica are having fun in the studio for the first time in decades, but the album is too plaintive in being "just good enough."
However, the music is just a small part of this Global Premiere, as we aren't paying to just stare at a black screen for 78 minutes. In reality, I wish we were. While some songs feature fully produced music videos that are visually appealing and well-shot, about half do not. I'm not sure if they outsourced to college kids for some of these "music videos", but the richest metal band on earth clearly did not invest much money into this project. Staring at strobing 8-bit blocks flashing at light speed without interruption over a mediocre 7 minute song makes for one of the most unbearable theater experiences I can recall. The 11-minute epic "Inamorota" has what looks like a really foggy shower that, yes, plays for all 11 minutes. One song has a dancing mountain that bops up and down for 7 minutes. There are even enjoyable songs that were tarnished by their visual counterparts, solely because they were so straining and so boring that I simply couldn't wait for the song to end.
There is enough to keep my attention when the band actually is on screen for videos of "Sleepwalk My Life Away", "You Must Burn!", and the title track, but most of the other one's could've been generated by high school art class students or by a free-to-use AI software. The interviews themselves are also hollow, as James Hetfield couldn't be paid to seem invested for the event; his description for the lyrics of "Crowned of Barbed Wire" are close to "yep, they're lyrics, do what you want with them, I guess." as if even he doesn't care. Though bassist Rob Trujilo's poor descriptions of each song do offer some comedic relief; The 11-minute gloomy and doomy "Inamorata", a song about suicide, being described as "perfect for the beach" and "driving on a sunny day with the convertible roof down" are gutbusting in hindsight, though I'm still not sure if he was joking.
Maybe in 2035, Metallica can release their next album and try this whole "Global Premiere" thing with a bit more effort. Maybe they can actually finish videos for each song and not release something that was clearly incomplete. Maybe the album will be better. Maybe they won't have burned off their fans by scamming them with crap like this. Maybe it wont cost $30 per ticket. Maybe they'll try a teensy bit harder. The Global Premiere is an excellent idea but maybe other bands with more drive and passion should attempt the concept.
