Metallica: S & M With The San Francisco Symphony (Concert) | James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich

Metallica: S & M With The San Francisco Symphony (Concert) | James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich | Only one thing could make this DVD better

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Metallica: S & M W...

	Metallica: S & M With The San Francisco Symphony (Concert) James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich Elektra / Wea, 1999 average customer review:based on 153 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

There's little doubt that this two-volume concert and documentary package will appeal to die-hard Metallica lovers--given its more than three-hour length (two and a half for the concert segment alone), the band's predominantly white male fan base (repeatedly addressed as "man" by singer-guitarist James Hetfield) will be--in fact already are--ecstatic. But one wonders, especially given the erratic history of rock-cum-orchestra experiments, whether S&M will win Metallica any new aficionados. The fact is that the presence of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, conducted by composer Michael Kamen, adds texture but not much else of significance to the Metallica sound. The band is so loud that it tends to overwhelm even a 100-plus member orchestra; what's more, Metallica's crunching, fist-pumping, riff-laden metal music lends itself less to genuine orchestral adornment than to superfluous bombast. And while the sound quality is excellent, it's still basically just a filmed concert, with little in the way of additional visual interest. Still, there are some cool moments, and all involved are clearly having a great time. There are also two new Metallica songs, "No Leaf Clover" and "Minus Human." (Note: also available is an edited version, sold at a slightly lower price, which corresponds to the popular PBS broadcast. The longer version carries an explicit content advisory label, due to much casual profanity, especially in the "making of" documentary.) --Sam Graham

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One of the rare instances where the juxtaposition of rock and classical works

If you're on the fence about buying your first Metallica album, check out "S&M." It serves as the closest thing they've done to a greatest hits album, and the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra (conducted by the esteemed Michael Kamen) adds a very nice level of depth to the songs. This is also the only album where you can find the songs "- Human" and "No Leaf Clover." The band touches on all its previous albums with the exception of "Kill 'Em All," playing staples like "Enter Sandman" and "One" but also throwing in songs like "Bleeding Me" off of "Load" and "The Call of Ktulu" off of "Ride the Lightning." The DVD is shot in a very good quality, although the camera angles are fairly standard. The lighting effects were done very well, though.

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Only one thing could make this DVD better

..and that's being re-released as a high definition DVD.

The colours and music in this are just too beautiful for standard definition and it's always disappointing to put this into my DVD player now with a HDTV and see a less-than-perfect image.

I saw the DVD before I bought the CD, when it was playing on VH-1, and it actually made me and my friend cancel our plans for the night while we stayed snuggled up under blankets and watched the entire thing. Last year, when I showed it to another friend, we almost didn't go out either because she was captivated by it.

Any music lover will flip over this. Metallica's music lends itself very well to a symphony orchestra, and I'm so glad they were able to do this before the passing of Michael Kamen. For a girl that was in love with Metallica before S&M, afterwards all I wanted to do was propose!

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Rocking the House

This is one of Metallica's best concert tapes around. With the addition of the San Francisco Symphony, it added a new dimenion to Metallica's music. It added more power and depth. Great Job, Metallica!!! I would love to see more bands like Metallica do this. It really adds a new dimenion to any rock band.

This is a Great Concert

This is a great step and great CD. Sound Quality of the CD wasn't great but acceptable. Admirable step both Metallica and San Francisco Symphony as everyone knows these two too hard to combine with. But they done it and I loved it. Already I watched it over and over.

Down side of this concert for me was the song "Nothing else matters". I think they haven't good enough with that song. It is all time great song of Metallica and it could have been batter. That's the only reason I rated this CD four star.

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Powerful Concert - visually inspiring and audio rocks!

I didn't know what to expect from this mix of music (especially since I'm not familiar with Metallica). But the combination blends well for most of the tracks - in some cases the symphony is overpowered by the band.

The video is good but should have been widescreen - Blu ray would have been ideal.
Kudos for this production.
Great concept executed quite well.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

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