>I've been listening to it repeatedly at work since yesterday (about 8 times through now).

wow. 8 times?? :) I've only listened 2.


>>My initial reaction was that it sounded like they didn't complete it in studio. However, a couple of times through and I found myself hitting my desk/keyboard along with Lars. This is definately a drums first album, peppered with guitars and the vocals added as an afterthought.

I think the one that played better on this album was really Lars. However, his drums are sounding really bad. The snare sound is horrible.

As for James, he's not producing those good riffs anymore... there's nothing that could be compared to what he used to do. And the same apply to his voice.

As I mentioned in another message, I think this album is way better than load/reload, but it's still not even close to the other terrific albums they've done in the past. As a Metallica fan, I can't help not feeling disappointed.