Album Review: Lou Reed/Metallica - Lulu

This will be my first album review. I picked Lou Reed/Metallica`s Lulu because it is discussed a lot these days and I like both these artists.

When Metallica first announced that they will make a new record but it won't be regular Metallica record, the fans became skeptical. They just wanted regular Metallica record that would sound like Metallica. Simply, record that would be appreciated by all Metallica fans.

However, Metalica decided to go different way. They teamed up with Lou Reed and decided to make a record with him. There have been a lot of talking since the announcement about what it will be like since we consider the fact that for many people Lou Reed and Metalica are just so different and they actually really are.

Of course, it sounded weird, but everybody still believed it has to be good - it's Metallica and Lou Reed, two well respected artists.

But when 30-second preview of song "The View" appeared on LouReedMetallicaTV Youtube channel, people started to be skeptical. Later, they made the whole song available and according to Youtube like/dislike buttons, people hated it more than they loved it. It is actually kind of a shame to make an opinion about the whole album based on one song or only 30-second preview. We have to consider that it is conceptual album that needs to be taken as a whole. It shouldn't be hated based on one song.

Like many long-awaited albums, Lulu leaked on the internet before it was officially out. I think that many people decided not to wait until the official release and just downloaded the album. Well, now the album has been officially out for a week and I want to share my thoughts about it with you.

Lulu starts with quiet acoustic guitar from the starting song "Brandenburg Gate". Later, Reed joins in with singing (better said talking) along with the guitar. After 50 seconds, Metallica starts playing their typical guitars and Hetfield`s voice singing in the chorus. And sadly, I have to say that all songs have this similar structure. Metallica plays a riff basically throughout the whole song and Reed sings or speaks in top of it.
The second song "The View", already mentioned, is really Reed`s talking over the Metallica`s heavy guitars in the background. The guitar riffs are very repetitive especially in this song.

The third song - "Pumping Blood" is slower song until it passes half of its length. Heavy guitars are joined. I think it is also the only song in which Hetfield does not sing at all. It is just Reed in this one.

Fourth song, "Mistress Dread", kicks it off from the beginning with nice metal riff. However, during this song, I start realizing, all songs are very similar and do not offer much different stuff. The ending of this song is good though.

Fifth song, "Iced Honey" is for me the catchiest song of the album. It is the shortest track, it has got a cathy guitar riff and Reed sings actually kind of different and better in this one.

Last song of the first disc, "Cheat on Me", is the best song from the whole album to me. It is just so sad,urgent and beautiful at the same time. The songs start slowly. After 3 minutes, Reed urgently starts singing the sentence "why do you cheat on me" (this phrase appears a lot in this song). As the song goes, more and more instruments are added. At the end of sixth minute, song really starts. Hetfield start singing with Reed and they sound awesome together.

First song of the second disc "Frustration" starts really with frustrating sound of whatever it is. The lyrics is also kind of frustrating...However, at this point of the album, it does not offer anything new.

Second song of the disc 2 - "Little Dog" is more Velvet Underground song than Metallica/Lou Reed. The whole song is basically reed and acoustic guitar. Electric guitar in the background appears occasionally. It is one of the better songs of the album though.

Third song of the second disc is called "Dragon". It is my least favorite track of Lulu. However, I have to appreciate the riff.

The last and the longest song of the album is "Junior Dad". It is almost 20 minutes long. It's got this nice clean electric guitar at the beginning. This song is a great closer. Even though second half of this track is just slow-spacing sound of keyboards and guitars, somehow it works for me.

In overal, I really do like this album. It is not typical album. It is not album for the first listen. It is album that needs to be taken as a complex.

You need to listen to all 90 minutes at once so you get the idea. Of course it has low points and maybe you get tired of Reed's talk almost in every song, but it is well put together and it just works as an entity. Especially the riffs are really good. On the other hand, Lou Reeds sing-talking is sometimes really bad.

The lyrics may be funny and just absurd for somebody. The whole album starts with the sentence "I would cut my legs and tits off". I can really imagine many of you just turn this album off and never listen to it again. I mean, the lyrics are really really weird. It's just too weird sometimes, but I guess that was the purpose. This album is about sex,violence,drugs but sometimes it is just too much. However, it is definately worth istening and at least giving it a try, because albums like this do not come out everyday.