1991 marked a turning point for the heavy metal band Metallica. After years of recording innovative music which stayed on the margins, they recorded a chart topping record which allowed them to cross over to mainstream success. This phenomenal album took over nine months to record, and the camera tracked them all. On Volume One of A YEAR AND A HALF IN THE LIFE, viewers get total access to the making of the album -- studio sessions, jams, mixing, and all. It also features the videos for "Enter Sandman," "The Unforgiven," and "Nothing Else Matters." Volume two takes viewers through the next year and a half which brought heavy touring and album promotion around the world. On this video diary, the band invite their fans to share this wonderful experience with them. Join Lars and the boys in the studio, at the Europe's Monsters of Rock show, on their sold out tour with Guns 'n Roses, and in Moscow for their first headlining stadium show. Features extensive interviews, backstage jams, and other rarities.

Review

These are two massively important inclusions to any Metallica fans collection. Part one follows the making of Metallica – The Black Album, and part two takes us through the first part of the lengthy promotional tour that followed. Part one gives fans a huge insight into the making of the mighty black album, we see the creativity, the arguments and the making of a beast. Taking us from the beginning, the drum tracks being recorded, the development of the songs and the completion of the album as it gets taken to the pressing plant and finally released in the shops. 

The video is a great piece of work and gets you inside the studio with the guys and enables you to get a grasp of what really happens during the creative stages of making an album. There are many choice moments on the vid, Lars, breaking his snare, getting fucked off and stabbing his stick into it, Lars mimicking shooting his ideas down from the sky with an imaginary gun, James telling Lars his voice is fucked and wouldn’t ask him to do a drum roll if his arm fell off, Kirk getting pissed off about the Unforgiven solo then shredding out one of the best of his career, the list goes on. The most essential part is of course seeing the songs come together, watching the drum tracks reach completion by editing the best parts together, Jaymz laying down the riffs, Kirk shredding, Jason beefing it up and Hetfield’s amazing vocals polishing the thing off. Then of course the mixing process, followed by the release. 

There’s an extra bonus in watching them make there first promotional video for Sandman and being able to see Unforgiven and NEM videos as well, a real treat.

A great insight. A must for any fan.

Part two… 

My personal favourite of the two, follows Metallica on the juggernaut of the tour in support of the black album, we see the Metallica touring machine in full swing, from them rehearsing to seeing live tracks, Bellz at Donington, Sandman once on an award ceremony and once at Wembley Stadium for the Freddie tribute, Sad But True, NEM with John Marshall, James’ guitar tech on guitar in place of Hetfield. This is because of James being unable to play because of the accident in Montreal where he was burned by a pyro, which we see footage of in the video. 

Part two also includes footage from Meet and Greet’s, which is interesting to see how they were organised back then. We also see the boys sound checking, trying to prepare for their premiere of Nothing Else Matters. Late night parties with the guys from GNR, sneak views around the backstage area of the arenas are all there, quite simply a documentary of a day in the life of the biggest metal band of all time. And then the further bonus of the videos of Sad But True an Roam. 

Olly Smith 2004