Lars Ulrich

Re: Lars Ulrich - Mexico City drum performance review!

It's so sad to see Lars drumming away during a live concert that it's hard to believe that at one point he was the reference for what extreme metal drumming should be. He was never that brilliant but he certainly had a spark and his early double bass forays were really amazing (at least on record). I've just seen him playing in Mexico City and the way he played some thrash classics like "Disposable Heroes" or "Fight Fire With Fire" was really disappointing. Yeah, overall he still sounds decent but it seems he has become allergic to playing double bass the way he used to. The drumming on "Disposable Heroes" was devoid of any of the double bass fills that made the song sound thrashier. Sure, playing this stuff night after night when you're over 40 CAN be grueling, but he could do other things to make up for the lack of 16th note double bass parts. He could do triplets, which are far easier and, in a live situation, could fool some ears into thinking they're listening to double bass. Also, the famous double bass fills in "One" sounded hideously uneven. I purchased the live recording at Metallicalive.com and it only confirmed what I heard live. Even on the new songs, that should have been written with the possibility of pulling them off live, sounded contrived and incomplete. The fast double bass parts on "All Nightmare Long" (in the fast beat) disappeared altogether, only to reappear briefly at end of the mentioned part.
Double bass parts in "Fight Fire With Fire" were (in any) inaudible. I understand Metallica played "Dyers Eve" on their last Mexico City show and I seriously doubt that he played a single double bass note. Double bass was such an integral part of Metallica's musical arsenal that I miss it just as I missed Kirk's solo's in St. Anger.
If age's an issue, I see Dave Lombardo having no problems playing double bass parts live (they came to Mexico during the "Christ Illusion" tour), and he is about the same age as Mr. Ulrich.
It would be much better for Lars to abandon double bass altogether and maybe concentrate on improving other techniques that are not as physically demanding.
 
I agree with Drumeatdrum and Kastas both on different sides of the coin.

On one hand, Lars did pave a path for a lot of drummers to go down. Ride the Lightning is what got me into metal...it is what metal really meant to me, and the way I think it should be still. Tons of power. I've seen some old videos of Lars and it was pretty cool what he was doing back in the day....but...

On the other hand, if Metallica are planning to carry the torch all the way to the finish line, then it is almost expected that every one of the members puts in the time it takes to play their instruments the way they used to be able to and I haven't seen that out of Lars. Like Drumeatdrum said, Dave Lombardo is still doing what he used to do back in the day on this drums now and is respected for it. When I think of Lars, I think of "old school" but in reality, he isn't too old to be playing this stuff... I think that he really just hasn't put in the time to stay brushed up on his metal chops.

When I heard Death Magnetic, I was pleased to hear he was going in the right direction. Sure there isn't a lot of double bass, but people think that is what makes metal and it's not....it is one part of it. I think people try to up-play its significance.
 
^^^

Lars Ulrich does not impress me at all.

Nothing about his drumming stands out to me.

He can play double bass, but so can't a lot of drummers.

I have honestly found nothing from his drumming style that impressive.

Simply said and I'm sure I'm going to get some flak for this, he's a mediocre drummer.

This guy influenced almost every drummer in metal today. He has written every Metallica song except for two. He is a huge influence to me. He is an awesome drummer. I don't know what happened after '91, though.
 
Well, having been at the Sonisphere UK festival in Knebworth over the weekend, I can safely say that Lars is the worst 'professional' drummer I've ever heard. The whole band sounded like some terrible cover band butchering some classic metal songs.

I've been into the thrash scene since the beginning and was a Metallica fan up until the Black album which, in itself, isn't a bad album, just not what was expected after "...And Justice". After that, they just produced drab, uninspired rock music.

I can remember seeing them in '91 on the "...And Justice" tour and they were absolutely amazing. Seeing them on Sunday was just depressing. They butchered 'Blackened', 'Master of Puppets', 'Fade to Black' and 'One' (to be fair, 'One' wasn't too bad) plus some stuff off their last album (which I won't even waste bandwidth downloading) which I could hear whilst walking back to the car park to go home.

Lars simply can't play any of the songs prior to the Black album anymore - and he should be banned from even trying. I just wish I'd have left before they came on so as to preserve the memory of what Metallica used to be. A truly disheartening experience.
 
Well, having been at the Sonisphere UK festival in Knebworth over the weekend, I can safely say that Lars is the worst 'professional' drummer I've ever heard. The whole band sounded like some terrible cover band butchering some classic metal songs.

I've been into the thrash scene since the beginning and was a Metallica fan up until the Black album which, in itself, isn't a bad album, just not what was expected after "...And Justice". After that, they just produced drab, uninspired rock music.

I can remember seeing them in '91 on the "...And Justice" tour and they were absolutely amazing. Seeing them on Sunday was just depressing. They butchered 'Blackened', 'Master of Puppets', 'Fade to Black' and 'One' (to be fair, 'One' wasn't too bad) plus some stuff off their last album (which I won't even waste bandwidth downloading) which I could hear whilst walking back to the car park to go home.

Lars simply can't play any of the songs prior to the Black album anymore - and he should be banned from even trying. I just wish I'd have left before they came on so as to preserve the memory of what Metallica used to be. A truly disheartening experience.

On Live Sh*t Binge and Purge, he is awesome! On S&M he was pretty good, too. I haven't heard him live recently though. The rest of the band is still dong great! Death Magnetic is a pretty solid album. The drumming on All Nightmare Long and My Apocalypse is pretty sweet. But you are right, his drumming is really good, until after the Black album when the whole band changed to a hard rock band out of nowhere! I think that Lars should just practice on his drumming technique. Or maybe they need a new drummer. There are a few great drummers on Youtube that do great covers of Metallica songs! Here is one of them:
http://www.youtube.com/user/Metallicafan2910
 
How people view Lars tends to fall into one of two catagories

1) Those were teenagers (or older) in the 80s who remember Lars playing things that no one else was doing at the time (at least not in a way most people could see/hear). his raw speed on the first 4 Metallica albums was a relatively new concept at the time. While drummers had been using double bass for years, most used it for quads, shuffles, or just double bass roles. Lars came along and played all sorts of broken triplet patterns, syncopations, and quick rolls that no one else was playing on albums at the time. Playing thrash in 7/4 and 5/4 and all the crazy time signature changes on "And Justice For All" was ground breaking.
The first time "One" was played on MTV was a monumental occasion, as many of us had never heard someone play double bass like ever.

2) Those who were teenagers in the 90's or later, who only saw Lars simplify his playing, while thousands upon thousands of drummers learned every Lars Ulrich trick and then improved upon it many times over, while Lars himself stopped trying to improve himself, apparently went backwards in ability.

What many people don't realize is yes, they can turn on MTV or youtube or whatever and find 1,000,001 players who can do insane things with double bass than Lars couldn't do if he dreamed, but 20 years ago those other players didn't exist, and there was no youtube to watch them on. While Lars was "the guy" (with a handful of others) who was doing it, and actually selling records, and putting himself in places where people could see and hear him. Most of these modern players wouldn't be playing what they play if Lars had not set the ground work first and been around to be copied and improved upon.

Muck like in jazz, a lot of the early pioneers like Zutty Singleton and Cozy Cole are often forgotten in favor of the 2nd and 3rd generation jazz of players who took everything the early guys did and improved it, and used better recording technology to make more people aware that they could play they way they do. (and no, I'm not comparing Lars to jazz legends).

I remember looking at Lars as a major inspiration for what could be done on the drum kit.
Do I look at him the same way now? Of course not. But that doesn't discount what he did in the past.

Finally, a post that makes sense.
Several of the people posting in this thread are just bashing him becuase he doesn't go double bass happy, or go nuts all of the time.

The things that matter are:
The beats and fills fit into the songs
He is energetic live

And he does both, so whats the point of all of this negativity?
 
I completely agree with LeeLovesSabian. He isn't the crazy drummer that every body wants him to be, so every one hates him. He fits perfectly into the songs that Metallica plays. I think he is one of the greatest drummers ever and my personal favorite.
 
I can't really say I'm a fan of Lars but that doesn't mean that I don't have a lot of respect for him. Sure he's not the most technical drummer out there but I'm sure he knows that! Besides, like a lot of great drummers it's his showmanship alone that pulls him through.

I agree that he may have let his technical ability slip over the years but I remember reading an interview a while back where he was mentioning that he used to listen to drummers and think "god that's so easy, I can do that" Then he started listening to Rolling Stones and got into the more beat aspect of drumming. That's what gets him off these days. The less is more approach. Hats off to him I say.

I challenge you to go into a bar/club and put Enter Sandman on the jukebox. I then challenge you to be unable to nod your head up and down. I certainly can't and that in itself is a sign of a great drummer!
 
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I can't really say I'm a fan of Lars but that doesn't mean that I don't have a lot of respect for him. Sure he's not the most technical drummer out there but I'm sure he knows that! Besides, like a lot of great drummers it's his showmanship alone that pulls him through.

I agree that he may have let his technical ability slip over the years but I remember reading an interview a while back where he was mentioning that he used to listen to drummers and think "god that's so easy, I can do that" Then he started listening to Rolling Stones and got into the more beat aspect of drumming. That's what gets him off these days. The less is more approach. Hats off to him I say.

I challenge you to go into a bar/club and put Enter Sandman on the jukebox. I then challenge you to be unable to nod your head up and down. I certainly can't and that in itself is a sign of a great drummer!

I agree completely. I like Lars. He may not be the best but he sure has to be pretty good to make it to where he is now haha.
 
He's so much more to Metallica than just a drummer, and he fits the music just fine. Unfortunately like a lot of modern metal, his drum tracks are pieced together...even when they didn't quite have the technology, and especially for the And Justice...tracks. Then again, who could play Dyers Eve in one take LOL!

I'd switch thrones with him.

Actually there are tons of drummers, me included that can play dyers eve with ease. It's really not that hard. Here is a link to just one of many guys playing it..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YdgYiPXEAE
 
Saw Lars last week im not a mettalica fan at all just went for a day out.Now he was probaly the worst drummer of they day but he sure does give his all live.I find it weird that he doesnt want to improve his drumming but he has already left a huge legacy behind him he could stop right now and he will be remembered by drummers the world over until time ends.It was weird watching him struggle with the double bass in "One" a song that put his drumming to the forefront of popular drumming and he cant really do it anymore.
 
All I know is that Lars' drumming on ...And Justice for All is his finest work to date, in my most humble opinion. His playing on that album made me air drum for days at an end, trying to learn his parts; and, even if they are not too difficult, complement the overall progressive approach of the band on this album, which by the way in my opinion is the absolute best Metallica will ever produce.

As for those bashers, well, if you think Lar's playing is boring and uninspired and lacks creativity and blah, blah, blah... why don't you show us how you can make it better? Provide us with recordings of your playing along to Metallica songs with your own approach and show us how you can play fun, inspirational and creative parts. Just a suggestion...
And Justice is his best work. Ride The Lightning has to be 2nd, though. He played fast beats and good fills. I sure can't play the stuff he played on that album. And I would like to see someone play Metallica better than Lars. He is Metallica. Take him out and the band is even more lost. I wish I could bring Cliff back, then maybe Metallica would be better.
 
Hi all

I noticed on a recent picture taken from behind Lars playing live, and he has some sort of motor attached to the seat section of his drum stool. Does anyone know what it is? i have 2 theories...
a. its a fan
b. its some sort of transducer producing bass to compliment his in-ear monitors.

lars_ulrich_5239707.jpg


Baffled, hope someone can help. :)


Cheers

Sox!
 
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Hi all

I noticed on a recent picture taken from behind Lars playing live, and he has some sort of motor attached to the seat section of his drum stool. Does anyone know what it is? i have 2 theories...
a. its a fan
b. its some sort of transducer producing bass to compliment his in-ear monitors.

lars_ulrich_5239707.jpg


Baffled, hope someone can help. :)


Cheers

Sox!

I think its hydrulix for his throne so he can move it up and down easily
 
It's a buttkicker. It shakes when he hits his kick drums so he doesn't have to have a giant monitor. Yes they work with your in-ears!
 
Lars was great on the Black album... amazing sounding drums n some great drumming. He's just too all over the place now, although I like the sound of his live kit a lot.
 
It`s sad to see how little historical perspective people have. Lars paved the way for generations of drummers. Lars has never claimed to be the best and if i remember correct he has shyed away from clinics cus he`s not confident enough in he`s abilities and feels that it would be stroking he`s own ego too much.
And as for the whole napster thing, many of the forum members again seem to be ignorant of history. The whole thing blew up into a greed issue, when the fact of the matter was that it was a question about artists owning the rights to their own music.
The napster issue just proved that long after metallica was deemed viable. They were still leading the pack.
It is amazing that artists (as i recon many of the forum members are) don`t see the importance of artists owning the rights to their own music.
If you are going to pursue music profesionally; how are you going to support yourself and your family if you can`t make money of your music?
As for Lars abilities the later part of 2000 it seems that age and family life has taking it`s toll on the man. He is a mere shadow of himself with regards to technique and he has been quite stagnant in he`s playing, but so has the rest of metallica.
I still get a kick when i listen to metallica, Lars has (had...) a unique style, almost symphonic in the way he`s drumming followed James guitar and vocals.
 
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