Why does everyone make fun of Lars?

brushes

brushes

Active Member
I am not an expert when it comes to Ulrich and Metallica, but I do believe that most of the hate is not based on his drumming (how many Metallica-fans are pro-drummers and are able to judge his abilities? Eh?) but because of his take on the whole Napster-thing. To tell the truth - it was absolutely okay to critizise Napster and everyone who used it. If it were your job and your way of making money, would you want to see everyone enjoying YOUR work and not paying a dime for it? Sorry, but napster and everything that came afterwards has made life miserable for artists. Income has fallen into y mould, while the revenue for streaming-comanies is skyrocketing. It's insane. If you want to listen to music that is well made by people who earn a living from it then pay for it. You don't get your bread and butter, your car and gasoline for free, either, don't you?
He is a business man. That's okay. He was the first one to point fingers against a "new cult of robbery" and people hate him because he said the truth, at least that is my take.

His drumming is not great, nor is it bad. Just solid drumming that seems to work with Metallica. Nothing to hate, really. People should feel free to disagree with his opinions and the way he drums, ... but hate?... Really? How old are we?
 
Hewitt2

Hewitt2

Senior Member
michaelg said:
I don't know that genre of music very well but I think Charlie Benante of Anthrax & Dave Lombardo of Slayer.
Lars was good for the music but solely based on his drumming abilities he could have been easily replaced. (hope I'm not being too harsh)

Metallica were hugely commercially successful and hugely influential I agree.

I don't quite understand what point your making
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But that’s the point, isn’t it, mate? Without Lars it wouldn’t be Metallica. Drummers are just as integral to the sound of the band as any of the other musicians. They are an equal part of a greater whole and are no more replaceable than anyone else.

Theoretically substituting Lars for a more technically accomplished drummer would be like swapping Ringo for a Ginger Baker or Phil Rudd for a Cozy Powell. Would those bands have been better for it? Maybe, maybe not. But it certainly wouldn’t be The Beatles or AC/DC anymore, so what’s the point?
 
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michaelg

Member
Yes well said. Its hard if not impossible to imagine Metallica without Lars.

I guess they would not be Metallica without Lars but I do believe they could have been a better Metallica with a more musical drummer. Its not about technique. I'll bet Kenny Aronoff would slay subbing for that band.

I like to hear a good feel in any sort of music. Lars don't do it for me but so what. Metallica fans love him. Its ok to have different opinions etc

Edit Just imagine someone as solid as this in Metallica. know what i mean ?
 
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PaisteGuy

PaisteGuy

Active Member
Hewitt2 said:
But that’s the point, isn’t it, mate? Without Lars it wouldn’t be Metallica. Drummers are just as integral to the sound of the band as any of the other musicians. They are an equal part of a greater whole and are no more replaceable than anyone else.

Theoretically substituting Lars for a more technically accomplished drummer would be like swapping Ringo for a Ginger Baker or Phil Rudd for a Cozy Powell. Would those bands have been better for it? Maybe, maybe not. But it certainly wouldn’t be The Beatles or AC/DC anymore, so what’s the point?
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You seem to be missing the point here. The title of the thread is “Why Do People MAKE FUN OF Lars”
Lars after the Black Album let his skills go. I like the first Five Albums (I’m including the Black Album, as it’s not a bad one, just simple compared to the previous four). Having Let his Skills deteriorate, His Rockstar Ego Grew instead after the eponymous albums success. This Video demonstrates ‘The Why’ Lars is made Fun of. I think if he had kept up his skill level to what it was around 89’, this thread wouldn’t exist.


 
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michaelg

Member
Been a while since I seen it but my interpretation of "Some kind of monster" was that the band truly hate working with each other and only continue to do so for for money, ego and fame.
 
Juniper

Juniper

Gold Member
brushes said:
I am not an expert when it comes to Ulrich and Metallica, but I do believe that most of the hate is not based on his drumming (how many Metallica-fans are pro-drummers and are able to judge his abilities? Eh?) but because of his take on the whole Napster-thing. To tell the truth - it was absolutely okay to critizise Napster and everyone who used it. If it were your job and your way of making money, would you want to see everyone enjoying YOUR work and not paying a dime for it? Sorry, but napster and everything that came afterwards has made life miserable for artists. Income has fallen into y mould, while the revenue for streaming-comanies is skyrocketing. It's insane. If you want to listen to music that is well made by people who earn a living from it then pay for it. You don't get your bread and butter, your car and gasoline for free, either, don't you?
He is a business man. That's okay. He was the first one to point fingers against a "new cult of robbery" and people hate him because he said the truth, at least that is my take.

His drumming is not great, nor is it bad. Just solid drumming that seems to work with Metallica. Nothing to hate, really. People should feel free to disagree with his opinions and the way he drums, ... but hate?... Really? How old are we?
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Great points and especially on the Napster thing.

He said his issue wasn't with the albums being on there, it was demos/outakes/concert bootlegs which by not officially putting them out they hadn't authorised for release. It was the lack of control over quality.

Which, along with your product being out there and not seeing a penny for, I can completely agree with.

He gets zero hate for me for the Napster thing. No one is entitled to anyones music/art for free and that goes for any media whether it be music, media, cinema...etc

You'd not go into a supermarket or restaurant expecting free food so why is music any different?
 
Push pull stroke

Push pull stroke

Platinum Member
Juniper said:
Great points and especially on the Napster thing.

He said his issue wasn't with the albums being on there, it was demos/outakes/concert bootlegs which by not officially putting them out they hadn't authorised for release. It was the lack of control over quality.

Which, along with your product being out there and not seeing a penny for, I can completely agree with.

He gets zero hate for me for the Napster thing. No one is entitled to anyones music/art for free and that goes for any media whether it be music, media, cinema...etc

You'd not go into a supermarket or restaurant expecting free food so why is music any different?
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Concert bootlegs have been around since the 70s. People still bought the albums, they just also copied the bootlegs too. Just saying
 
drummingbulldog

drummingbulldog

Active Member
Lars was never great. He was fast & the band was tight. I will say that RTL & MOP were the band's zenith artistically. After they lost Cliff the music went to hell in a handbasket. The bigger they got made them do more interviews and you put a mic in front of James or Lars, you're gonna be disappointed. He is a turd.
His drumming was never that tasteful & he can't tune his drums. They always sounded like crap until he started triggering. When I look back to Metallica & Lars, I see more of a blueprint of what not to do than a past inspiration.
 
Xstr8edgtnrdrmrX

Xstr8edgtnrdrmrX

Diamond Member
drummingbulldog said:
Lars was never great. He was fast & the band was tight. I will say that RTL & MOP were the band's zenith artistically. After they lost Cliff the music went to hell in a handbasket. The bigger they got made them do more interviews and you put a mic in front of James or Lars, you're gonna be disappointed. He is a turd.
His drumming was never that tasteful & he can't tune his drums. They always sounded like crap until he started triggering. When I look back to Metallica & Lars, I see more of a blueprint of what not to do than a past inspiration.
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I also always thought James' voice, and approach to singing got more sloppy as time went on as well...that could also be due to the massive amounts of cigs and drinks in the early days

and I always hated the size of Lars' toms, they were so freaking big, it was like having 6 floor toms aroiund the set...for me, that is why I think the tuning was not "to my taste"

I honestly never hated him. but I also was able to see "reality" when it was happening, and was not goign to let that expectation go just due to "success"

if I pay >$40 a ticket for a show, I better see professionalism...not excuses..

under $40? Slop away!!!
 
Trigger

Trigger

Senior Member
I saw Metallica at glastonbury a few years back and walked out after about 10 minutes. Lars came up with some killer drum parts back in the day but he can't play them anymore and he can't keep time. He was all over the place.
 
Lee-Bro

Lee-Bro

Senior Member
I had a long ass response to this typed out but I'll pare it down to this:
  • He influenced my passion for drumming in the 80s
  • I appreciated his simplified drumming on Black, Load, & Reload,
  • St. Anger snare is horrible, he even admitted it,
  • He's a savvy business owner who's also an employee of the company he co-owns,
  • His personality on video may not be the best example of who he is most of the time,
  • He may or may not actually be a douche all the time,
  • If you can make a video "Lars-ing" other songs, that means he has a style of his own (like it or not). Most of us don't have that.
And I'll leave you with this:
www.ghostcultmag.com

Metallica Drummer Lars Ulrich Discusses Charitable Work on Full Frontal With Samantha Bee

Metallica Drummer Lars Ulrich Discusses Charitable Work on Full Frontal With Samantha Bee
www.ghostcultmag.com www.ghostcultmag.com
 
GetAgrippa

GetAgrippa

Diamond Member
If Lars was a female drummer in scantily clad attire just think how much more grief he would get on this thread. ROFL I couldn't hep myself. Hee,hee,hee,hee,hee.
 
O

Otto

Platinum Member
My derision from long ago stemmed from my inability to see that my musical tastes are MY limitation...not others.

More recently it stems from him complaining about lost money...when his net worth is reported at 350 million dollars. Money mismanagement aside, that comes off VERY wrong.
 
wraub

wraub

Gold Member

and, still a classic-
 
GetAgrippa

GetAgrippa

Diamond Member
Lars main problem is he went bald-so Rock N Roll or metal isn't bald. It's just another crazy bias-like studies with good looking people. An ugly teacher could be a genius and a beautiful one a screaming idiot and the beauty wins. Lars turned bald and ugly-like Chris Walken had this baby face before becoming the Angel of Death. I'm glad I figured it out-something shallow.
 
bud7h4

bud7h4

Silver Member
I think anyone making fun of Lars (pre - Black Album) just doesn't know what they're listening to in his playing. He was breaking new ground, stylistically. He wasn't inventing new techniques, but he was applying them differently than they had been before. If anyone had their own sound at the time (in metal) it was Ulrich. No Lars, no Metallica.

Lars was never a great drummer but his drumming was great. He was inventive, with the unusual crash accents and chokes, rests, double bass patterns, etc.
From the Black album forward, however . . . . . bad Lars.
 
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I-P

I-P

Active Member
He was eventually right about Napster.

Music is on life support since the internet.

There's been little to no musical breakouts, innovations, or creativity since.
 
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