Thrash Hits .com was yesterday treated to a preview of a selection of tracks from Metallica’s forthcoming new album. Henry Cutmore reports on their ninth studio effort.

Shrouded in the type of secrecy normally reserved for military operations, we were lead into a darkened room and followed in by a man in black muttering something about Metalica having previously issues with “illegal downloading problems – you may have heard about it?”, and who then proceeded to play a number of songs to us at great volume.

Initial listenings suggest that it is a vast improvement on 2003 album St Anger, the making of which provided the subject for the band’s infamous documentary Some Kind Of Monster.

Watch a clip from Some Kind Of Monster

Informally described by the Metallica camp as “9 epics in one album”, the quartet’s new material has been produced by Rick Rubin as is currently at the mixing stage.

Though all the tracks are currently untitled we can confirm that most songs clock in at seven or eight minutes in length – including the lead single, which takes a more down-beat approach than most of the material on the album and has shades of their Grammy-winning epic 1990 breakthrough single ‘One’.

We can also report than it is unlikely Metallica fans will be disappointed with the new material, which contains arguably their most complex, multi-layered arrangements yet and sees a definite return to the bludgeoning, relentless galloping riffs of their Kill ‘Em All / Ride The Lightning era.

Watch the video to ‘One’ by Metallica

The drums sound a lot stronger this time too, while Rob Trujillo’s bass lines feature more prominently in the mix and there even touches of Eastern-tinged guitars. The ten songs that will comprise the finished album clock in at 75 minutes in length.

It is not known whether ‘performance enhancement coach’ Dr Phil Towle was involved in the making of this album.

We suspect not.

Metallica’s new album is scheduled for release in September.