On this we agree. Lars [love him or hate him, & I have to say I’m not too crazy about him] & Hetfield are extremely talented musicians/songwriters. To have demanded they do the exact same original thrash indefinitely wd have stifled them. I know a lot of their original fans wanted nothing less, but that never seemed fair to the musicians themselves.
I’ll never forget the first time I heard Until it Sleeps. The anticipation for that song was something I’ve never seen before. When I finally heard it, I remember being fascinated & let down at the same time. Why did Hammett never let loose & tear it up? I still have mixed feelings about that....
Have you ever heard the story of the first live concert for S&M? The classical musicians had never played before such an audience before, & were scared witless. They thought the fans would stampede the stage & kill them all. ;)
No, never read up on that. Mostly, I just consumed the band's offerings, and never really followed the minute details of their career. I can only imagine how a classical orchestra would have felt backing Metallica up!