MACHINE HEAD Frontman Says 'Lulu' Is 'Horrible', 'Bizarre' And 'Fascinatingly Bad'

March 2, 2012

Total Guitar, which is said to be Europe's best-selling guitar magazine, recently conducted a "readers' questions" interview with MACHINE HEAD's Robb Flynn and Phil Demmel for the publication's March 2012 issue (issue 225). When asked by one reader if they heard METALLICA and Lou Reed's collaborative album, "Lulu", and what they honestly thought of it, Robb replied, "I think it's horrible. I don't get it. The METALLICA fan in me wants to think that there's this ulterior motive that none of us can see, and it's helping them branch out into something different. But I don't even get what's going on."

Added Phil: "I've heard, like, half of a tune. I don't like Lou Reed at all. I love METALLICA, but I don't like METALLICA with Lou Reed. It's not for me. I'll wait for the next METALLICA album."

Continued Robb: "It sounds like Grandpa Simpson rapping over fast thrash beats or something. We're huge fans of METALLICA and they'll always be my favorite band, but that record was bizarre. It was fascinatingly bad."

The whole interview is published in issue 225 of Total Guitar magazine. It can be purchased digitally via Apple Newstand and Zinio.

"Lulu" has polarized fans around the world and earned METALLICA some of the most scathing reviews of its career. The effort features the former THE VELVET UNDERGROUND frontman's spoken-word poetry and lyrics combined with METALLICA's musical assault for a jarring experience that doesn't sound like anything METALLICA has ever attempted before. A concept album based on two early 20th century plays by German author Frank Wedekind, the CD was co-produced by Reed, METALLICA, Hal Willner — who has produced albums for Reed, Marianne Faithfull, and Laurie Anderson, among others — and Greg Fidelman. Fidelman also mixed the record.

The collaboration between METALLICA and Reed was sparked by their performance together of Reed's "Sweet Jane" and "White Light/White Heat" at the 25th anniversary of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame at Madison Square Garden in October of 2009.

The songs were all written by Reed with extensive arrangement contributions by METALLICA.

Only two songs on the album are under five minutes in length, while two are more than 11 minutes long and the closing cut, "Junior Dad", clocks in at 19 minutes.

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