Evolution the Only Solution

While reading through some music news I saw that the members of Metallica are all very proud of James Hettfield for sobering up and recovering from his alcoholism. Kirk Hammett went on to say "Him being clean and sober is something that he holds so close to heart. We acknowledge it every day, but it's just great to see other people acknowledging it, too." I as well as the members of Metallica am very proud that James sobered up and he does deserve credit and respect for doing so because I know from experience that it is one of the worst addictions in the world. I myself was not an alcoholic but I do know someone very close to me and his road to sobering up was a difficult one to say the least. Because of watching alcoholism deteriorating ones life I abstained from alcohol all together and have never touched it and am not quite sure if I ever will. Aside from that note, I've come to realize how ignorant the majority of Metallica fans are. A few quotes from fans online were "only wimps dont get drunk," "He should of kept drinking, maybe he would have put our better albums." and "We are all secretly wishing you'd get back on the sauce and maybe some crank and go back to writing like the ...And Justice For All days. Save yourself and your former fans from disgrace." Those are just a few of the many ridiculous things people said. I don't think it is just Metallica fans that are the problem but Metal fans in general. Many Metal fans feel they have this ownership of bands and this personal connection with them. There is nothing wrong with the personal connection but you cannot expect them to put out album after album of repetitious styles. Music evolves just as humans and everything on earth evolves. To not acknowledge that fact is just setting yourself up for disappointment. Of course everyone loved classic albums like "Ride the Lightening" and "Master of Puppets" but if Metallica were to have released albums sounding like that from the 80's all the way to 2006 I have a pretty strong inkling that the world would get sick of them. The magic of Metallica and all bands that last 15+ years is that they evolve. For example lets look at Pink Floyd, they start off heavily psychedelic, move into the progressive sounds of "Dark Side of the Moon" and "Wish You Were Here" and from there they change up their sound in albums such as "Animals" and "The Final Cut" lastly once Waters had left the band they go back to a sound somewhat similar to their golden era of "Wish You Were Here." Floyd fans remained devoted fans through all the years and I think prog rock fans realize that evolution is crucial hence "progressive" rock. When Metal fans come to terms with the evolution of music then maybe one day they will be cured of their insecure attacks on their once favorite bands. In conclusion, metal fans should go pick up some material by Darwin and try to apply it on a broader scale instead of just nature.