Metallica break-up spawns new trio

Echobrain\nEchobrain\nChophouse Records\nBassist Jason Newsted busted up Metallica because he wanted to dabble musically. Was the indulgence of this wanderlust "the debut release by Newsted's new trio Echobrain" worth breaking up the biggest band in the world?\nWell, yes and no. Newsted certainly wasn't the best bass player in the world (and couldn't hold a candle to Cliff Burton), but with Newsted Metallica had coalesced into hard-rock juggernaut that now will never be the same again. (Note to James and Lars: please, oh please, oh please bring in Les Claypool!)\nAnd Echobrain, while musically adventurous and, at times, inspired, makes you wish Newsted had just stuck it out with Metallica.\nApparently Echobrain had its genesis at a Super Bowl Party in 1995, when Newsted met jazz-funk drummer Brian Sagrafena, who at the time was a mere 16 years old. A year later Sagrafena introduced Newsted to metal guitarist Dylan Donkin. They began to jam at the Chophouse, Newsted's home studio.\nThey eventually produced their 10-track, self-titled debut album. In general, the disc is a far cry from Metallica; the last song, "Cryin' Shame," concludes with a bluegrass-flavored country hoedown, for example. On some tracks the band incorporates strings at least as well as Metallica did on S&M.\nAnd Echobrain gives youngsters Sagrafena and Donkin a chance to show their chops, with Newsted providing a constant, if rote, foundation on bass. Eschewing a star's ego for egalitarianism, Newsted lets Echobrain become a musical democracy, with three equal parts (which is more than he was afforded in Metallica, where Newsted was often treated like an interchangeable part).\nPerhaps we have become too dependent on Metallica-style crunch, but we still expect any product with Newsted's name on it to hit us with a wallop, and Echobrain does not. It might make us re-think our images of Newsted and his abilities as a band member, but it still leaves us longing for something more familiar.\n

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