Metallica are at it again, shooting their brand new video for the song “The Day That Never Comes” off of their upcoming release Death Magnetic. The site is Acton, California, but the band is trying to make viewers believe it is Iraq or Afghanistan during the current “war on terror”.  The video has a war-time theme no doubt, but the band still claims it is not political. Make sense?

The album marks the band’s first effort since the ever so dissappointing St. Anger in 2003. The first single, according to lead singer/guitarist James Hetfield is a statement on humanity, helmed by acclaimed Danish director Thomas Vinterberg, who, along with Lars von Trier, co-founded the Dogme 95 movement in filmmaking. Hetfield said that when he was writing the song’s lyrics, he never envisioned the video would look anything like this (what with humvees and wounded soldiers making appearances).

“That’s the beauty, I think, of writing vague but powerful lyrics — that someone like a movie director can interpret it in his own way and obviously, someone creative is able to take the metaphors and apply them to whatever he needs in his own life,” Hetfield explained. “The main [theme of the video] is the human element of forgiveness and someone doing you wrong, you feeling resentment and you being able to see through that in the next situation that might be similar and not take your rage or resentment out on the next person and basically keep spreading the disease of that through life.”

Sounds pleasant right? The band went on to say a whole bunch of other stuff about the video, but who cares really? I mean, is Metallica even relevant anymore? Have they come out with a good album since “And Justice For All“? Truth is, they are still relevant, if only to be bashed in the blogosphere, but this album is make or break for them as musicians.  They have lost just about all of their credibility, so now they need to actually come out with a solid album to receive any accolades.  I personally dont give a hoot about this silly video…give me the album and we’ll see what these guys can really do these days.