I don't know when you last saw them live, but I've seen them last year in Zagreb and I thought they ware great (admittedly that was my first Metallica concert so I really can't compare).
They still put on a good show, no doubt. You don't walk out disappointed in their ability to entertain.
What I'm saying is that from a musicianship perspective they're a disaster in a live setting. Lars can't maintain a steady tempo and is constantly pushing and pulling the beat...I'm sure he refuses to use a click track, but he should as he's just not talented enough to stay on tempo. I don't know how Rob stays with him other than the fact that he's just really a great bassist.
They blast right through the breaks in their songs without taking a breath. For example, watch Harvester of Sorrow in Seattle from Live Sh!t, recorded in the 1992. They take a break after one of the mesaures and walk around for a few seconds and then come in hard with "All have said their prayers...". It was an amazing effect and man, we'd go nuts in the pits, freezing during the break and then just smashing sh!t up when they came back in. It was, to use a word that has sadly lost its meaning, epic.
These days they don't even pause between songs, much less breaking at the end of a measure for effect. They just bleed one song right into the other. For a guy who's been going to shows for over 20 years it's been tough to watch them stop caring about how they play.
