Billboard single reviews: Metallica, Oasis (Reuters)

ARTIST: METALLICA

SINGLE: THE DAY THAT NEVER COMES

NEW YORK (Billboard) - "The Day That Never Comes" is what Metallica fans felt they were pining for while awaiting the follow-up to 2003's ill-received album "St. Anger." Rock DJs have pounced on the track, making the band the first act this decade to notch a pair of top five rock debuts. But they're not just banging "Never" because it's an event record: It's a masterful blend of the quartet's classic sound with the Metallica of today, quenching fans' lengthy thirst for a true dose of metal from one of the genre's cornerstones. The clean, meandering route follows the soulful interludes of "Fade to Black," then reveals its ace around the four-minute mark: galloping beats and guitar-heavy fire whose opening chords recount instrumental treatise "Orion." Metallica has forged a comfortable reunion between its gutsy thrash parentage and its contemporary musical maturity.

ARTIST: OASIS

SINGLE: THE SHOCK OF THE LIGHTNING (BIG BROTHER/REPRISE)

Britrock quintet Oasis delivers a hypnotic, signature first single from seventh studio album "Dig Out Your Soul" (October 7). The energetic "The Shock of the Lightning" is vintage Oasis. With a banging kick drum and uber-catchy guitar grooves, the brothers Gallagher showcase a new fan favorite and a bloody good rockin' track. The band, currently on tour with Ryan Adams in North America, will hopefully find the same love stateside that it has garnered in the United Kingdom, since engaging an American audience has remained a perpetual challenge for the seminal act.

ARTIST: NATASHA BEDINGFIELD

SINGLE: ANGEL (EPIC)

Natasha Bedingfield's approach to international success appears to be working. When her sophomore album was released in the United States after a near-year's delay, she ultimately recorded a new batch of songs aimed at capturing radio airplay. That decision has paid dividends with two hit singles from "Pocketful of Sunshine": "Love Like This," featuring labelmate Sean Kingston, and the top five title track. Third single "Angel," another of the new tracks, was produced by Rodney Jerkins and takes a decidedly more urban slant, which, of course, will fit in fine on these shores. Vocally, Bedingfield has no difficulty adjusting to the production, confidently delivering with sass and swagger. With angelic harmonies throughout, a catchy chorus with a fun spell-out of "a-n-g-e-l" and a sing-rap bridge, Bedingfield is on her way again to the airwaves' high heavens.

Reuters/Billboard