I'll never understand all the fuss about Load. Maybe Re-Load, but that one isn't so bad either.
All in all, I thought it was a nice diversification of the Metallica sound. It definitely still sounded like Metallica, albeit with slower, groovier and bluesier grooves and more melodic songwriting. There's something to be said for the quality of the vocals as well, which IMO are probably the best they've ever had.
I'm not trying to break your balls or anything but that post is kind of a head scratcher. Load/Reload sound absolutely nothing like any of their first four albums in any way at all. At best, they sound like a very watered-down black album. There really just isn't any connection between the Loads and anything prior to the black album when you consider James' startling transition to a twangy hard rock singer (not his fault, obviously; most of us know about his vocal cords being blown out while recording So What), Lars' shameless departure from even attempting to sound like he can play drums at even the most elementary level, and Kirk's leads becoming even more one-dimensional than ever before. Add to all of that, the shift to E-flat (once again, not their fault as I'm sure it was to protect James' fucked up vocal cords) plus the weak-ass distortion they used on the guitars and you have 27 songs that sound like they were thrown together by some southern rock band with zero background in metal but liked the black album a little bit and figured they'd have a go at making some songs in that style but in their own southern way.
As for melody? The golden three were their best era for melody almost unquestionably. Each album starts off with better-written melodic sections than anything you'll find on the Loads and that's just the start.
Fight Fire With Fire: 3:01-3:23
Fade to Black: Basically the entire song
Creeping Death: 5:24-6:03
The Call of Ktulu: Majority of the song
Master of Puppets: Entire middle section
Sanitarium: Majority of the song
Orion: Second half is legendarily melodic
Damage Inc.: Intro
Blackened: 4:07-4:31
...And Justice For All: Intro, 5:06-5:26
Eye of the Beholder: 4:25-4:49
One: Majority of the song
Harvester of Sorrow: Most of the song is based off a clean-tone arpeggio
To Live is to Die: Intro, 4:29-6:19 (in fact, the part from 4:57 of this section onward is considered to be the pinnacle of all of Metallica's melodic work by a sizable chunk of their fan base)