#43 Metallica

Metallica emerged as a reaction to LA’s glam scene. They despised hair metal and wanted to concentrate on the music as opposed to their look. The band helped create trash metal which centers around speed and aggression. Their first album, “Kill ’Em All”, created a following. Their next album, “Master of Puppets” established them as the leaders of the trash movement and is their Magnus Opus. In the late 80s, the release and video for “One” made them stars and in 1991, they became superstars with the “Black” album which included “Enter Sandman.” The 90s saw Metallica become more of a radio friendly rock band and less trash. They changed their sound with the terrible, “St. Anger”, but returned to their roots in 2008 with “Death Magnetic.” They were inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 2009.

Metallica has had it’s issues throughout their history. Their original bassist, Cliff Burton, was killed when a tour bus crushed him. In the early 2000s, the band nearly disintegrated on camera as they filmed a documentary. Burton’s replacement, Jason Newsted, left the band and vocalist James Hetfield came off poorly. The band also attacked file sharing and Napster which hurt their popularity. In the long run, Lars was right.

Rock n Roll Moment: St. Anger saw the band nearly disintegrate. It also qualifies for a wussy moment.

Essential Metallica:

Kill Em All (1983)
Ride the Lightning (1984)
Master of Puppets (1986)
Metallica (1991)

Metallica’s Top 10:

Seek and Destroy
Fade To Black
For Whom The Bell Tolls
Master of Puppets
Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
One
Enter Sandman
The Unforgiven
Wherever I May Roam
No Leaf Clover