METALLICA [AKA: THE BLACK ALBUM]

Metallica absolutely excelled with this and shocked the metal heads who were not used to this quieter approach but when they thrash they do it at breakneck speed. Some of the riffs on this are so good they should be illegal.

When I think of this album I remember how it was raved about on the radio metal shows and how many times they played tracks from it. Indeed it was so good every track was an instant classic. Immediately the highlights spring to mind Enter Sandman, Sad but True, The Unforgiven, Wherever I May Roam, Through the Never, Nothing Else Matters, My Friend of Misery - all brilliant and instantly recognizable as soon as Metallica begin playing them in concert.

The album tracks became the most played live in concert from any album, and there are some amazing versions on the orchestrated 'S & M' worth a listen.

'Nothing Else Matters' was one of the most inspired tracks in the metal world. Hetfield singing 'from the heart' and beautifully too had metal heads burning their hands with lifted up lighters every time it was played live.

Essential listening even if you hate metal. Many prog elements throughout if you look hard enough. But forget all that it's just great music and some of the best instrumentals in the annals of rock history. Of course the album was the peak of their success and the only way was down and Metallica virtually crashed to earth on later releases; Load, Reload, and the abysmal St Anger - which put them under the earth's crust. Death Magnetic brings them up to standard again but nothing was as good as this album.

The Black Album stands the test of time and will be remembered and revered for decades as the shining moment of metal. Every band has a treasure album, a 'Topographic Oceans' if you like, and for Metallica - this is it. Adore it or hate it you cannot ignore it. It was more influential and more important than any metal album in the early 90s when metal was dying. Metallica resurrected and reinvented the metal corpse with The Black Album and everyone sat up and took notice again.

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