I’m going to do my best to word this the right way so people can get my point without seeming like I’m insulting the artist here. I’m not looking to have a Jane Campion moment here after all. I’ve listened to Wrack’s Repulsive Gravity, and I did enjoy it, but it seems like money was left on the table. Allow me to explain.
Metallica released their Thrash Metal defining moment thirty-five years ago today with Master of Puppets (Elektra Records/Blackened Recordings). While 1986 gave us many legend-status albums from top-tier bands, this is still the one that stands above all the others. Taking the NWBHM influence of Kill Em All, and the improved thrash stylings and songcraft of Ride The Lightning, and moving leaps forward, MoP rules from start to finish. Sadly, this was to be their final album with Cliff Burton who died during the tour cycle promoting this album, but Master of Puppets is a genre classic through and through. Jam it loud and proud today! Continue reading
has earned the top 5 best-selling vinyl album releases in the USA this week as ranked by Billboard on the strength of the six new vinyl reissues of the band’s albums at Walmart. The band the first artist to claim all top 5 slots of the vinyl sales chart since the chart’s debut in 2011. Continue reading
Much banter has gone down in the press this year about the pandemic legit ruining the industry, but one band that seems somewhat bulletproof is Metallica. The biggest Rock/Metal band ever in terms of sales dominates streaming with 1 Billion Spotify streams in 2019 (the band has not released 2020 data yet) and over 6000 units (usually over 2k physical copies) of The Black Album alone sold weekly. They also sell tons of music via their website and www.metallicalive.com too and had a new release in 2020 with S & M2 (Blackened Recordings). Now the band is teaming up Wal-Mart for a series of limited edition color-vinyl variants of six albums: Kill Em All, Ride the Lightning, Master of Puppets, …And Justice for All, Metallica (aka The Black Album), and Hardwired… to Self-Destruct. Pre-orders are available now, with delivery expected in February of 2021!
Sad news as Ray Burton, father of the late Metallica bassist Cliff Burton, passed away on Wednesday, January 15. He was 94. Burton’s death was confirmed by his daughter and Cliff’s sister — Connie, who wrote in a social media post earlier today: “To let you all know that my Dad died last Wednesday. Rest in peace Dad.” As shown in Adam Dubin’s 2019 film Murder In The Front Row, Ray and his wife Jan encouraged Cliff to study classical music and take piano lessons, later buying him a bass for Christmas at age 13, after his brother Scott died. After forming the band Trauma in San Francisco, Burton joined Metallica in 1982 and performed on the band’s first three studio albums: Kill ‘Em All, Ride The Lightning and Master Of Puppets. He also co-wrote To Live Is to Die from …And Justice For All and was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame as a member of Metallica on April 4, 2009. Cliff died in the tragic bus accident that claimed his life on September 27 th, 1986. We send our sympathies out to Connie and the Burton and Metallica family as this difficult time. Continue reading
Metallica has made a deal with Stance for a line of themed socks promoting classic Metallica albums Kill Em All, Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets! You can order them now from the links below. Stance has collaborated with many bands in the past, including Iron Maiden, Slayer, and Motörhead. According to the Los Angeles Times, Stance Socks typically cost $50 per pair, before shipping. Continue reading
Metallica is finishing their final leg of summer tour dates in Europe with Ghost and Bokassa opening. Watch the band perform their Kill Em All (Megaforce) classic ‘The Four Horseman’, live in Estonia!Continue reading
The history of thrash metal got another ring on the world-tree in 1984 with the release of Ride the Lightning (Megaforce/Elektra Records), the second album by Metallica. With better songwriting, tight production, and more originality than their debut Kill Em All (Megaforce), Ride moved the needle forward for the entire genre and cemented Metallica as the premiere band in the genre. Continue reading
Metallica has shared another video on their YouTube channel MetallicaTV. If you love the band, definitely subscribe to it. In another video from their 2018 WorldWired Tour, watch them perform their classic cut from Kill Em All (Megaforce),’The Four Horsemen’. Continue reading
