Ride the Lightning is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on July 27, 1984, by the independent record label Megaforce Records. The album was recorded in three weeks with producer Flemming Rasmussen at Sweet Silence Studios in Copenhagen, Denmark. The artwork, based on a concept by the band, depicts an electric chair being struck by lightning flowing from the band logo. The title was taken from a passage in Stephen King's novel The Stand, in which a character uses the phrase to refer to execution by electric chair.
Metallica is the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released on August 12, 1991, by Elektra Records. Recording sessions took place at One on One Studios in Los Angeles over an eight-month span that frequently found Metallica at odds with their new producer Bob Rock. The album marked a change in the band's music from the thrash metal style of their previous four albums to a slower, heavier, and more refined sound.
Garage Inc. is a compilation album of cover songs by American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released on November 24, 1998, through Elektra Records. It includes cover songs, B-side covers, and The $5.98 E.P. - Garage Days Re-Revisited, which had gone out of print since its original release in 1987. The title is a combination of Garage Days Revisited and Metallica's song "Damage, Inc.", from Master of Puppets. The album's graphical cover draws heavily from the 1987 EP. The album features songs by artists that have influenced Metallica, including many bands from new wave of British heavy metal, hardcore punk bands and popular songs.
Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrumentals and aggressive musicianship made them one of the founding "big four" bands of thrash metal, alongside Megadeth, Anthrax and Slayer. Metallica's current lineup comprises founding members and primary songwriters Hetfield and Ulrich, longtime lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo. Guitarist Dave Mustaine, who formed Megadeth after being fired from the band, and bassists Ron McGovney, Cliff Burton and Jason Newsted are former members of the band.
Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, Mercyful Fate were part of the first wave of black metal in the early to mid-1980s, along with Venom and Bathory. Many of the bands from this movement went on to influence later black metal musicians in the 1990s, particularly in Norway. Mercyful Fate has also been acknowledged as a prominent influence on the subsequent heavy metal scene of 1980s and 1990s, including thrash metal bands like Metallica, Slayer, Testament, Exodus and Kreator, and death metal bands such as Death, Morbid Angel, Obituary and Cannibal Corpse.
Kim Bendix Petersen, better known by his stage name King Diamond, is a Danish rock musician. As a vocalist, he is known for his powerful and wide-ranging countertenor singing voice, in particular his far-reaching falsetto screams. He is the lead vocalist and lyricist for both Mercyful Fate and the eponymous King Diamond. He also plays keyboards and guitars on studio recordings but uses live shows to focus solely on his vocal performance. Diamond is renowned for his dark lyrical content and his story concepts. He is also known for his distinctive shock stage persona. He has been an influence for other rock and metal artists, including Metallica, Slayer and Cradle of Filth.
Lightning to the Nations is the debut album by British heavy metal band Diamond Head. The album was recorded in 1979 and released in 1980 through Happy Face Records, a label owned by the producer Muff Murfin of The Old Smithy studio of Worcester, due to lack of interest from major labels and the band feeling that they needed to get the ball rolling as other bands from the same era, such as Iron Maiden and Def Leppard, were already becoming big names. It was originally released in a plain white sleeve with no title or track listing, and was subsequently named after the first track on the album. Metal Blade Records re-released it on CD in 1992. In 2001, it was re-issued in its original "White Album" form by Sanctuary Records, featuring seven bonus tracks that were featured on singles and EPs from this era.
Vulgar Display of Power is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Pantera. Released on February 25, 1992 through Atco Records, it was the band's second collaboration with producer Terry Date, after having previously worked with him on their breakthrough album Cowboys from Hell (1990).
Kill 'Em All is the debut studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on July 25, 1983, through the independent label Megaforce Records. Metallica began by playing shows in local clubs in Los Angeles. They recorded several demos to gain attention from club owners and eventually relocated to San Francisco to secure the services of bassist Cliff Burton. The group's No Life 'til Leather demo tape (1982) was noticed by Megaforce label head Jon Zazula, who signed them and provided a budget of $15,000 for recording. The album was recorded in May with producer Paul Curcio at the Music America Studios in Rochester, New York. It was originally intended to be titled Metal Up Your Ass, with cover art featuring a hand clutching a dagger emerging from a toilet bowl. The band was asked to change the name because distributors feared that releasing an album with such an offensive title and artwork would diminish its chances of commercial success.
Diamond Head are an English heavy metal band formed in 1976 in Stourbridge, West Midlands. The band was part of the new wave of British heavy metal movement and is acknowledged by thrash metal bands such as Metallica and Megadeth as an important early influence.
Machine Head is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California. The band was formed in 1991 by vocalist/rhythm guitarist Robb Flynn, who remains the only original member of the band. Machine Head's aggressive musicianship made it one of the pioneering bands in the new wave of American heavy metal. Its current lineup comprises Flynn, bassist Jared MacEachern, lead guitarist Wacław Kiełtyka and drummer Matt Alston. Bassist Adam Duce, lead guitarists Logan Mader, Ahrue Luster and Phil Demmel, and drummers Tony Costanza, Chris Kontos and Dave McClain are former members of the band; Mader and Kontos toured with the band in 2019 and 2020 as part of the 25th anniversary tour for its first album, Burn My Eyes (1994).
"Nothing Else Matters" is a song by American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released in 1992 as the third single from their self-titled fifth studio album, Metallica. The song peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, number 6 on the UK Singles Chart, number 1 in Denmark, and reached the top ten on many other European charts. "Nothing Else Matters" was featured as a playable track in the music video game Guitar Hero: Metallica. Recognized as one of Metallica's best known and most popular songs, the power ballad has become a staple in live performances.
"Am I Evil?" is a song by British heavy metal band Diamond Head. Released on the band's 1980 debut album Lightning to the Nations, it remains the band's signature song. The song was written by lead vocalist Sean Harris and guitarist Brian Tatler and released by Happy Face Records, a label owned by the producer Muff Murfin of The Old Smithy studio of Worcester, England.
Guitar Hero: Metallica is a 2009 music rhythm video game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision. The game was released in North America on the PlayStation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360 on March 29, 2009 and on PlayStation 2 on April 14, 2009, with an Australian and European release in May 2009. It is the second game in the Guitar Hero series to focus on the career and songs of heavy metal band, Metallica, following Guitar Hero: Aerosmith.
"Seek & Destroy" is a 1983 song by the American heavy metal band Metallica and ninth track from their debut studio album, Kill 'Em All. It was also featured on the demo No Life 'Til Leather. It was the first song the band recorded in a studio. "Seek & Destroy" has been frequently performed at the group's concerts since its live debut in 1982 and had been Metallica's closing song from the Madly in Anger with the World Tour to the Metallica By Request Tour. It is the third-most performed song in the band's history, having been played 1,525 times as of October 2019, behind only "Creeping Death" (1,533) and "Master of Puppets" (1,670).
Hardwired... to Self-Destruct is the tenth studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released as a double album on November 18, 2016, by their own label Blackened Recordings. It is their first studio album in eight years following Death Magnetic (2008), marking the longest gap between two studio albums in the band's career. It is also their first studio album released through Blackened. Hardwired... to Self-Destruct was produced by Greg Fidelman, who engineered and mixed Death Magnetic.
72 Seasons is the upcoming eleventh studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica. It is set for release on April 14, 2023, by their own label Blackened Recordings. 72 Seasons is produced by Greg Fidelman, who produced the band's previous studio album, Hardwired... to Self-Destruct (2016), and will be the band's second studio album to be released through Blackened.
