Ride the Lightning is the second studio album by the 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 the 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 an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist and 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 Metallica, and bassists Ron McGovney, Cliff Burton, and Jason Newsted are former members of the band.
Thrash metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo. The songs usually use fast percussive beats and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead guitar work. The lyrical subject matter often includes criticism of The Establishment, opposition to armed conflicts, and at times shares a disdain for the Christian religion with that of black metal. The language is typically direct and denunciatory, an approach borrowed from hardcore punk.
Celtic Frost was a Swiss metal band from Zürich. They are remembered for their strong influence on the development of several varieties of extreme metal and for their avant-garde approach to music more generally.
Clifford Lee Burton was an American musician who was the bassist for thrash metal band Metallica from 1982 until his death in 1986. He performed on the band's first three albums, Kill 'Em All (1983), Ride the Lightning (1984), and Master of Puppets (1986). Burton also received a posthumous writing credit on ...And Justice for All (1988) for the song "To Live Is to Die".
Kill 'Em All is the debut studio album by the American heavy metal band Metallica, released on July 25, 1983, through the independent label Megaforce Records. After forming in 1981, 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. Zazula convinced the band 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.
The Black Dahlia Murder is an American melodic death metal band from Waterford, Michigan, formed in 2001. Their name is derived from the 1947 unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short, often referred to as Black Dahlia. Currently, the band consists of lead vocalist Brian Eschbach, bassist Max Lavelle, drummer Alan Cassidy, and guitarists Brandon Ellis and Ryan Knight. The Black Dahlia Murder has undergone various lineup changes, with Trevor Strnad and Eschbach remaining the only constant members, until the former's death in 2022, which then saw Eschbach take over lead vocals and Knight replacing him on rhythm guitar.
Sacred Reich is an American thrash metal band based in Phoenix, Arizona, that was formed in 1985. The band split in 2000, but reunited in 2006. Sacred Reich has been credited, along with Testament, Destruction, Death Angel and Dark Angel, for leading the second wave of thrash metal in the late 1980s.
"Whiplash" is a song by American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released as the first single from their debut album, Kill 'Em All, and the band's debut single overall, released on August 8, 1983. The song has been covered a number of times, most notably by Motörhead, whose version won a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance.
Municipal Waste is an American crossover thrash band from Richmond, Virginia, formed in 2001. To date, the band has released seven studio albums, three EPs and four splits. They have gone through a few line-up changes, leaving vocalist Tony Foresta and rhythm guitarist Ryan Waste as the only constant members. In addition to Foresta and Waste, their current lineup includes Philip "Land Phil" Hall on bass, Dave Witte on drums and Nick "Nikropolis" Poulos on lead guitar.
Hazardous Mutation is the second album by the American crossover thrash band Municipal Waste. It is also the band's debut on Earache Records. The album's main theme is zombies, other monsters, and partying all tied together with humorous yet brutal lyrics. It was also released as a special edition with a bonus live DVD. It was the first album produced by Nick Poulos.
Brazilian thrash metal is a musical movement that originated in the 1980s. Though not as large or well known as the North American or European thrash metal movements, it bridged the gap of the mid-1980s and the death metal scene later in the decade and the first-wave of black metal. Although some bands have become mainstream, the scene is an underground icon.
Massive Aggressive is the fourth studio album by American thrash metal band Municipal Waste. It was released on August 25, 2009 through Earache Records. The album artwork was done by Andrei Bouzikov, bassist of Deadfall.
Dave Witte is an American drummer. He is known for his work in numerous extreme metal or hardcore punk bands including Municipal Waste, Melt-Banana, Discordance Axis, Black Army Jacket, Birds of Prey, Burnt by the Sun, and Deny the Cross among others. He has also played as a session drummer for many other acts.
"Seek & Destroy" is a song by the American heavy metal band Metallica and the ninth track from their debut studio album, Kill 'Em All (1983). 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).
Vektor is an American technical thrash metal band from Tempe, Arizona. Their music is heavily themed around scientific, philosophical, futuristic and astronomical topics.
The Fatal Feast is the fifth studio album by American crossover thrash band Municipal Waste. It was released on April 10, 2012 through Nuclear Blast. The album debuted at number 1 on the Billboard New Artist chart. The artwork was done by Justin Osbourn of Slasher Design.
Toxic Waste is a split EP by American thrash metal bands Municipal Waste and Toxic Holocaust released under Tankcrimes Records. Tracks 1 and 2 are by Municipal Waste. Tracks 3 and 4 are by Toxic Holocaust.
Iron Reagan is an American crossover thrash supergroup from Richmond, Virginia, consisting of Municipal Waste vocalist Tony Foresta, Cannabis Corpse and Municipal Waste bassist Phil "LandPhil" Hall, former A.N.S. guitarist Mark Bronzino, former Darkest Hour drummer Ryan Parrish, and Hellbear bassist Rob Skotis. Since their formation in 2012, they have released three full-length albums, two EPs and three split EPs. Their 2014 album The Tyranny of Will peaked at 22 on the Billboard 200.
