It’s time to enter sandman, folks. Metallica approaches!
It’s the day that never comes: the day the nearly-37-year-old heavy metal band will play Lincoln’s Pinnacle Bank Arena (on Thursday). This is sad but true: It’s the first time they’ve ever played Lincoln, and the first time in a decade they’ve played the state. (Metallica last came to Omaha in November 2008.)
But wherever they may roam, the rockers have been doing their part to mainstream thrash metal for the better part of four decades.
They rode the lightning to legend, breaking out after their self-titled fifth record, known as “The Black Album,” became a massive hit. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Grammy-winning band is also on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 greatest artists of all time, and nothing else matters but that! So hit the lights, fade to black and turn the page. It’s time for our tribute to one of the greatest bands to ever live.
Metallica: A brief history
Current members:
James Hetfield
Lars Ulrich
Kirk Hammett
Robert Trujillo
Born: Oct. 28, 1981, when drummer Lars Ulrich and frontman James Hetfield got together via an L.A. newspaper ad. The two are the only original band members, though Hammett’s been with them since nearly the start.
Career highlights
April 1983: Exodus shredder Kirk Hammett joins the band, and they hit the studio for the first time.
July 1983: Metallica releases its debut album, “Kill ’Em All.” The album has the singles “Whiplash” and “Jump in the Fire.”
July 1984: Metallica releases “Ride the Lightning,” which has the single “Creeping Death.”
March 1986: “Master of Puppets” is hailed as a masterpiece by critics and earns the band its first gold certification. Much later, the album will be certified as multi-platinum.
September 1986: Bass guitarist Cliff Burton dies in a bus accident as the band tours in Sweden.
August 1988: “… And Justice for All” becomes the first record to feature bassist Jason Newsted after Burton’s death. It features the singles “Harvester of Sorrow” and “One.”
August 1991: Metallica releases its self-titled album, known as “The Black Album,” which has five singles that are considered to be among the band’s best songs: “Enter Sandman,” “The Unforgiven,” “Nothing Else Matters,” “Wherever I May Roam” and “Sad But True.” In 2003, the album was ranked No. 255 in Rolling Stone’s 500 greatest albums of all time. The album is Metallica’s magnum opus, and also one of the best-selling albums in the U.S. since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales.
August 1992: During a Metallica/Guns N’ Roses stadium tour, Hetfield suffers burns on his arms, face and legs following an onstage pyrotechnics accident.
1991-1994: “The Black Album” tour results in nearly 300 shows in three years.
June 1996: “Load,” Metallica’s sixth album, is released. It features the hits “Hero of the Day” and “Until It Sleeps.”
November 1997: Metallica releases “Reload,” continuing its mainstream success with the singles “Fuel” and “The Memory Remains.”
2000: Metallica members become strong and strong public opponents to Napster after they learn that their music is being shared freely online. In the early ’00s, Metallica (in particular Ulrich) would be defined as much as anything by its battle with Napster.
2001-2003: Documentary filmmakers Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky make a doc about the band. Originally intended as a marketing piece, the doc, “Some Kind of Monster,” becomes a deeply revealing portrait of a band in crisis.
June 2003: After an extremely rocky few years, Metallica produces its eighth studio album, “St. Anger.”
September 2008: With its ninth studio album, the Rick Rubin-produced “Death Magnetic,” Metallica becomes the first band to achieve five consecutive No. 1 studio albums on the U.S. Billboard 200.
November 2016: Metallica releases its 10th (and latest) studio album, its first record in eight years. It becomes Metallica’s sixth consecutive studio album to hit No. 1.
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Metallica fans Micah Mertes, Chris Peters and Cory Gilinsky ranked Metallica’s 10 studio albums from best to worst, and we named their top 15 songs.
Best studio albums ranked
1. “Metallica,” aka “The Black Album”
2. “Master of Puppets”
3. “Hardwired … to Self-Destruct”
4. “Load”
5. “Reload”
6. “Ride the Lightning”
7. “… And Justice for All”
8. “Kill ’Em All”
9. “Death Magnetic”
10. “St. Anger”
Best songs
1. “One” (1988)
2. “Master of Puppets” (1986)
3. “Whiskey in the Jar” (1998, cover)
4. “Enter Sandman” (1991)
5. “The Unforgiven” (1991)
6. “For Whom the Bell Tolls” (1984)
7. “Spit Out the Bone” (2016)
8. “Nothing Else Matters” (1991)
9. “Fade to Black” (1984)
10. “Battery” (1986)
11. “Fuel” (1997)
12. “Turn the Page” (1998, cover)
13. “Hero of the Day” (1996)
14. “Hardwired” (2016)
15. “Sad But True” (1991)
Also published on Medium.