Metallica: A Brief History of...

1981  Lars Ulrich, a Dane abroad in Los Angeles and would-be tennis pro meets up with James Hetfield, a.k.a. "The Angriest Kid in the World." The pair form a band and call it Metallica (so old people wouldn't mistake them for an old-time jazz ensemble). Other players include a bass player, Ron McGovney, and a lead guitarist, Dave Mustaine.

1983 After two years of sticking out like a sore thumb on the scuzzy LA glam metal scene, Metallica relocates to San Francisco to hook up with a new band member, eccentric bass genius Cliff Burton. The band then boots Mustaine and moves to New York with new guitarist Kirk Hammett in tow to record their debut LP, appropriately entitled Kill 'Em All. Marked by speed, energy, and twisted innocence, Kill 'Em All blows the tired, brain-dead heavy metal genre all to hell.

1984 Metallica's much-awaited second album, Ride the Lightning, is released. The album--all rage and black fury--begins, shockingly, with acoustic guitar. (Afterward, 3,000 other bands steal this idea and follow suit.) Despite a solid wall of disinterest from commercial radio, Ride the Lightening goes gold and spends 50 weeks on Billboard's Top 200.

1986 The good news: Metallica's third release, Master of Puppets, redefines "thrash metal" (an unfortunate appellation) with its inexorable, intense, melodic sound. Without the dubious benefit of singles or videos--vanities Metallica remains uninterested in--Master of Puppets sells a million copies in the U.S. alone.

The bad news: While on their first headline tour of Europe, Metallica's tour bus skids off an icy Swedish road. Cliff Burton is killed instantly. Despite the grief shared by remaining members of the band, there is no doubt that Metallica will carry on. "Cliff would have been the first one to be pissed off if we didn't," says Lars. Weeks later, a new bassist is found in Jason Newsted.

 

1987 Metallica returns from Europe to play the gigs postponed after Cliff's death. Back in San Francisco, the band converts Lars' garage into a rehearsal room, records a handful of favorite cover songs, and releases them on the $9.98 CD: Garage Days Revisited (a.k.a., The $5.98 EP). In the summer, Metallica plays the Donington Festival, warming up with a gig at London's 100 Club. In the row is one John Paul Jones, Led Zeppelin's bass player, who after the gig is seen shaking his head and muttering, "I didn't know that sort of thing was possible...."

1988 Metallica releases Cliff 'Em All, a long-form video complied largely from footage shot by fans during gigs, dedicated to their late friend. They then tour the States as part of the Monsters of Rock package, rendering the likes of Van Halen, The Scorpions, and Kingdom Come musically redundant. Metallica's fourth LP, ...And Justice for All--in all its sophisticated, mechanically violent glory--is released in September. Sales go through the roof, etc. Metallica embarks on a world tour, including 120 arena gigs in the U.S. alone. All this, without brown-nosing one MTV producer or a single DJ. Remarkable. For the first time, Metallica releases two singles--"Harvester of Sorrow" and "One"--as well as two different videos for "One."

1991 Metallica, the eponymous fifth album that comes to be known as "The Black Album," is redolent with bittersweet, heavyweight simplicity. The album was produced by Bob Rock, know for his work with Bon Jovi. The rock community behaves as if this were the single most important and telling event in Metallica's decade-long career. Needless to say, it's not.

"Human nature is strange," says Lars. "There's been this mass hysteria over nothing. It's been fun to sit and watch it happen, though. ...And Justice for All now sounds like it was recorded in a matchbox. It was like, 'Look at us, we can play all this intricate sideways stuff.' Well, so what? Metallica is more emotional. When it's angry, it's more angry. When it's subtle, it's more subtle. For the first time, we've done what was best for the big picture."

"No rules but Metallica rules," says James, summing up the band's mood perfectly. "Here it is, black sleeve, black logo, fuck you."

The single, "Enter Sandman," is an international hit, and soon becomes a live favorite, as does "Sad but True," "Nothing Else Matters," and "Wherever I May Roam." Metallica plays 300 shows around the world between August 1991 and July 1993. Their reputation as one of the planet's most exciting live acts is carved in stone--they are the band who took heavy into the mainstream. Then they all go on holiday for a year.

1995 Tagged "Escape from the Studio '95," Metallica set up a minor diversion at Castle Donington, playing to 60,000 people. Then they return home to complete recording the next LP, again with Bob Rock. Astonishing rumors abound that not only has Metallica kept to self-imposed deadlines, they've actually recorded two LPs' worth of material.

1996 The band announces their headlining status on this year's Lollapalooza festival tour. And with the release of Load, Metallica rewrites the rule book yet again....