There is no more famous rock band in the world than Metallica. This musical group gathers stadiums even in the most remote corners of the globe, invariably attracting everyone's attention.
The first steps of Metallica
In the early 1980s, the American music scene changed a lot. In place of the classic hard rock and heavy metal, more daring musical directions appeared. They were distinguished by aggressive persistence and tempo of sound.
Then speed metal appeared, in which the British stars from the Motӧrhead group shone. The American underground "adopted" the drive of the British and "connected" it with the punk rock sound.
As a result, a new genre for heavy music began to emerge - thrash metal. One of the main representatives of the genre, standing at the origins, is Metallica.
The band was formed by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich on October 28, 1981. The musicians, filled with enthusiasm, immediately set about composing music and looking for like-minded people. As part of the group, many young musicians managed to play.
In particular, for some time the main guitarist was Dave Mustaine, whom Hetfield and Ulrich kicked out of the group for inappropriate behavior. Kirk Hammett and Cliff Burton soon joined the line-up. Their skill made a strong impression on the founders of Metallica.
Los Angeles continued to be the birthplace of glam rock. And thrash metalists were forced to be constantly attacked by competitors. The team decided to settle in San Francisco, where they signed a contract with the independent label Megaforce Records. The debut album, Kill 'Em All, was recorded there and released in the spring of 1983.
Gaining fame Metallica
Now Kill 'Em All is a thrash metal classic that has changed the face of the entire genre. Despite the lack of commercial success, a year later the musicians were able to release their second album, Ride the Lightning.
The record was more versatile. It contained both lightning hits, typical of the thrash/speed metal genre, and melodic ballads. The composition Fade to Black has become one of the most recognizable in the work of the group.
Moving away from the straightforward style benefited Metallica. The compositional structure became more complex and technical, which markedly distinguished the band from other metal bands.
The fan base of Metallica was expanding rapidly, which attracted the interest of major labels. Having signed a contract with the Elektra Records label, the musicians began to create an album that became the pinnacle of their work.
The album Master of Puppets is a real crowning achievement in the musical sphere of the 1980s. The album was warmly received by critics, taking the 29th position in Billboard 2000.
The development of the group's success was also facilitated by the performance with the legendary Ozzy Osbourne, who was at the height of his fame. The young team went on a large-scale international tour, which was supposed to be a milestone for the development of the Metallica group. But the success that hit the musicians was overshadowed by the terrible tragedy that occurred on September 27, 1986.
Death of Cliff Burton
During a European tour, an accident occurred in which bass player Cliff Burton tragically died. It happened right in front of all the other musicians. It took them a long time to recover from the shock.
Having lost not only a colleague, but also a best friend, the remaining trio remained in gloomy thoughts about the future fate of the group. Despite the terrible tragedy, Hatfield, Hammett and Ulrich controlled the situation, starting the search for a worthy replacement. A few months later, the place of the deceased Cliff Burton was taken by the talented bass player Jason Newsted. He had considerable concert experience.
Justice for All
Jason Newsted quickly joined the band, playing the suspended international tour with Metallica to the end. It's time to record a new record.
In 1988, the band's first successful album, …And Justice for All, was released. He achieved platinum status in 9 weeks. The album also became the band's first to hit the top 10 (according to the Billboard 200).
The album still teetered on the edge between thrash metal aggression and classic heavy metal melodies. The team produced both fast-paced compositions and multi-level compositions that were not subordinated to a specific genre.
Despite their success, the band subsequently decided to abandon the formula that had cemented their status as one of the most successful metal bands of the second half of the 1980s.
Metallica's experiments with genres
Since the so-called "black" album, released in 1990, Metallica's style has become more commercial. The band abandoned the concepts of thrash metal, definitively working in the direction of heavy metal.
From the point of view of huge popularity and the press, this went to the musicians in favor. The self-titled album became the best-selling album in history, having won platinum status 16 times in a row. Also, the record took 1st position in the charts, not leaving the list for 282 weeks.
Then the group abandoned this direction as well. There were "failed" albums Load and Reload. In their framework, Metallica worked in the direction of grunge and alternative metal, which were fashionable in the 1990s.
For several years, the group suffered one setback after another. First, the team left Jason Newsted. Then James Hattfield went to compulsory treatment for alcohol addiction.
Protracted creative crisis
The creative activity of Metallica became even more unrealistic. And only in 2003 a new album of the legendary band was released. Thanks to the St. The Anger band received a Grammy Award as well as a lot of criticism.
The "raw" sound, lack of guitar solos, and low-quality vocals from Hetfield belied the status Metallica had gained over the past 20 years.
Back to the roots
This did not stop the group from collecting huge halls around the world. For many years, the Metallica band traveled the planet, earning money from concert performances. Only in 2008 the musicians released their next studio album Death Magnetic.
To the delight of the "fans", the musicians have created one of the best thrash metal albums of the XNUMXst century. Despite the genre, it was the ballads that turned out to be the most successful in it again. The compositions The Day That Never Comes and The Unforgiven III entered the band's set list, becoming the main hits of our time.
Metallica now
In 2016, the tenth album Hardwired… to Self-Destruct was released, in the same style as the Death Magnetic album recorded 8 years before.
Despite their age, the musicians of Metallica continue to work actively, giving one show after another. But it is not known when the musicians will delight the "fans" with new recordings.
