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Metallica is an American heavy metal band active from the 1980s to the 2000s. After building a loyal following through its role in the development of thrash metal in the 1980s, Metallica successfully broadened its audience in the early 1990s. Accordingly, the band stood as the most commercially visible example of the metal genre for most of that decade. However, Metallica's vastly increased commercial success was accompanied by stylistic changes that fostered accusations of " selling out" by some long-time fans. In 2003 Metallica released St. Anger, a collection of the most aggressive music they'd written in a decade, to deeply divided critical reviews and comparatively mediocre sales figures. Nevertheless, extensive and successful tours throughout 2003 and 2004 reinforced the band's reputation as a top-notch live act.1 Formation and early work
Metallica was formed in Los Angeles, California in 1981 by drummer and former tennis prodigy Lars Ulrich, and guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, who met after each had separately placed classified advertisements in the AmericanThe United States of America also referred to as the United States U. America ¹ or the States is a federal republic in central North America, stretching from the Atlantic in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west. It shares land borders with Canada in publication The Recycler . Bassist Ron McGovneyRon McGovney was Metallica's first bass player when they formed in 1981. He was replaced by Cliff Burton. After leaving/being dismissed from Metallica, McGovney played in a band called Phantasm. McGovney left Metallica after their first lead guitarist, Da was also an original member, and the band used a few transient guitar players, such as Brad Parker and Jef Warner, in the course of settling on a four-person lineup. Metallica got its name when drummer Lars Ulrich was helping San Francisco-area metal promoter Ron Quintana pick out a name for a new magazine to promote metal and the NWOBHM ( New Wave Of British Heavy Metal) bands. Quintana came up with a suggestion "Metallica," but Lars quickly suggested another and decided to use that name for the band he and James Hetfield had just started.
In early 1982Events January January 6 William Bonin is convicted of being the "freeway killer". January 8 AT&T agrees to divest itself of twenty-two subdivisions January 11 Mark Thatcher, son of the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, disappears in the Sahara du, Metallica recorded "Hit the Lights" for the first Metal Massacre compilation. Guitarist Lloyd GrantLloyd Grant was a session guitarist that was brought in to play on Metallica's Kill em' All Album, he was never a member of the band however and only played one solo. was brought in to do the lead guitar solos on the track but was never a full member of the band. Desperate for a full-time lead guitarist, Ulrich posted an ad in the local newspapers. Dave MustaineDave Mustaine (born September 13, 1961 November 13, 2004) was a prominent heavy metal musician for over twenty years. His parents divorced when he was seven, and he grew up bouncing around various low-income Southern California suburbs. As a teenager, he, a guitarist from the band Panic responded, and upon arrival started a sound check. Ulrich and Hetfield were so impressed with Mustaine's soundcheck that they immediately asked him to join. A few months later the band recorded a full demo, No Life Till Leather, which quickly drew attention on the underground tape trading circuit. By this point bassist Cliff BurtonClifford Lee Burton ( February 10, 1962 September 27, 1986) was the second bassist in the band Metallica, joining the band in late 1982 replacing Ron McGovney. He was, and still is, considered to be one of the best bassists in heavy metal history. Burton had also joined Metallica, lured from his band Trauma in exchange for the other members of Metallica relocating to the San Francisco area.
Upon arriving in San Francisco, the group quickly built a healthy local following via word-of-mouth and live performances. Metallica then travelled to New York in 1983 at the urging of local promoters Jon and Marsha Zazula, and after a few gigs the band signed with the Zazulas' brand new label, Megaforce Records. Megaforce released Metallica's first two albums. Shortly after arriving in New York, however, Mustaine was fired due to alcoholism and other addictions, and Kirk Hammett was drafted from Exodus to replace him. Mustaine would go on to create the speed metal band Megadeth.
Metallica's first album, Kill 'Em All, set the template that they would follow throughout the 1980s, prominently featuring the heavy vocals and rhythm guitar of James Hetfield. A year later, the next album, Ride the Lightning, expanded and improved their form with longer songs that featured both instrumental pyrotechnics and lyrics which rose above some of the more puerile songs on Kill 'Em All. Perhaps the most significant feature of Ride the Lightning was the inclusion of "Fade to Black," a slower, more interior song that mused on the thoughts of someone contemplating suicide. Indeed "Fade to Black" is the first such song in a tradition of these kinds of songs that would come to include "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" and the band's first single to receive a video, "One." The inclusion of these slower, introspective songs distinguished Metallica from most other thrash metal bands such as Anthrax, Slayer, and Megadeth.
Metallica's formation was seen by some fans as a direct reaction to the prevalent rock and roll music of the early 1980s. Inspired by bands such as Motörhead, Diamond Head and Saxon, the so-called New Wave of British Heavy Metal, as well as hardcore punk like the Misfits and Discharge, Metallica were single-minded in their desire to break the grip of soft metal on heavy metal fans.
