Metallica
LIKE Led
Zeppelin before them, Metallica combined relentless touring and
an uncompromising musical approach with a carefully cultivated
air of mystery to achieve enormous commercial success. That they
have become one of rock's most popular groups is made all the
more amazing by the fact that not one of their peer bands--who
were also playing a sped-up, harder-edged take on heavy
metal--has succeeded, or survived, for that matter. And even
those who don't care for Metallica's music recognize that few
bands have treated their fans as well once they reached the top.
Metallica's roots begin in L.A., where, influenced by a new wave
of British metal bands like Saxon and Diamond Head, Lars Ulrich
began the search for kindred souls to form his own band in 1980.
Guitarist James Hetfield answered Ulrich's newspaper ad, though
nothing came of their initial meeting. Two years later, hoping to
record a song for a compilation album called Metal Massacre,
Ulrich again contacted Hetfield. This time he was ready to play,
and with 
bassist Ron McGovney, they formed
Metallica. Guitarist Dave Mustaine joined in April of 1982, just
after Metallica's first live concert, in Anaheim, California. As
a four-piece, the band recorded a set of demos known collectively
as Power Metal, named for the description of the band on their
business card. One of the Power Metal songs, "Hit the
Lights," was included on the 1982 edition of Metal Massacre,
and that fall, Metallica played in San Francisco to promote their
appearance on the album. It was a fortuitous move, as the
reception to the band was overwhelming. As their fortunes rose,
Ulrich and Hetfield grew steadily unhappier with McGovney. While
on the road, they met Trauma bassist Cliff Burton and asked him
to join the band. He agreed, but only on the condition that
Metallica relocate from Los Angeles to San Francisco. They
agreed. Later that year, Mustaine also departed (he would go on
to form Megadeth), and was replaced by Exodus guitarist Kirk
Hammett. Like other underground success stories from the
eighties, Metallica succeeded largely without the aid of radio or
MTV exposure through relentless touring and an uncompromising
approach to its music. Case in point: in a decade where
high-profile heavy-metal bands like Mötley Crüe relied on
glamour rather than musical prowess, Metallica would have none of
it. Playing a 1985 hard-rock festival in Donnington, England,
Hetfield helped define the band for the audience by proclaiming:
"If you came here to see spandex, eye makeup, and the words
'ooh baby' in every fuckin' song, this ain't the fuckin'
band!" Metallica was just as aggressive on record as it was
onstage. The New Jersey-based Megaforce label released the
quartet's first two albums, Kill 'Em All (1983) and Ride the
Lightning (1984), and the group then signed to Elektra Records.
Their first album for Elektra, Master of Puppets (1986), revealed
a band capable of complex arrangements and diverse styles, not
only pure speed. Although its songs often clocked in at around
seven minutes, Metallica coursed through quiet, subdued passages
as well as full-out thrash. Their sonic signature was Hetfield's
repetitive 
bursts of rhythm guitar, over which
Hammett played lightning-fast leads. Master of Puppets was not
only a musical tour de force; it also brought Metallica increased
visibility. A 1986 tour with Ozzy Osbourne was their last as an
opening act, but tragedy struck that September, when one of their
tour buses flipped over on an icy road in Sweden, killing bass
player Cliff Burton. Though devastated, Metallica held auditions
in San Francisco less than a month after Burton's death. Five
bassists competed to fill the suddenly vacant spot. One, Jason
Newsted, knew Metallica's complete repertoire, and when asked by
the band which song he'd like to play, he responded, "Any
one you like." Newsted played his first show with Metallica
in November of 1986. As a tribute to Burton, Metallica compiled a
home video of their late bandmate's years with the band titled
Cliff 'Em All, culled primarily from fans' bootleg videotapes. .
. . And Justice for All (1988), Metallica's fourth record,
continued to push their hard-edged, uncompromising sound with
grand arrangements. Despite the lack of airplay, the album
quickly vaulted into the Billboard Top 10, and the band was one
of the top attractions on that summer's mammoth Monsters of Rock
tour. Justice garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Heavy Metal
Performance, but Metallica lost out to veteran British
folk-rockers Jethro Tull. Rather than sulk in defeat, the band
had stickers placed on the album reading "Grammy Award
LOSERS." Metallica would go on to win a Grammy in 1990 for
their first-ever video, "One," and good-naturedly
thanked Jethro Tull for not releasing anything the previous year.
The band had a sense of humor to be sure, but they also wanted to
maintain a dark, mysterious side, which helps explain some of the
cryptic imagery and the predominance of the color black on their
album covers, 
especially the next one. Through
their first four albums, Metallica had relied on sheer will and
brute force, having pushed the envelope with their music, and
letting word of mouth carry them to commercial success. It was
time to alter their style somewhat, if not their approach. So
1991's aptly titled Metallica was a refinement. Shorter songs and
more concise arrangements were the rule, as the band sought to
broaden its appeal and take metal to the mainstream. It worked.
The album would go on to spend months on the Billboard charts,
selling more than ten million copies and making the quartet one
of the biggest bands in the world. Although they had changed
their sound somewhat, and in doing so achieved massive commercial
success, Metallica remained committed to their dedicated fans. On
the long tour in support of Metallica, the band played a few
special surprise concerts for fan-club members, and followed the
Grateful Dead's lead in establishing a special seating section
from which fans could record their concerts. And for those who
didn't record the shows they saw, Metallica released a massive
box set in late 1994, Live S*it: Binge and Purge, which contained
both CDs and videotapes of several concerts. Metallica finally
settled down again in late 1995 to record their sixth album,
Load. It was another step toward the mainstream, as evidenced by
the band's newly shorn look and their top billing on the 1996
Lollapalooza tour. Metallica is expected to tour in support of
Load well through 1997.
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