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Metallica - Metallica



8.3 | 2896 votes |
Release date: 13 August 1991
Style: Heavy metal

Owners:

2876 have it
64 want it
11 trade it


01. Enter Sandman
02. Sad But True
03. Holier Than Thou
04. The Unforgiven
05. Wherever I May Roam
06. Don't Tread On Me
07. Through The Never
08. Nothing Else Matters
09. Of Wolf And Man
10. The God That Failed
11. My Friend Of Misery
12. The Struggle Within
13. So What [Anti-Nowhere League cover] [Japanese bonus]

Guest review by
AnGina--
Rating:
9.8
Even though Metallica became more known to a wider audience in 1986 with the release of Master of Puppets, "The Black Album" (released in 1991) however, was the biggest break point for Metallica. It was praised by reviewers and musicians, it stunned many fans then and also now. With the "Black Album" their old thrashy sound was abandoned and Metallica was literally shot into superstardom. With commercial hits such as "Enter Sandman" and the widely known "Nothing Else Matters", Metallica's music became more and more accessible to radio stations and television. But as I said, I still believe it's a "must have". "The Black Album" was major break point in the rock music business and the influence of it and Metallica in general is just impossible not to notice. Not only does it differ musically from the previous four releases, this album is also lyrically much more personal and therefore occasionally softer. Still, Metallica hasn't lost their touch and the aggressive guitar sound is still there.

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published 07.10.2006 | Comments (53)

Guest review by
ScreamingSteelUS
Rating:
7.3
Like far too many people in this world, I was largely introduced to Metallica by their self-titled album, fueled by the super mega platinum #1 smash hit single "Enter Sandman." In fact, Metallica, known colloquially as "The Black Album" for its presumably Spinal Tap-inspired artwork, was, in fact, one of the first Metal albums that really resonated with me and warranted repeated listens. Even so, I cannot confess to having much of a sentimental connection with this album, because, after exploring the wide world of heavy metal and acquainting myself with REAL Metallica, it has become clear to me that this album is nothing special.

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published 17.08.2012 | Comments (20)

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Comments

Comments: 153   Visited by: 2499 users
21.12.2009 - 06:11
Reza
Account deleted
I believe it's the best Metallica album.
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18.04.2010 - 07:16
Rating: 10
Jay-WalKeR

I think this album is one of the best Metallica albums."Sad But True"&"Enter Sandman"&"The Unforgiven"&"Wherever I May Room"These songs are among the best heavy metal songs.
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24.07.2010 - 03:15
Rating: 7
Javier_000

Good album. not their best nor the best either.
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i freaks my draulics phuckin' hoes in college... beetches swinging on my nuts is so stylish...
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27.07.2010 - 07:00
Rating: 8
Disposable Hero

Good album
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15.02.2011 - 20:02
Rating: 9
Phantom Lord

Good album but not metallicas best album The god that fucken failed
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25.04.2011 - 16:44
madrigal

I give 1 because most of riffs on this album are ripped off, Check out this track and see bu yourselves what I mean "Excel-Tapping Into The Emotional Void"
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07.05.2011 - 03:40
Rating: 9
megametallic0710

The black album is one of their best albums. most of the songs sound really cool like "Of Wolf and Man". This is the point in Metallica's history where they showed some true balls.
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07.05.2011 - 06:18
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by megametallic0710 on 07.05.2011 at 03:40

This is the point in Metallica's history where they showed some true balls.

That's an oxymoron if I ever saw one.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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07.05.2011 - 07:40
Void_Eater
Account deleted
This is a solid trad metal album. It may not rival to some of their earlier albums, but it is good in it's own right. Better than MoP to me. Holier Than Thou, Through The Never, The God That Failed are my favorites from the album. They also played Holier when I saw them live, which was a nice surprise.
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26.05.2011 - 03:54
Rating: 7
imspazzen

"You just stood there creaming"
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08.07.2011 - 00:49
Metal_4Ever

I think it's the best album for them
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05.08.2011 - 17:31
Megathalica
Account deleted
Enter Sandman is my favorite song from Metallica.
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03.11.2011 - 01:37
Rating: 9
masterofpeace95

2nd favourite album by the gods. 3 best songs are holier than thou, of wolf and man, and struggle within:banger:
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26.11.2011 - 18:33
Rating: 10
Vikcen
Metálico
Who is the stupid that thinks this album is hard-rock?
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26.11.2011 - 22:22
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by Vikcen on 26.11.2011 at 18:33
Who is the stupid that thinks this album is hard-rock?

I am the stupid.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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27.11.2011 - 13:23
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Written by Troy Killjoy on 26.11.2011 at 22:22

Written by Vikcen on 26.11.2011 at 18:33
Who is the stupid that thinks this album is hard-rock?

I am the stupid.


well then stupid is wrong
this album is straight up heavy metal.
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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27.11.2011 - 19:04
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 27.11.2011 at 13:23
this album is straight up heavy metal.

I dunno, I identify with heavy metal as Maiden et al, this album has a lot more hard rock influence.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.11.2011 - 08:13
Rating: 9
Angelic Storm
Melodious
I agree with Marcel, the black album is most definitely a metal album. They didn't start showing hard rock influences in their sound until "Load". Whether you hate the black album is of course just a matter of personal taste, but calling it something it isn't makes me think it's not being bashed for entirely honest reasons. It's mainstream, streamlined metal, which some may well hate, but it's still metal nonetheless. It's as if people can't bring themselves to call it "metal" just because they hate it so much.
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28.11.2011 - 08:24
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
My hatred (I actually find it an average album) for the album has nothing to do with its genre; I'm objective enough to look at this for what it is and that's a hard rock/heavy metal hybrid, with slight emphasis on heavy metal, sure. "Enter Sandman" is a classic example of a hard rock song, and you've got the typical "light" rock songs ("The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters").
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.11.2011 - 08:40
Rating: 9
Angelic Storm
Melodious
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.11.2011 at 08:24

My hatred (I actually find it an average album) for the album has nothing to do with its genre; I'm objective enough to look at this for what it is and that's a hard rock/heavy metal hybrid, with slight emphasis on heavy metal, sure. "Enter Sandman" is a classic example of a hard rock song, and you've got the typical "light" rock songs ("The Unforgiven" and "Nothing Else Matters").


I remember the first time I heard "Load" I found it a huge shock to the system. Which was mainly because of the very obvious hard rock influences on the album. Had the Black Album been a rock album, I wouldn't have been nearly as shocked as I'd have already been used to Metallica sounding like that.

Bands such as Whitesnake, Van Halen, early Def Leppard etc is music categorised as hard rock. The material on the Black Album is quite clearly not the same genre played by those types of bands. You may have a point with the ballads, but it could quite easily be argued that ballads by their very nature cannot be metal (unless they develop into metal at some point in the song ala: "One" or "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)"), and so any ballad on a metal album is not actually a metal song, regardless of the genre that's played on the rest of the album.
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28.11.2011 - 08:52
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
Written by Angelic Storm on 28.11.2011 at 08:40
Bands such as Whitesnake, Van Halen, early Def Leppard etc is music categorised as hard rock.

Well that explains it - you refer to a lot of glam and pop/rock bands that dabbled in hard rock as purely hard rock bands, so by comparison this album could definitely be seen as a heavy metal release. I see this the way I see bands like Danzig, Ozzy, Motorhead, Pink Cream 69, etc. - as hard rock/heavy metal hybrids.

It's a difference in age. You and Marcel (no offense to either of you) are part of the "old crowd". You heard it first, when it was fresh, and you were exposed to those kinds of shocks when thrash bands changed their styles. I'm part of the "new crowd" (and I don't expect to be offended as such). I went back and listened to all of those albums years after they were released.

There's a whole philosophical discussion behind this which I won't get into due to how off-topic it could get, but essentially there are two groups who will identify with this release one way or the other (and then you'll get some new crowd people calling it heavy, not rock and vice versa) but the point is it's not wrong to call it heavy metal or hard rock.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.11.2011 - 14:48
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
It seems like Troy is being revisionist concerning genres
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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28.11.2011 - 19:25
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
That's the constant argument you get from people your age Marcel. I'm sure you're all still upset that we don't call Mercyful Fate black metal anymore too. Hell, in 30 years I'm sure a lot of the black/death/doom/etc. I know and love will be twisted into new forms of music.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.11.2011 - 19:28
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.11.2011 at 19:25

That's the constant argument you get from people your age Marcel. I'm sure you're all still upset that we don't call Mercyful Fate black metal anymore too. Hell, in 30 years I'm sure a lot of the black/death/doom/etc. I know and love will be twisted into new forms of music.


I can understand MF nto being considered bm anymore because BM is now defined by its music and not lyrics. But saying Metallica isn't heavy metal any more is just plain ridiculos. That's saying the airplane of the Wright brothers isn't an airplane or the very first car isn't a car.
----
Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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28.11.2011 - 19:30
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
That's your opinion. I have mine, and that is that this album is a hard rock/heavy metal hybrid.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.11.2011 - 19:32
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.11.2011 at 19:30

That's your opinion. I have mine, and that is that this album is a hard rock/heavy metal hybrid.


And your opinion is wrong, simple. A couple of ballads don't make it hard rock, else ron maiden would also be hard rock
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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28.11.2011 - 19:34
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
No a couple of ballads don't make it hard rock, but as I've already said before, a few of the songs do.

This is going nowhere Marcel. You and I both know how the argument goes: you're old, I'm young, you know everything, I don't know anything. It's tiresome really.
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.11.2011 - 19:43
Marcel Hubregtse
Grumpy Old Fuck
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.11.2011 at 19:34

: you're old, I'm young, you know everything, I don't know anything. It's tiresome really.


Might be for you, but it is the truth. I don't know everything but when it comes to this sort of stuff I do know more. Simply due to the longer time I am into all this stuff underground as well as mainstream and due to reading up on it by checking out reliable sources and not forums where everyone spouts all sort of nonesense.
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Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal

Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight
Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.)
05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996

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28.11.2011 - 19:50
Rating: 8
Troy Killjoy
perfunctionist
You can't change my opinion regardless. I think this is a hard rock album. It's not because I hate the band, it's not because I'm trying to rewrite history, it's because based on other hard rock bands I listen to, this fits right in. When I listen to heavy metal like Priest and Maiden, I don't think about the black album. When I listen to Godsmack and Audioslave I think of the black album. It isn't nonsense, and it's really unfair to judge my opinion as such because you have a different opinion and had "reliable sources" (which are also just other opinions).
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"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something."
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28.11.2011 - 22:36
Rating: 9
Angelic Storm
Melodious
Written by Troy Killjoy on 28.11.2011 at 08:52
I see this the way I see bands like Danzig, Ozzy, Motorhead, Pink Cream 69, etc. - as hard rock/heavy metal hybrids.


Danzig (the first 4 albums at least) were primarily a metal band, but there was hard rock and blues rock (and doom metal) elements in their music at times. Ozzy's solo stuff has always been metal, though I would concede it's closer to hard rock than say, thrash metal.

Motorhead are an interesting one, as many actually class them as metal. But Lemmy himself has always said Motorhead just play "rock n' roll". To me, Motorhead are primarily a hard rock band with punk elements. And later in their career, metal elements found their way into the sound as well. Pink Cream 69? I'll admit, I've only heard about 3 songs by them, but I don't hear any metal in their music at all, it's pure rock.
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