Top 10: Metallica Songs

To say Metallica has been an easy target of the metal press for 30+ years now is an understatement. From band therapy sessions and the Napster incident, to cutting their hair and whatever the hell Lulu was supposed to be, there is no shortage of fodder against the one-time thrash kingpins. And yet through it all, not only has Metallica proven to be the biggest metal band of all time, but the biggest musical act of the past 35 years without contest. Don’t believe me? The Black Album is the best selling album of the Nielsen SoundScan era, “Master of Puppets” cracked the Billboard Top 40 last year after an appearance in Stranger Things, and the band are about to play two nights in nearly every football stadium over the next two years to promote their latest album, 72 Seasons. Love ’em or hate ’em, they’ve stood the test of time and have remained relevant all the while. So as we patiently await the release of Metallica album #12, here are our Top 10 Metallica Songs. “Yeah yeah!!!”

10. “Motorbreath”

Kicking off our list at #10 is “Motorbreath”. A prime cut off Metallica’s fastest and rawest album, Kill ‘Em All (1983), “Motorbreath” is an unhinged marriage of frantic, high speed NWOBHM riffage and filthy, streetwise English hardcore, colliding together to create the genre we all know today as thrash metal. This all killer, no filler banger is a little over 3 minutes of the finest thrashing you’ll ever hear, as lethal and barbaric today as it was 40 years ago. The combined forces of James Hetfield’s gritty vocals, Lars Ulrich’s cymbal-driven drumming, Cliff Burton’s thumping bass, and Kirk Hammett’s Michael Schenker on speed guitar solo onslaught are no bluff: Metallica in ’83 WERE the young metal attack!

9. “Blackened”

Confession time: I’m not the biggest fan of …And Justice for All. I was back in junior high. In fact, 13 year old Joe used to jam this album on the regular and would probably call 24 year old Joe a poser for typing such sentiment. However, the overblown attempts at prog thrash really don’t do much for me, especially when Coroner, Toxik, and *ahem* Megadeth were doing it much better. Besides that, the less that’s said about the production, the better. But if I were to include one song off …AJFA on this list, it would HAVE to be “Blackened”. Say what you will about Metallica; they sure know how to open an album. “Blackened” is no exception. This chaotic descent into thrash metal hell checks all the boxes of the era. Gnarly riffs, post-apocalyptic lyricism, battering double bass drums, a mosh breakdown to die for: You name it, “Blackened” has it. If only the rest of the album was in this vein.

8. “No Remorse”

If there’s one thing ’80s Metallica had a knack for, it was crafting memorable hooks and choruses. I don’t think a day has gone by since middle school where the chorus to “No Remorse” doesn’t play in my head. Besides its anthemic chorus, the rest of “No Remorse” is pretty damn incredible as well. Alongside “The Four Horsemen” (more on that later), this is one of the band’s first attempts at crafting a lengthier, broader composition, something that would come to define them throughout the rest of the decade. By no means can “No Remorse” be defined as “technical” or “prog”, but those twists and turns characteristic of Iron Maiden and Angel Witch’s most ambitious moments are more than present, keeping the listener hooked from beginning to end.

7. “Battery”

When examining a band as massive Metallica, songs can largely be divided into two additional categories besides “good” and “bad”, and that’s “songs I’m burnt out on” and “songs I’ll never get sick of”. “Battery” falls into the latter. I don’t know what other way to describe this song besides the thrash equivalent of crack. I’ve heard it two zillion times. I’ll hear it two zillion more times. And I’ll react to it the same way every single time, thrashing in pure bliss. It’s also the second most brutal song on Master of Puppets, behind only “Damage, Inc.”. That said, while “Damage, Inc.” is heavier, “Battery” is the stronger song overall, earning it a spot on this hallowed list.

6. “Fade to Black”

Ah yes, “Fade to Black”: The first of many times Metallica were accused of “selling out”. If you’re of a certain age, you’re probably wondering, “How is “Fade to Black” a sellout? It’s on Ride the Lightning bro!” Trust me, I asked the same question in my headbanging youth. According to some tried and true old schoolers, to include an emotional ballad chock full of slow tempos and acoustic guitars among the likes of “Creeping Death” and “Fight Fire with Fire” was a cardinal sin. To which I say BS. If “Fade to Black” is a “sellout”, then so is Judas Priest’s “Beyond the Realms of Death”, Iron Maiden’s “Hallowed Be Thy Name”, Mercyful Fate’s “Melissa”, and so forth. Just because a song is a ballad doesn’t mean it’s a desperate attempt at commercial acceptance. No, that wouldn’t come from this band until much, much later.

5. “Master of Puppets”

You KNEW this was going to be on here. As much as I pride myself on throwing in deep tracks for top 10s of bigger bands, there was no way I could make a Top 10 Metallica Songs list and NOT include “Master of Puppets”. Why? Historical significance, endless radio airplay, and Stranger Things aside, it really is that excellent of a song. On a personal note, it was also my introduction to the band. I remember being 9 years old, hearing it on 97.9 The Loop (R.I.P.), and being absolutely floored. Up until that point, I had never heard anything like it. To this day, whenever I hear this semi-autobiographical tale of Hetfield’s drug struggles, I turn the dial all the way to the right, screaming along to every word and feeling the power of every note, every riff, every solo, every subtle nuance. “No Remorse” walked so “Master of Puppets” could run.

4. “Fight Fire with Fire”

What is the heaviest Metallica song? In terms of speed, aggression, and full force brutality, the answer has to be “Fight Fire with Fire”. I’ve said numerous times that if the production was dirtier and Hetfield’s vocals were rougher around the edges, this would be considered ground zero for death metal, similar to how Slayer’s “Chemical Warfare” released that same year is revered. The contrast between the light, delicate acoustic guitars that open the song and the rampaging bloodlust that ensues is nothing short of pure brilliance. The thought of corporate sponsorships, advisory boards, and legions of lite beer drinking bros co-opting them as “their” band was non-existent for Metallica when forging this extreme metal masterpiece. If only we had a time machine…

3. “Creeping Death”

If you’re going to write a song based on a Bible story, it has to be a song of biblical proportions. “Creeping Death” is exactly that. Chronicling the tenth plague of Egypt from the perspective of the Angel of Death (No, not the one Slayer sang about.), “Creeping Death” defined Metallica as a force to be reckoned with. It thrashes as hard as any song on Kill ‘Em All, but with a newfound musical conviction. Are we sure this is the same band who cranked out “Hit the Lights” just a year earlier? Nearly 40 years on and “Creeping Death” remains an untouchable anthem, played at almost every Metallica show since its 1984 release. Because nothing beats a stadium of people 80,000 strong screaming, “DIE! DIE! DIE!” at the top of their lungs.

2. “Ride the Lightning”

If you think this list displays heavy bias towards Ride the Lightning, you’re correct. Top to bottom, it’s Metallica’s finest hour and I’ll gladly die on that hill. Every song is perfect for its own unique reasons (yes, even “Escape”), with none being more perfect than the title track. On Ride the Lightning, Metallica cemented themselves as more than a band of rag-tag headbangers; they became thrash metal storytellers. As our ears are pierced by those unforgettable riffs, face melting solos, and adventurous switchovers, we’re told a tale of an innocent man on his way to the electric chair. And we the listeners believe every last word of it. Most bands would sell their souls to write a song half as poignant, and yet “Ride the Lightning” is only the second best Metallica song ever made. Second only to…

1. “The Four Horsemen”

The best Metallica songs? Mustaine wrote ’em all! OK, that’s not entirely true, but he definitely wrote the best Metallica song. That isn’t to say the rest of the band spruced it up upon its final recording, but I digress. “The Four Horsemen” embodies Metallica’s early “metal up yer ass” ethos like no other song. The band took their favorite parts of the NWOBHM, packed it into one epic jam, and mutated it into something fresh, innovative, and completely unrecognizable. You’ve got gallop riffs, mosh riffs, a breakdown lifted straight out of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” (yes, you read that correct); what’s not to love? Furthermore, the apocalypse themed “Four Horsemen” lyrics blow Mustaine’s original innuendo laden “Mechanix” out of the water, just saying. “The Four Horsemen” is fierce, ferocious, unrelenting, and the greatest Metallica song of all time.