Were some figures of thrash metal but from that work would become global rock stars for the general public. The album Black album, which catapulted to astronomical sales Metallica already a success far beyond the borders of his style, meets tomorrow 25 years. "Lots of planets were aligned. It was the right songs, the right producer, with a new attitude, with the right approach in the studio and at the right time," summarized drummer Lars Ulrich, the soul of the group with singer James Hetfield, in the documentary Classic Albums: -The Metallic black album (2001). Thanks to legendary songs like Nothing else matters or Enter sandman, the Californian band came out with a lot of expertise in metal circles to obliterate a record that, in the United States, sold more than 16 million copies.
You can not say that the huge success as rookies would catch them because by then Metallica was ten years of life as a group. Together with Anthrax, Megadeth, and Slayer, something like the "Four Horsemen" of thrash metal, Metallica contributed to the explosion of the genre in the 80s with albums like Master of Puppets (1986) considered summits of this extreme style, aggressive, devious and very fast. After the death of bassist Cliff Burton in a bus accident in 1986, the formation consists of Ulrich, Hetfield and guitarist Kirk Hammett Jason Newsted joined to edit ... And Justice for All (1988) before boarding Black album, known so popularly by its black cover although the official title is Metallica.
For nine months from October 1990 to June 1991, the band was locked in a Los Angeles studio with producer Bob Rock, who had worked with The Cult and Mötley Crüe and gambled by giving a new air to the group, although this strong cost fights and discussions in a very complicated recording. Facing the turmoil at the speed of light your first time, Black album, which went on sale on August 12, 1991, fell, as far as possible, the revolutions of Metallica with simpler and concise songs, leaving aside complex and crannies to show a heavy and immediate sound structures. This decision opened the door wide to a new audience, but aroused some misgivings among the most faithful of metal sectors.
"When you come from songs ten minutes traveling between ten different musical landscapes and then you Enter sandman is not a secret that people will point and will say 'what's going on here?" Said drummer Lars Ulrich in the book Louder than Hell (2014), Jon Wiederhorn and Katherine Turman. "But deep in my heart and my soul I know that this was the direction we wanted to try, the only thing we had not explored , " he added. Nothing else matters, certainly one of the most recognizable songs of the work of Metallica , summed up his new intentions through a rocker ballad it included as a new orchestral arrangements care.
"In Nothing else matters lyrics talk about being on tour for a long time, miss your girlfriend. Basically speaking distance, ties and all that , " he explained the singer James Hetfield on an iconic song that meant for that generation much like what supposed Stairways to heaven Led Zeppelin for rockers of the 70's combination of Nothing else matters, and similar topics as the unforgiven, with much more forceful cuts, such as Enter sandman or Wherever we May roam, was right on target: Black album retained the dangerous and dark heavy-metal air yet could slip smoothly into the collection of any music lover in general.
The extraordinary reception disc brake released them without the road. Metallica gave 300 concerts in three years and the world of hard rock seemed surrendered to his feet, with permission from Guns N 'Roses. No one could suspect then but Metallica Black album and were also part of the commercial decline of heavy-metal. Also in 1991 would publish, from Seattle, stunning debuts of Pearl Jam (Ten) and, above all, Nirvana (Nevermind), announcing a change of guard and exciting news for the rock scene: the era of grunge had started.
