What is the measure of a band’s success?  Album sales?  Sold out shows?  Impact on the music industry, or on pop culture?  Longevity?  By any of these standards, the answer for Metallica is a resounding yes.  Few bands achieve the legendary stature of Metallica.  For nearly 30 years, they have been doing what they do, doing it their own was, and doing it like no one else.  They have transcended genre, time, and the industry itself.  This a band that has reached heights that only a select few… The Rolling Stones, Ozzy, Kiss, to name a few, have achieved.  They have conquered their art by every measurable standard.  Let’s take a look at the evolution of what may very well be the most influential, revolutionary band of our times.

     The Journey began in 1981 in southern California.  They were a band who prided themselves on being the fastest, the loudest, the most obnoxious.  Along with Slayer, Anthrax, and Megadeth (fronted by former Metallica guitarist Dave Mustaine) they were one of the pillars of the ‘Big Four’; the ordained leaders of heavy metal’s 1980’s revolution.  They had a style unlike any other… among other things, they incorporated instrumentals into their work… their first four full length albums all continued lengthy pieces.  The subject of their lyrics set them apart as well.  This wasn’t garden variety ’sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll’; they covered actual issues and current affairs.  Suicide, nuclear war, drug addiction, biblical tales, and mythology to name a few.

     In 1983, the band released Kill ‘Em All, a vicious attack of speed metal which has, in time, become a landmark in the genre.  From the frantic “Hit the Lights” to the classic “Seek and Destroy”, the album was unlike anything the public had encountered.  It was harsh, it was brutal, and it made it known to the world that Metallica had arrived.  The band toured constantly, and developed something of a cult following.  The album sold nearly 300,000 copies with no help from radio or television.

     1984’s Ride The Lightning, the bands sophomore effort, saw the beginnings of the band’s evolution.  The raw power was still present, but the members had honed their musical skills and production.  They released their first ‘ballad’, Fade to Black, and began to separate them from other metal bands of the era.  This was an album that simply defied industry trends, selling a half million copies, again with little commercial support.  A bit of the breakneck aggression was gone, as the they started experimenting with slower tempos (For Whom the Bell Tolls, Escape) and a more pure studio sound (Creeping Death, Ride the Lightning).