Master Of Puppets

Impressive early Metallica. Lars’ drumming is always amazing. James’ lyrics as well. Not as good as the Black album, but still really, really good.

This was one of a few albums that set the bar for me in my early years. Still holds up, as do the goosebumps I still get listening to track 1 into. Sanitarium will be stuck in my head all weekend. I’ve heard a rumour that Battery and Damage Inc were sped up during production - cannot verify. Wouldn’t change my rating anyway.

I don't know exactly why this works better for me than other metal. I think I just like the melodies better.

I'm not normally a thrash guy. But for Master of Puppets, I'm a thrash guy. I'd never listened to the entire album before, so I was treated to some new stuff that I like here. I'll try not to gush too much about the titular song, but it is one of my favorite songs ever. There's something about that solo that fills me with a giddy joy every time I hear it. Orion really caught me off guard, but I really enjoyed the switch up around halfway through. Welcome Home was a treat I was not expecting to like, but it still had that clean tone that makes Master of Puppets proper so special to me. Honestly, my least favorite song on the album was Damage, Inc., but even still I liked that song quite a bit.

Absolutely shreds. Not as much variety as some of their other projects, but its one of the quintessential Metal albums.

*RIPPER ALERT!!!* for me, it fucking ripped on the school bus in 2009 just as much as it fucking ripped while going for a jog today. If we had to show an alien how a "guitar" sounds, Kirk Hammett's chugging riffs here would be a top contender.

Classic of the genre. Holds up well, top to bottom.

Honestly, this is the best Metallica would ever be, and Cliff Burton is the biggest reason for that. Losing Burton was the biggest reason the band drifted from their unique spot in metal and into the ultra-loud dad rock they’ve become today. Lars is drumming the best he ever would on an album, which is hilarious, because the drums still suck. But Kirk and James’ guitars are so perfect on this record, full of menace and fury. They made the most approachable metal of the era, but they still made it hard as fuck. Blast this one with your friends while you go jump off the roof into the pool.

This album thrashes so hard. What a revival of heavy metal this was, truly capturing their own sound. Front to back it is hyper-charged with amazing guitar licks and deep, captivating vocals. Glad I finally got to this one on here.

great hard rock

ta buena la wea, buen album de metal para ser unos novatos en eso dea

Master of Puppets is the best song, no surprise. The opening track "Battery" is pretty fun, if misleading. It's a relatively lean 5:12 with the thicc Master of Puppets following it at 8:35. I think the reason I'm not into more metal is because it's bloated, and I like my songs short. But I appreciate some headbanging materials.

Great heavy metal album by one of the best bands. A little on the heavy side for my taste but hard to argue with songs like Battery and Master of Puppets.

A Very good classic metal Album 4.25/5

I need to listen to more metal

8.5/10 Highlights: Master of Puppets Sanitarium Orion Battery

Normally, I'd say their music is overrated, but for this album, the music, talent, lyrics, and riffs are enough for me to give this a 5/5(I even think this is better than "The Black Album"), but I refuse to give a Metallica album a 5/5, and if you know why, you know why. Favorite Track: "Master Of Puppets".

🗯 Two Metallica albums in as many days — sheesh! I don’t really purposely play Metallica these days — that was 10-year-old hungry Benny with a drum kit — but I can’t lie, I frigging love them when I do hear them these days. And if The Black Album was the band levelling up for the mainstream, Master of Puppets is a proper crowning jewel of thrash. The title track is a perfect monster — sprawling, precise, devastatingly tight. Battery rips, Welcome Home (Sanitarium) broods, Disposable Heroes crushes. Every track feels like it’s there to prove a point: thrash could be intricate, ambitious, and still utterly feral. It’s also Cliff Burton’s swan song, and you can feel his fingerprints all over it. That makes it not just a closing chapter for the band, but a peak for the genre itself. Verdict: Essential (thrash perfection, full stop) For fans of: Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, kids with drum kits who still dream of keeping up

I prefer their self titled

The kings of heavy metal! Possibly not their best album but certainly an intense ride. Battery, Damage Inc and the title track are the standouts.

I think I’m more in awe of pure thrash phase Metallica, than loving it as such. The riffs are so ridiculously fast (yet catchy), the drumming is just insane at times, which just makes it quite the spectacle really. Also, it’s just so smooth and clean, how can you do that playing at such speed, is that just in production or are they the tightest band ever, I never have seen them live? But it is also that cleanness and speed that stops me from loving them, it’s hard to take a breath and nod along, a moment is there and gone, then another one comes along before you’ve savoured the last. In conclusion 100% respect, 75% like, discuss…..

Classic Metallica

Classic Metallica

Not my fave Metallica album but if there had to be one representative thrash metal album on this list, it's this one. Genius, composition, technical skill, testosterone vitriol wrapped into a beauty of a sub-hour album. four stars cause that's the max I give to an artist who has multiple albums on this list

Smashing trash metal. Would be 5 star if I didn't love Megadeth just a liiiittle bit more

My first time truly listening to Metallica. I understand why people say they are very good. 8/10

My go-to Metallica album is S&M, and prior to this project today, it's the only album I'd ever heard front to back. It's safe to say I'm only a general fan, having been thrusted into thrash metal in my adolescence, but dabbling in way too many genres. As far as Metallica goes, I always felt I knew a good chunk of their best tracks. At no point does this record fall short. The last few tracks were new to me and goddamn, what a way to pack a punch and pull it through. How am I just hearing Orion for the first time today? The sensation you get when you let this album into you is something like revenge and euphoria blended and purified. It was nice to hear the songs I enjoy as metal standards in their original grit. Will definitely be repeating this listen. 4.4/5

Classic.

7/10

classic

The intro of Battery is truly beautiful. Sometimes I wish that metal bands would just dedicate themselves to making less metallic albums. I've heard the start of this song a lot but not the end because I used to play it on Rockband drums but could never get to the end... too many kicks. Master of Puppets (the track) is overrated for me. I don't really get it. James Hetfield kinda sounds like a pirate when he sings "master!" Orion intro. Orion those two guitars wailing together about 4 and a half minutes in. DO MORE OF THAT PLZZZ. Fave Tracks: Battery, Orion 3.6/5

ive always thought this was vastly better than ride the lightning, which is funny considering its one of the most shameless examples of a band copying their own homework, with every song having a RTL equivalent sequenced in almost entirely in the same order. honestly on closer inspection, i think it might be a case of Less Bad rather than More Good, for as down as i kinda am on it RTL does have a lot of fine raw musical ideas and i think in a direct song for song comparison theyre mostly pretty close to eachother. but the two big weakness of RTL for me, the production and james' vocals, are both improved pretty starkly here. the production honestly still aint no great shakes (slayer outsells) but its not a weakness, and james still isnt perfect (honestly i think his vocals are one of the only things ab metallica that actively improved as they went on) but he's clearly found his style and is comfortable in it. i feel like ive been v complainy here lol and yea metallica aint my favorite thing unless theyre kicking with lou reed. but it Is hard to deny songs this good...metallica's secret weapon of being more based in the rock songwriting idiom then metal is at its most vindicated here. my fave is thing that should not be, the equivalent to for whom the bell tolls which is probably also my favorite on RTL...the band giving themselves room to breathe is very flattering on them, i almost wish they had done some fully Doomy stuff at some point. but p much everything here is Some sort of classic,,,for whatever else i think ab it, RTL was a good album structure and formula, so an even more confident and refined iteration is a pretty guaranteed smash. its hard not to laugh whenever i accidentally notice lars tho.

One of my favorite albums by Metallica. Not as raw as Kill Em All and Ride the Lightning but developing into one of the best thrash metal bands ever. 4/5

Wat een vet album! Veel melodieuzer dan ik had gedacht en super strak gespeeld!

Thrash is not usually the genre for me but this is good. They mix it up a bit so keep it interesting. There are some surprisingly good musical moments to. hold the interest rather than just thrashing away. It is a bit bloated and they do take themselves very seriously. At the other end of the rock spectrum from yesterday’s Aerosmith but both are getting a solid 4

I’ve had one Metallica album so far and that was And Justice For All. Was not a fan of that one. This one though, a straight banger. It might help that I have listened to it before but its title track is so good. Overall, loved this one

I'm frankly surprised that out of all the Metallica albums this is the one that was chosen over the black album. It's still a great album! But I think the quality of the songs are better overall on the black album. The guitar solos on this album are just juicy and tastefully long. I think master of puppets as a song deserves to be here, because it's a masterpiece of metal, but the rest of the album? Not as sure

I sadly lost my notes, but just quickly - the intro song and Disposable Heroes rock, and I'm pleasantly surprised how interesting the songs are. Definitely relistening this one

Battery and Master. Nothing left to say.

There’s some stone cold classics on this album, even if I’m not the biggest Metallica fan I still get a lot of enjoyment out of this record. It’s not my favourite of theirs, but it’s a solid entry that I was happy to listen to again after many years away.

Wow!! Welcome Home (Sanitarium) is an awesome song. Master of puppets is also pretty solid. Disposable Heroes is a bit intense for me.

They are just like me just a little scarier. Can easily see this becoming 5 stars. Fun way to start my day.

I mean, of course I'm gonna like this one. Although, I think it's the first time I've actually listened to it in one sitting.

Ah, the classics. It’s been at least ten years since I last listened to this album all the way through. This one played a major role in shaping the metal side of my musical taste, and I have to admit that I still really enjoy it. It sounds especially good now, considering the last 15 albums in this challenge have been more or less total bullshit.

One of the first records I obsessed over. I can't say a bad thing about it. The sound is a bit thin, even on the remastered version, but that was the flavour of that time. I used to have my boombox in the bathroom as I showered, blasting this and Ride the Lightning on the B-side.

Great album, would listen to it again

Not my favorite album by them. Not my favorite band, it's quite far from it. I was never a big fan of Metallica, but I can respect them enough to give this album a 5. But yeah, it is a really good album.

I wonder how I'd feel about this album if I'd never heard of Metallica before. There are some absolute classics on here (namely the title track), but I don't love the album as a whole knowing what else the band is capable of. I mean, it's still getting a 4 from me which is more than the vast majority of albums on this list, but not a 5 like the black album. Maybe I'm just a square who likes their later stuff more than the early, thrashy stuff. 4.0

Such a great thrash record, just a brutal assault of drums and guitars. Fantastic record.

Listens: 4 Standout Tracks: Master of Puppets, Welcome Home (Sanitarium), Disposable Heroes Growing up, I never listened to Metallica (or really any heavy metal), but to me, they were infamous for being the poster child of "Napster Bad, Piracy Bad" and so naturally as a kid with no disposable income or means to buy music: Napster good. Napster very good. Metallica bad. Boo Metallica. Then I grew up, had disposable income, a love for music and the means, through modern, sensible streaming platforms, to no longer have a need to Sail the High Seas. We're in the golden age of listening to music, but I fear that's coming to an end with the incessant rising of streaming subscription prices. But I digress. This album is great. Master of Puppets is masterclass (and sounds a lot like the first Doom level, to boot... or maybe, its the other way around?). Disposable Heroes is a scathing critique on the the industrial war machine. It's 55 solid minutes of wild guitar shredding, loud drums and bass, and quite good vocals. Good job Metallica!

Have already listened to this. Good.

Återigen skivan före den riktigt klassiska skivan. Egentligen för mycket vanlig hårdrock för mig, men jag har lärt mig uppskatta allt av Metallica. Fyra.

Solid

Metal classic, I prefer Ride the Lightning but still really amazing songs here like Orion.

A good listen. I am appreciating Metallica more each time I hear them.

Classic album for sure, but I just don't like Metallica all that much. And it's mostly Lars' playing. He's just not the drummer they need, and not as good as he thinks he is. It's frustrating.

hell yeah

3.5 rounded up it’s good but idk i think i need to give it some time to grow on me. gotta let it marinate highlights: master of puppets; welcome home (sanitarium); damage, inc. (july 26 2024)

This here is my go to Metallica album. Title track does the heavy-lifting here as it is flawless. The back half get gnarly and I am always down for a cool instrumental. (Orion)

I really like Metallica. I appreciate what they did for music and their creativity. I like this album. It's one of the classics.

a good surprise

The forth Metallica album I've gotten. Turns out I'm a big fan. The sound they make is so amped up and gritty, tough as nails. The solo sections are mind melting

An album I own already. Still good and still worth a revisit. Classic.

It was really good. I liked the faster parts a lot

Kyllä! Masteri on aina Masteri! 4/5

Figured the black album would be Metallicas entry here…metal for the masses. But Master of Puppets showcases the bands thrash…and musicality!! The quality production caught me by surprise as well. The black album made Metallica a household name with its MTV-ready singles, but this album wasn’t made to be watched on your parents living room tv. It was made for racing down a dark road with a 6er in the passenger seat. The world wasn’t ready for this version of Metallica 4/5

8/10

Solid album

Overall a great collection, but not perfect. Battery has some great parts, but I think the repetitive flow of the lyrics holds it back. Master of Puppets then succeeds where Battery failed by breaking up the repetitive bits. Orion is a sleeper hit and would be way more popular if it had lyrics.

J’ai jamais été un metalleux mais je dois avouer que c’est du solide. Surtout avec le volume très élevé. MASTER!

A sassy little album that’ll sneak up and slap you on the ass when you’re not looking.

I checked to see how much longer I had on this album, and I was still on the first track

This is one of the greatest albums of all time. In high school, Metallica was probably my favorite band. It's still incredible.

I may be a bit biased as a Hokie fan, but I think Metallica is far and away the best thrash metal band ever. The combination here of aggressive speed riffs, adrenaline-inducing drums, great harmonizing, and thematic lyrics is pretty hard to beat. While their Black album will probably always be my favorite (again, some bias from all the times of bouncing in the football stands to Enter Sandman), this one's pretty great too.

heard this album before Battery - 4/5 Master Of Puppets - 5/5 The Thing That Should Not Be - 4/5 Welcome Home (Sanitarium) - 5/5 Disposable Heroes - 4/5 Leper Messiah - 5/5 Orion - 4/5 Damage, Inc. - 3/5 Average score: 4.3/5 (rounding down)

About what you’d expect. High energy! 4/5

Too heavy for me

Put me into concussion protocol from all that head banging.

3.5 stars rounded up. Title track is the stand out. Consistently metal but somewhat dated.

Chad

Great rhythm section! Bass was there but not overplayed. Hardest working drummer I’ve heard.

Title track is the best true masterpiece but the rest of the album still holds up. Good album overall

Great album. I did 4 instead of 5 stars because, even with the remastering, the mixing is still incredibly top-heavy.

Infinitely better than the last Metallica album, and a full album of what might be described as "head bangers". This fit my gym workout very nicely, and imagine it's hailed as a staple metal album. Not quite my genre, and the album lacks enough diversity to be truly iconic (maybe shy one Enter Sandman), but still a quality Metal album.

8/10 album

This album was ok. A lot of the songs sounded similar, but it is such an energetic and driving sound that it was always interesting. This would be 3 stars, but Orion is worth a star by itself. What a great instrumental.

The more I listen, the more I like Metallica. There are some great metal instrumentals on this album.

Hardcore metal goodness, MOP is an all-timer 🤘

pretty good. definitely better metal out there but still it’s definitely not a bad album, just nothing i find crazy good nowadays

8/10

Was never a huge Metallica fan, was more a punk kid than a metalhead, but the song Master of Puppets always gets me fucking PUMPED.

Metallica é um prato feito que você pega no mesmo restaurante porque é muito bom, até quando dá uma enjoada consegue não ser de todo ruim

I've been through my Metallica phrase already, so going back to this, I kind of feel like there are better albums out there. Sure they were highly influential, but if I were to listening to Metallica, I prefer the black album or their live S&M album. Can I say re-listening to this, it's interesting to hear how Lars Ulrich's average drumming really works for this garage/trash metal style. Sure this is a quintessential trash album, and I have listened to it so many times, I just don't think it's their best and to me, Metallica is a little overrated. Having said that, it's not a bad album, just one I don't listen to often. Standouts: Battery, Master of Puppets, Welcome Home (Sanitarium)

-damn, massive step up from the other Metallica album i heard imo. ig it’s a normie opinion but this is indeed some of the best and most interesting heavy metal I’ve heard -I’d really like to listen to this again and maybe just more thrash metal in general… it’s a genre I’m less familiar with, but this is honestly phenomenal -Favorites are Battery, Master Of Puppets, and Leper Messiah

Would be great for working out. Probably not a casual listener for me, but it’s a great album in technical/musical terms, love the anti-war and government sentiment as well

No shock on this one. My second favorite thrash album from Metallica after Ride the Lightning.

thought it was good and best metal so far, lost half a point bc i don’t like metal that much lost another half a point bc repetitive

Metal records rarely let up. That is both the promise of the genre and its fatal flaw. Or it's a flaw if you believe that metal should allow a point of entry for non-metallers. The heavy metal armour of Master of Puppets is riddled with such chinks: classical guitar, melodicism over shredding, genuine choruses, and Hetfield's smooth burr. It should fail the purity tests that subcultures throw out to keep their numbers manageable, but it doesn't. Not that it is these moments and qualities that make Master of Puppets a great metal album - they make it a great album that metal is entitled to claim as its own. 4 This is a terrific album. I think the crucial element is the balance the music strikes most of the way through between brutality and beauty. For every ounce of double-kicked chromatic chugging there is an ounce of beautifully worked harmony between the guitars; for every sequence of Hetfield shouting tunelessly or squatting on one note there is another of seductive melodic contour. Only Leper Messiah misses the balance; an ugly track that only offers a couple of minor arpeggios to break up the gloom of its muddy beat and Hetfield’s bellowing. But then of course Orion follows it, sophisticated and lovely. The lyrics are awful of course but that is almost a requirement of the genre. This is Metallica’s best album; probably - ‘Lulu’ with Lou Reed is the only 21st century album of theirs I have made it all the way through and it is…not as good as Master of Puppets. This was also the last time that Metallica brought an album in under an hour in length. 4/5

Takes me back to a time of mo worries. Just enjoying each day

Solid album with a lot of great energy throughout.

Excellent album, 4.5/5. There's not much more to say. It's a fantastic thrash metal album, but thrash just isn't my favourite genre of metal. Master of Puppets, Welcome Home (Sanitarium), and Leper Messiah are the standout tracks and solid 5/5 songs.

Update with another hot take: Metallica Also Good

MASTER!! MASTER!!! YEEEYEEAAAHHHHH!!!! OHHHHHWOOOAH!! Battery goes hard

He doesn’t do the OOOWOAHOOOWOAHHHO in this one but it’s still really good, lars actually has a bit of intuition in his drumming (still shit tho)

I'm not a metal head but I love it. 4.5

More metal than I anticipated seems more like the real Metallica than the black album

At last thrash metal somewhat grows up. Better than average lyrics and thoughtfully built. Technically quite accomplished.

Classic, blistering thrash. Battery is probably a perfect thrash track. Master of Puppets is a classic (and a bitch to play) and Disposable Heroes grew on me this time around.

God I hate my desk job

Duh

I'm not exactly a thrash fan and really didn't like the opening song. The rest of the album is really good though!

A bit too heavy for me these days but WOW this was a fantastic album back when I loved this type of music

The third best Metallica album

Metallica rocks what more can I really say? Goes hard and I love Orion. Instrumental is a nice change of pace

Solid album

Numerous classics and trademark, early Metallica

I love the sound of the the album, and Metallica in general. Muscular, intense, massive... I love the speed metal and the compositions that aren't afraid to extend into classical territory. A lot to love. Sometimes the dismal unrelenting nature of it all is a bit much. There's no escape, no place to rest. Toward the end we have the song "Orion," but even this is a funeral dirge. Everything is a moral proselytizing - and whether or not you agree with their point of view (which I do in fact) - the dismal intensity remains. Technically amazing. A heavy music fan's dream. Super tight, a bludgeoning of everything that's wrong in the world. All anger. In fact this is one of the most musically accurate representations of that emotion I've ever heard. Really intense.

Great riffs. I'm not super keen on the vocal style used in heavy metal but Metallica's singer isn't a particularly egregious offender. This was quite fun to listen to but I wouldn't play any of these tracks on their own - a lot of them are excessively long

Preety good Some songs go way to long

This is one of their better albums. It’s been interesting listening to it now in early April of 2025 vs the late 90s when I first heard it. Life experience as well as geopolitical climate has made the lyrics hit differently.

I enjoyed this album, though I think this is only the third best Metallica album. Still great music, but because of that, it’s only getting a 8/10

Not the best of their albums, but still a good album for sure!

Sorry, but the story behind this album is way better than the album itself. Nothing else about it really stands out against their contemporaries. It's good enough psychedelic jam pop, but nothing special outside of the title track which is just bloated and over stays it's welcome.

This here is a classic.

It will never not surprise me that I seem to like Metallica.

A classic

++: Master of Puppets, The Thing That Should Not Be, Leper Messiah, Orion, Damage, Inc. +: Battery, Welcome Home (Sanitarium), Disposable Heroes 8,2/10

Amazing album damage inc is so good

Just a cracking album

Loud and angry, the Metallica is meant to be.

A well known song and album! Loved the instrumentation- the guitar solos are epic and definitely carry the album. From a vocals standpoint, the songs all did tend to sound alike. But the energy and emotion was definitely high. Overall- 3.5/5 personally. But knowing how influential the album was, it gets a 4

It was fun to go back and listen to this album again, because I probably haven’t played it front to back since the ’90s. Back in the ’80s and early ’90s, every time Metallica released a new album, you could tell they’d leveled up from the last, especially with their technical skill. But when Master of Puppets came out, it felt like they leveled up a couple of notches. Their first two albums are classics, but this one really put them on the road as a force to be reckoned with.

kopstoot! net ietsje minder dan hun debuut

I loved this album in middle school/high school when I was angsty. But the thing about this album is that it goes beyond angst and feeling to achieve some real guitar wizardry.

Metal for the masses. It just smashes the melodic/pop door down to fuse something brash into this. I was originally hooked on Metallica via concert orchestra hybrids (S&M) and even enjoyed the odd live band covering them, like Apocalyptica on classical strings. I think it just suits that power, maximalist emotion, and slightly fantastical edge they have. It’s pretty easy to absorb it as a slightly silly power ballad type of thing, but it doesn’t come across too serious, so I think I like it for that vs the alternatives that do exist that like to pop the hell out of it.

Chill

Not the best Metallica but still overall solid, even if it goes a bit long at points. 8/10

Fav: Disposable Heroes Least Fav: The Thing That Should Not Be Ok fine, I’ll concede defeat: Metallica can make a good album

Classic metal album that I have listened to a million times before and will listen through again now that you gave me the opportunity today!

Album 696 of 1001 Metallica - Master Of Puppets (1986) Rating : 3.5 / 5 Meh. Heavy Metal isn't my usual go to. For the genre, this was a good one, I suppose.

MASTER

Got into this way more than I was expecting - probs a 7/10 so will round up

Still rips almost 40 years later

a thrill throughout, much more than just the title track

This is a good album. Battery is my favorite track, and Master of Puppets is great too. I'd go 3.75, so it's a 4/5.

Honestly that was an experience I was avoiding that was cringly good. Not proud but I didn’t hate.

Great album.

Slapped

These guys are so tight on this record. Like a machine gun firing which simultaneously being hit in the ears with the handle. Pretty relentless throughout. The lighter moments are still heavy -like Orion. You can't argue with the ambition.

They’re damn good at this…not my thing though. Also the eagles just won the Super Bowl, can’t feel bad about anything rn

Classic

Really good stuff.

First? 4/5 Again? 4,5/5

Head bangers right from the start. Damage inc and the thing that should not be the same were high points for me.

Not my type of music but you have to respect it

Great album for sure. Lots of heavy metal.

Szkoda strzepic ryja, wiadomix co to.

Classic thrash record. RIP Cliff.

I don't love this album as much as some of their others, but it's also not near the bottom of my favorites from them. I have never really been into thrash metal, but going back to Metallica's older albums, at this point, gives me a lot of respect of where they came from, their work ethic, and their skill. So, I may only give this a 3 stars for my own enjoyment, but I definitely have to respect and appreciate what they did for Metal music, in general, and the huge sound they put into the world.

I was already familiar with some of the tracks on this album. It's a bit more intense than most music I listen to, but it is very well done. I do feel that Ride The Lightning is a little better, but this one is solid for sure. I would definitely listen again.

I accidentally almost listened to the Remastered Deluxe Box Set; I've never seen an album be 10 hours. I always think a song is done and then I'll hear MASTER in Master of Puppets like, 8 minutes in. Digging the direction. The focus on instruments pushes this forward, in a way where you have to feel the music rather than repeat a catchy hook. I thoroughly enjoy this album. It's like the Orchestra, for people who don't give a fuck.

Nice. Overall felt a bit repetative. Love the album cover!

The reason Master of Puppets is good is because there's pure talent in all Metallica personnel. Sure, thrash metal isn't for everyone, and I respect that. But if you focus on the instruments by themselves without production or vocals, they know how to play and create amazing music. I mean, this is the reason why they have a whole eight minute song that's solely an instrumental. And you know what, Metallica loves rocking out and creating long songs. These songs are extra and perhaps over the top, but they are far from being bad. Play the album again.

Finally! A Metallica album that is not their live symphonic album. This album is incredibly cohesive and presents a tight listening experience. Some tracks are a bit longer (with even the shortest track being longer than 5 minutes), but with only 8 tracks on this album, I feel like those longer tracks had focus put on them to make that longer duration impactful and not just feel like filler. I'm not saying this album is full of singles, but from an entire album perspective, there isn't a skip to be found. It's a solid listening experience that checks all the boxes: lyrics, singing, instrumentation, musician showmanship. This album really is a masterwork in thrash metal and I am truly looking forward to more where this came from. Oh, and one more thing: it's the second to last streamed song on the album (on Spotify), but "Leper Messiah" is such a fucking JAM. Know that.

Great fee all the way thru

Ahh..Violent rock! Yes I missed all that ...but now opening my mind some.. Appreciate the genre though really never listened to Metallica... Now I see they were the originators of that machine sound , or so I call it.. Definite musicianship and composition... Welcome Home is a treasure , displaying wonderful melody and songwriting...

I don't think this comes as a surprise to anyone but i really like Master Of Puppets. The album always did have that thrash metal sound to it which i enjoyed even if it did start to get a little repetitive due to the lack of change throughout. While i love the fast, heavy sounds of this album, i mostly enjoyed the more technical and melodic parts of these songs which can really show what these musicians are really capable of. Despite it's somewhat repetitive nature, i still didn't find myself getting all too tired of it. I still like ...And Justice For All more but i still think this one is a great album. Best Song: Damage, Inc. Worst Song: Orion

Chug chug guitars go chug. Ridiculously heavy and great focus music for all the energy blasted through the speakers. Best played at maximum volume. Best tracks: - Master of Puppets - Disposable Heroes - Orion Worst tracks: N/A Rating: 8.5/10

Master Of Puppets is a thrash metal classic, with the title track and "Orion" shining as standout moments. While the album’s precision and energy are impressive, it can feel repetitive at times, with tracks blending into one another. Still, it’s a landmark for heavy metal and a must listen for fans of the genre.

DNL

This is my favorite Metallica album. I love every song on it. Musically, this is a bit different than Kill Em All. Much longer songs and more melody to them. Must listen: Master of Puppets Welcome Home Leper Messiah The Thing That Should Not Be 4/5

Had only listened to Master of Puppets off this album. Was very impressed with Battery. The sound has definitely aged, but the sound itself is timeless. This was a nice listen because I haven’t listened to Metallica in a long time, but every time I listen to them, I remember how easily it wears on me. Not bad music, I can just only take so much of them. It starts to sound the same after a while. Battery surprised me. It was a fantastic start to a classic metal album, leading into the cliche 80s Metallica. The classical sounding acoustic guitar is a great dichotomy to the chainsaw electric guitar. Did Metallica coin that? Or did Sabbath et al make it popular before them? Either way, great song off a genre-defining album. Oh, and Orion? Great instrumental. I learned that it’s one of the only Metallica instrumentals. If you were to only listen to this one song from their whole catalog, you’d get a damn good idea of who they are as a band.

Top!

Very nice

Great metal album. Orion is a masterpiece.

Would've given it a 4.5 if possible. Very close to a fantastic album. Compared to the earlier Metallica album it's taken quite a darker heavier turn. Really fantastic headbang material.

85% Best: Battery; Master Of Puppets; The Thing That Should Not Be; Welcome Home (Sanitarium); Orion; Damage, Inc. Must-Hear? Sure

Solid album from Metallica. I think Ride the Lightning edges this one out, but it's certainly an absolute classic.

Master indeed.

Glædelig fredag!

Absolutely filled with bangers, except the last few songs. Big 4

4.5 in realtà. Nessun filler, ottime canzoni.

Can’t go wrong with these guys. 4.5

Knew I’d like this going in, as I already love Master of Puppets the song, and I was not disappointed. Favourite song that u hadn’t heard before was Orion

Solid tunes, the instrumental was lovely.

Good fking Album. The Album stays strong beside the Self Titled Song. This is one of the Projects that grew on me while hitting the gym. For me not a really casual listen but still great on its own.

classic! fav song of the album: Orion

Bastante bueno, sí me puso a headbangear camino al trabajo. Los tres primeros tracks son geniales, y me pareció bastante más accesible que el ...and justice for all.

Not really a Metallica fan, but I did enjoy some of the songs and I can see why people are fans.

Jag är ju en sucker för Metallica och har lyssnat mycket på denna genom åren. Master of puppets och Welcome home är ikoniska. Orion är förmodligen den bästa instrumentella hårdrockslåten som gjorts. Däremellan är det dock några låtar som är lite för mycket trash för min smak (Metallicas peak är enligt mig Black album där man gick ifrån detta). Solklar fyra dock.

还行吧

Very good

La necesidad que tienen de cambiar de tempo y compás cada 2 por 3 haciendo todo tan dramático me encanta. A pesar de que podría ser todo una sola canción de 54 min, se agradecen instrumentales como Orion. Muy buen álbum, entiendo porqué es un clásico

Great album, Battery and Master of Puppets are wonderful songs but the rest are a bit mid, compared to these two. It was overall a very nice experience listening to everything and it was almost a full hour although there were only eight songs. I would give this 5 stars if all songs were at the Battery/Master of Puppets level but I give it high 4 for now.

Master of Puppets (the song) is an absolute masterpiece. There are also couple of bangers. But as a album it's kinda boring.

Impressive album. Hit the spot today. Definitely saving for some further listens.

A great album, just a couple of generic thrash songs stops this being 5 stars. The highlights are the title track, Battery and the incredible Orion instrumental. Always liked Sanatarium as well. It’s between this and the Black album for their best 4.5/5

This shit rocks

More of a 4.5 really.

Each song was good but too long.

It was fun to go back and listen to this album again, because I probably haven’t played it front to back since the ’90s. Back in the ’80s and early ’90s, every time Metallica released a new album, you could tell they’d leveled up from the last, especially with their technical skill. But when Master of Puppets came out, it felt like they leveled up a couple of notches. Their first two albums are classics, but this one really put them on the road as a force to be reckoned with.

Solid heavy metal.

very good hard rock, not something I'd listen to regularly but solid music

They were on fire for this one.

One of my all-time favorites, but it has the song that should not be. I always skip that one. Only reason it's not a 5* album. Favorite song: all the other songs.

4.5☆/5 10.28.2024

I'm not a fan of Metallica but I do understand why this is considered a great album. I was 18 when this album was released and I do vaguely remember the death of the bass player Cliff Burton in the same year. I like Rock music and I like some heavy metal but thrash metal is not my favourite. Great album though and worthy of a 4

About 250 albums or so in and I’m experiencing the first instance of real memory issues with this list - I swore we (i) already pulled this one. Anyhow this is a markedly incredible record. Outside of some obvious “Metallica” sounds, you can barely tell it’s from the 80’s, or any certain time period. It’s all energy, all perfect execution. Even as i listen to this at 5:30am to start work, I can only be super impressed with how tight the production & performance is. It’s missing some softer dynamics/ maybe one melodic interlude away from being a true 5/5 for me, but i recognize this as the holy grail for metal heads and respect you if you give it 5 stars

I really want to give this 5 stars, but Disposable Heroes and Leper Messiah are overly-long fillers, particularly by comparison to some of the other pure brilliance on here.

Yeah dude

Was expecting to hate this, but I was really enjoying it. First bit is really really nice, but gets slower in the middle lol. Still I love the angry guitar rips and whoever tf is singing. Really catchy for being whatever it is. Will be revisiting! They are stupid in a cool way Fav songs: Battery, Master of Puppets, Welcome Home, Orion

Meh

amazing album, I get why it’s rated as one of the best metal albums ever, I was so impressed. maybe in more time it would reach 5 stars would def listen again

Ik vind het self titled album wat ik eerder voorgeschoteld kreeg een beter album. Ik heb bij dit album niet zo heel veel te melden. Nogmaals: Ik ben geen Metallica of metal fan, maar ik vind dit stiekem toch wel leuker dan minimaal 80% van deze lijst. Na Sanitarium worden de nummers wat inwisselbaar. En enigszins aan de lange kant is het ook wel. Ik hou het op 4 sterren.

A classic. It took me a while to get into Metallica, but they're awesome. I probably prefer Ride the Lightning, but there is a reason this album is beloved. It is Ride the Lightning but dialed up a notch. I just prefer the songs on Ride The Lightning by a smidge, but they're both insanely good.

A metal head's paradise. To anyone else it's a decent listen with one awesome song and a bunch that sound a lot like it. Regardless you gotta love the energy.

Je suis vraiment déchirer devant cet album. D’un côté, je capote pas sur Metallica: j’aime pas le beuglement toujours pareil boum boum dans mes oreilles de Hetfield, le mixage est débalancé (on entend à peine la bass à Cliff, tu parles d’un héritage) et all & all, j’suis pas un fan de métal. Ayant ces opinions simili tranchées qui gigotes dans ma tête, j’ai été abardasourdi par la qualité de l’album. Le rythme d’écoute est bon, y’a des bons riffs et on entendent (un peu) la bass! Le meilleur moment de l’album est definitivement Orion, l’arme instrumentale secrète du groupe qui me fit faire du air guitar dans la rue. Je pense pas que c’est un 5 pour ma part, c’est quand même 54 minutes de Metallica, mais ça mérite amplement un solide 4

I like to say “planetarium” instead of “sanitarium”. This one is sort of played to death in our home. I associate it with bar pizza. And now I’m hungry.

Title track is the obvious stand—out. Guitar solos RIP. Solid.

Back when Metallica was thrash-ier! Interesting song construction throughout too, with multilayering and dynamics being experimented with here. It's quality over quantity here, as there are a few marathon tracks that fill the album's nearly hour long runtime. Metallica is probably one of the few groups that can get away with these longer metal tracks, as the technical dexterity of each of the guitarists are second to few. I'll admit that I was pretty casual when it came to Metallica and metal in general before taking on this challenge, but as a result I've become a little more tolerant and appreciative of the genre and its subgroups a bit more. It was interesting to hear Metallica's first commercial breakthrough before they eventually transitioned from this thrash metal sound in the 90's. I think I prefer this to the latter to be honest.

Not my favorite Metallica album but it's still bloody good. It's status is definitely earned. 4/5

Odio quando ho già un’opinione e l’album mi fa cambiare idea. Bello bello

stavo per dare tre stelle ma oggettivamente parlando sarebbe stato un errore. bravi davvero.

Bello!

I don't like their style of metal enough to give this fully 5 stars but it's a strong 4.5. Even though this is a lot less familiar to me than the big radio hits in the 90s, I prefer this sound, I prefer Hetfield's voice on this one, and it has an instrumental track which I always appreciate.

Metallica's songs are always so well-arranged and performed. I don't love thrash metal, but I appreciate the skill and complexity behind the songs on this album.

Fun! Wish I understood any words.

Never been a huge Metallica listener. I figured this might be their biggest album, especially since Master of Puppets was brought to the global plane recently with Stranger Things using it. I had never heard any of the other songs on here. They are great muscians all around and definitely deserve all the credit they get. There were some points where I lost track of the song and couldn’t tell if a new song had started or if I was still listening to the same one, I guess this comes with the style of their music/singing. Overall still a great album. 7/10

Arguably Metallica's greatest album. It is certainly full of great tracks.

Good ol

Great classics

Great, But Something Is Missing.

kings of melody for sure

There are some really excellent guitar solos in here, but it’s not enough to make me love this album. I thought the other Metallica album we heard was much stronger and more musically diverse.

Can't go wrong. 4/5

nice

An amazing album! The song “Master of Puppets” is a real masterpiece. Can’t listen to the song without listening to it with full volume.

Really more 3.5, but on the higher end.

iCONIC

Classic, although I never "loved" it. Feels a little thin and/or treble-heavy. Maybe that's just the recording equipment of the time. Still a fun listen.

Goes without saying that this is one of the classic metal albums of all time. Metallica isn't my cup of tea but they and Megadeth brought this flavor of metal to the mainstream

great stuff, one of the 3 good metallica albums

Head banging blast!

could i write poetry to this? n (but middle school jimi sure thought he could)

A fine Thrash album. I always preferred Anthrax, though.

These gents really knew what they were doing for this album didn't they. Welcome Home is my highlight

4.5

I don't listen to much metal, but some days Metallica just hits the spot. Really solid album. I might like Ride The Lightning more, but it's been a while so I'd have to listen again to compare.

Not really my genre of Metallica, but it was still very good. Most of these tracks are on my normal playlist, so I know them pretty well. Four stars.

Packed with powerful riffs. Impactful and iconic. There is however a limit to how much joyless masculinity-cult metal I can take in one sitting. But hey, probably their best album.

Black album was better but justice for all be the best

I still feel this is one of Metallica's best albums.

4.5

awesome, better than the self-titled. Liked some prog rock influences, maybe? especially in Orion favorite tracks: Master Of Puppets, Damage, Inc., Welcome Home

Heavy, lyrics straightforward

Excellent

Have a preference for Ride the lightning personally. it's does drag on a little on songs. It is however still a classic album, the vast majority of metal bands could only dream of creating this. 4.5*

I don't tend to listen to metal but this was great. It could probably go up to a 5 on repeated listens Favorites: "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)", "Disposable Heroes", "Orion", "Damage, Inc"

very solid album. even now sounds intriguing and exciting. pure definition of thrash metal. highly recommend to listen this album first if you wanted to start listening this type of music favourites: Battery, Sanitarium, Disposable Heroes, Master of Puppets 4/5

4-

Metallica tends to be hit or miss for me; it’s the sort of thing I liked a lot as a teenager, but it feels harder to take seriously as an adult. That said, when I got over myself, I really enjoyed this album. I love the energy and unrelenting driving pace. Aside from the title track, the other standout here was “Orion.” Even when the band’s at its best, Metallica’s lyrics can be a little silly, and I was able to appreciate the musicianship more in the instrumental track.

Oh fuck yeah I love this album

A lot of madness explored and rage expressed on this thrash metal album wrapped up in melodies smooth as butter. You bang your head too much and take too many drugs, you're going to come face to face with whatever crawls out of the depths, and when you do, the only place for you is the looney bin. This classic album, considered by many in the horde to be one of the best thrash albums of all time, also criticizes the low-hanging fruits of war and religion, calling for its listeners to question authority and rebel against the government and the hypocrite. These four headbangers stomp their way through the graveyard, trampling all we vainly held sacred. The riffs, the melody, the shredding, the lyrics, the message, the accessibility of the whole package: this album is a solar system of metal, each track so powerful it has its own orbit.

This is an album I listened to a lot when I was younger but I wouldn't say I really love it. There are some absolute screamers in here like the title track, Battery, and Orion and the rest of the tracks, while not as good, certainly hold up. The only track I don't like is Leper Messiah, which despite having a great title, goes on too long and has some not so great musical parts (descending chromatic order and then the odd vocal key shift in the chorus drives me insane) and key changes. I wish James and Lars weren't such absolute tools in real life. It really sours my attitude toward the band in general. For me this is the last truly great Metallica thrash album. The Black Album is a huge departure from the style and it's good in it's own way but then they went and changed everything and their latter stuff is mostly disposable commercial rock. I could go on but treating this album in a vacuum, it's great. It's a lot to listen to in one sitting and it does feel a tad dated away from the three tracks I mentioned earlier, but you'd be hard pressed to find a better and more perfectly executed example of the genre at the time. This is a defining album in metal in general.

Today's album is Metal - Yay! The artist is Metallica - Booo! It's only 8 tracks long - Yay! Each track is over 5 minutes long - Booo! It was produced by Flemming Rasmussen - Can I go now? I have never liked Metallica but I cannot refute the point that every band I might not be around if not for them. This is a seminal album that helped craft the 80's and 90's metalscape.

They know what they’re doing, and they do it well. “Orion” was enjoyable.

Title song is a banger. 3.7.

Head banging at a premium. Hello, Library of Congress.

I liked this!! I had to put this in because the people next to me were spoiling a BRAND NEW MOVIE and this was great.

Favorite Track: Damage Inc.

Metallica you finally came through

There are only a couple of Metallica Albums I can listen to, start to finish, over and over again. This is one of them. I love this album. Especially its opening two tracks. It's also great to hear one of Metallica's very few instrumentals, Orion. Lars Ulrich is a bit of a dick, I just had to say that. :-)

Amazing album! I'd listened to the title track heaps of times before, but I don't think I've ever sat down to listen through the full album. What a treat Orion is!

Even though I’ve known “Master of Puppets” for almost 30 years, I’m going to start this off by saying RIP Eddie, you were the best Stranger Things character (Metallica fans, please don’t kill me). Now that that’s out of the way, I’ll confess that I’ve never listened to a full Metallica album and only know the singles. I’ve always enjoyed the songs I did hear, so I’m not sure why I never delved into them any deeper, especially since I do listen to other metal. This is a classic metal album for a reason. It sounds epic. It’s both aggressive and intensely melodic at the same time, and James Hetfield is a great vocalist. I feel like Metallica falls somewhere between symphonic metal and thrash — they’re not quite as operatic or intricate as Symphony X or even Iron Maiden, but they understand hooks and melody (fuck you, Slayer). The opening track, Battery is a good example of this — the Spanish-style guitar intro is beautiful and pulled me in right away, then the momentum of the song carried me through. I will say that the heaviness plus the length of each song do get a little tiresome after a while. I couldn’t help but feel like some of the songs blended together just because of the formula of heavy power chords plus heavy drums plus relentless bass regardless of the melody of each individual song. It’s not necessarily bad, but I don’t know how often I could listen to the album because of it. And there’s not a single song on this album under 5 minutes, so it’s a lot. The comparative slow pace and mellowness of Welcome Home was a … ahem, welcome reprieve after almost 20 straight minutes of full-throttle metal (though it gets heavier in the chorus and bridge). And that’s a damn cool guitar solo. The real standout track on here is Orion — an eight and a half minute instrumental piece. Once it really gets going beyond the typical thrash start (about 3 minutes in), it really is a fantastic showcase of the band’s abilities. I love that it has several different movements. The guitar work is fantastic, and the bass line around the five-minute mark is such a cool groove. It is kind of lame that it just fades out at the end, though. Overall this is a great album, and I’d definitely listen to it again. I just don’t know if I’d revisit it that often (maybe a few songs) because of the length. I don’t know why so many metal bands feel like every song has to be this long, drawn out epic. It’s okay to get to the point sometimes. 4/5

Nice

I would assume this is the peak of the trash metal sound. I'd say it feels like a more cohesive album from them. It started to make me nauseous by track 5. The instrumental is kind of refreshing in a way.

8/10

Pretty darn good. Metallica is another one of those bands that seemed to generally be around in pop culture background but that I never dug into on my own. This album reminds me of playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater (although I have no idea if Metallica was in any of those video games).

It's not like amazing but it is fun and there's enough going on to keep it interesting. I'll say it's satisfying to listen to, even if I don't think it's amazing.

very cool :)

awesome gutar sounds....

Makes me want to run through a brick wall. The guitar and drumming...insane. I have to be in the right mood to listen to this, but put me in the right frame of mind and I'll listen the hell out of it.

I think I'm slowly becoming a fan of heavy metal, and I never saw that coming. This was a really good album, from the false beginning of 'Battery' to the final notes of 'Damage, Inc'. When you realise how young the members of Metallica were when they made this album it just makes it more impressive.

Metallica are the kind of band who I wouldn't seek out personally, but if I friend put it on for me, I'd genuinely have a great time listening. Similarly, it's been a fun listening experience in this challenge. The music is as massive and heavy as a mountain. The energy carries you from the start to the end effortlessly. I really don't have anything negative to say about 'Master of Puppets'. Having said that, by the time I get to the end of the album, I'm satisfied and feel like I've had my fill of Metallica until the next one comes up in this challenge. But that's just me. I can see why other people might be more obsessed with it.

Battery 4 Master of Puppets 4.5 The Thing That Should Not Be 4 Welcome Home (Sanitarium) 4.3 Disposable Heroes 3.8 Leper Messiah 3.9 Orion 4 Damage, Inc 4 Score: 4.0625

Endelig nåke bra

Enjoyable riffs. When they were still prime.

I haven't heard a lot of metallica. I enjoyed this album and liked Master Of Puppets and Welcome Home (Sanitarium) the most.

One of their best albums!

I’m not a metal fan. However, Metallica definitely set the bar for all things metal. My favorite track was Orion. While I personally probably not listen to the album, I certainly will add Orion to my listing in queue.

Well it was Metallica so it should score high. I wish I hadn’t been so distracted as I listened 4*

.吉他牛逼听的心脏抽抽

Really interesting and melodic! A great time

a classic but not for me.

Clever but too blasting

Hades inspiration.

Good album

I’ve always been a Black Album person, but I am admittedly not a metal fan, much less Metallica. That said, I thought this was very good. Beyond the title track, Orion was a highlight.

This is one of the most iconic and influential metal albums of all time for a reason. Following a solid debut and sophomore effort with "Kill 'Em All" and "Ride The Lightning" respectively, Metallica delivers this album which some consider to be their magnum opus, in particular the titular track "Master Of Puppets". While the heights of this album are astronomical, the secondary tracks are middling in my opinion and knock it out of my top 2 Metallica albums (#1 being "...And Justice For All", and #2 being "Ride The Lightning"). That being said, it does not get better than classic Metallica in the metal genre, and this album is a prime example. Notable Tracks: Battery - perfect opener for a Metallica album Master Of Puppets - iconic simply put Welcome Home (Sanitarium) Orion - their best instrumental song in my opinion 8/10

This had (and still has) a huge impact in music. An essential, of course, but not really my favorite band from the genre.