This is a Random Album Generator.
One album a day.
From the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

...And Justice For All

Metallica

1988

Buy At Rough Trade
...And Justice For All
Album Summary

...And Justice for All is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on September 7, 1988 by Elektra Records. It was the first Metallica album to feature bassist Jason Newsted, following the death of their previous bassist Cliff Burton in 1986. Metallica recorded the album with producer Flemming Rasmussen over four months in early 1988 at One on One Recording Studios in Los Angeles. It features aggressive complexity, fast tempos, and few verse-chorus structures. It contains lyrical themes of political and legal injustices, such as governmental corruption, censorship, and war. The cover, designed by Roger Gorman, and illustration by Stephen Gorman was based on a concept by Metallica guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, depicts Lady Justice bound in ropes, being pulled by them to the point of breaking, with dollar bills piled upon her scales. The album title is derived from the last four words of the American Pledge of Allegiance. Three of its songs were released as singles: "Harvester of Sorrow", "Eye of the Beholder", and "One"; the title track was released as a promotional single. ...And Justice for All was acclaimed by music critics for its depth and complexity, although its dry mix and nearly inaudible bass guitar was criticized. It was included in The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics' poll of the year's best albums, and was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1989, controversially losing out to Jethro Tull in the ill-fated Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental category. The single "One" backed the band's debut music video, and earned Metallica their first Grammy Award in 1990 (and the first ever in the Best Metal Performance category). It was successful in the United States, peaking at number six on the Billboard 200, and was certified 8× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2003 for shipping eight million copies in the U.S. The album was reissued on November 2, 2018, in vinyl, CD, and cassette formats, as well as receiving a deluxe box set treatment with bonus tracks and unreleased video footage. The reissue reached number 37 and 42 on Billboard's Top Album Sales and Top Rock Albums charts, respectively.

Wikipedia

Rating

3.43

Votes

15424

Genres

  • Metal

Reviews

Like a review? Give it a thumb up to help us display relevant reviews!
Sort by: Top Date
May 21 2021
View Author
3

I just can't shake the image of goateed suburban dads rocking out to this while sitting in their garages and neglecting their wives while drinking cheap beer and wiping grease on their pants. They wonder why their wives don't want to fuck them. Maybe if you stopped cosplaying as a tough guy and embraced the life your career in dentistry has allotted you you might find a warmer embrace in bed. That said, it's still kinda fun. Very technical and clean. I dunno, maybe I should shave my beard into a goatee. I'm giving this three stars as I wipe my greasy hands on my pants and try to go pork my wife.

👍
May 16 2022
View Author
1

Four albums by Metallica in this list is just a joke. Even the editors make apologies for this one (“tinny sound,” “overprocessed,”). Clearly they’re the experts on this genre and this band. Other than a very few redeeming bits (the opening section of “One,” which sounds briefly like actual, you know, music), I just hear repetitive sound and structure, grunted vocals, sophomoric lyrics, thrashy breaks with quick flips back to speed (what editors call “riff salads”). For all the extremity, it’s quite paint by numbers.

👍
Aug 12 2021
View Author
5

I was 17 years old when this album came out. A friend introduced me to Metallica, via this album and also Master of Puppets. At the time, I described the experience of listening to Metallica as a kick to the gut, and I meant it in a positive way. I cannot stress this enough, how huge this album was. Among metal fans, Metallica was probably a known quantity at this point. But for the rest of us, they were new, startling and so refreshing in a sea of hair bands. It was like someone turned on the lights and everything was different after that. A freaking revelation. The intensity and the speed is obvious, the dark imagery, the social commentary, but with real musicality as well. I compare this to my experience listening to Napalm Death recently, and the contrast is worth noting. ND's music is designed to repel all but a very small audience. But Metallica had an awareness of where the boundaries were in metal at the time and they just pressed against the line constantly until they moved it. Some have pointed out that Metallica had a more progressive approach to their music, which I had never thought about but I think is correct. The complexity of the arrangements, the eschewing of traditional song structures... the band just existed in a different space from most of their peers. There are moments that are genuinely lovely, like the intros to "One" and "To Live is to Die," which makes the contrast against the heavier parts even more striking. What a great album. An hour+ of Metallica can be a little exhausting, even if you like them. But it's been a long while since I've listened to them, so today was a gift. Fave songs: One, Blackened, Eye of the Beholder, To Live is to Die

👍
Jun 03 2021
View Author
5

\m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/ \m/

👍
May 21 2021
View Author
2

Funny the first repeat artist on 1001 is muthafuckin Metallic-AH. Justice for All-AH. Longer tracks-AH. Bigger jams-AH. Thrashier thrash-AH. Less melody-AH. Technically precise-AH. Respect their intellectual property-AH. Vague commercial-libertarian messages-AH. I like better this Metallic-AH. Too same for too long-AH. C+

👍
Nov 22 2023
View Author
2

Hearing tracks like "One" on this album bum me out because it shows that Metallica has the talent and the capacity to make more interesting music but just generally chooses not to, instead focusing on the monotonous every track sounds the same except for one or two on every album. Technically super talented band.

👍
Jul 07 2021
View Author
2

Look, James Hetfield is a singularly silly man. In fact, Metallica are a singularly silly band. They'd possibly be a good one if they wore their silliness more proudly. Hell, if they wore it at all. But I was weaned on metal so I can tolerate the fundamental dumbness here (that muscly rage is the answer) so long as it's accompanied by shreddy breakdowns like the one that starts at 4:30 in One and carries on until next year, or the glorious combination of brutalised guitar and drums at the start of Harvester of Sorrow. Of the albums we've had so far, this is the one that delineates the directness of the path from Prog to Metal most clearly. Really, the differences between this and Made in Japan are negligible. So well done Metallica, you kept me chuckling, but nowhere near as much as Maddy singing along from the other room to deliberately misheard lyrics. Pride of place comes from the title track: "Pin your plimpsoles to your rear". Go on, listen again and find it.

👍
Jun 23 2021
View Author
5

A masterpiece of thrash metal. One of my favorite albums of all time. "One" might be the best metal song of all time.

👍
Jan 18 2021
View Author
4

Never been a huge fan of Hetfield’s voice, but I do understand that lyrically and sonically Metallica is one of if not the best metal bands out there. “One” is probably my favorite track. Shocker. I also like the opening track “Blackened”. I probably just need to listen to more Metallica to get used to Hetfields voice.

👍
Feb 08 2021
View Author
2

Couldn't get into this one... As much as I enjoy metal I find a lot of Metallica kinda dull

👍
Apr 23 2021
View Author
2

Metallica makes good pump-up and hype music for crowds, but not so much music to listen to on a regular basis, at least for me. Didn't really enjoy this, actually liked their live album much better

👍
Sep 09 2021
View Author
5

Well, it's a classic for a reason. It's mostly fire from top to bottom. I have a few issues with the mixing (why is the kick scooped out like a used melon rind?) but not enough to take the score down from full marks.

👍
Jul 15 2021
View Author
5

One of my favorite Metallica records. It's not quite my favorite, and I rated it a five probably due to nostalgia reasons, but the riffs on this are too addictive to rate it anything less. Of course, the bass could be a little more present, but that's Hetfield's problem. The lyrics on this are as poignant as ever and the drumming is brutal without sounding like garbage like it does in their later records. I highly recommend this to any metal fan that hasn't listened to it already. Highlights: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 9.

👍
Jul 04 2021
View Author
5

Because of their reputation, I had written off Metallica and was surprised by how sophisticated and interesting it was.

👍
Jan 15 2021
View Author
5

Classic thrash metal. Doesn't have the melody or nuances of some of the other metallica record but it's all about the riffs. Solid riffage for some long ass songs. Great record but they needed to turn Jason's bass up.

👍
Oct 16 2021
View Author
4

* not what i typically listen to * very good album, sick instrumentals * would listen to again

👍
Feb 19 2021
View Author
4

This album felt like Metallica dropped a lot of the melodies featured in Puppets and went back to the thrash of earlier albums but combined lots of riffs and changes into longer and more complex songs. I liked it overall, the mix is weird, but the album feels meaningful and is a great listen.

👍
Jan 07 2021
View Author
4

Crazy guitar riff after crazy guitar riff. So influential. Even though this isn't an album I will probably return to a lot, I can appreciate everything it does and created.

👍
Jul 07 2021
View Author
2

Unfortunately this band named Metallica (repeat that to yourself a few times, really roll it around - Metal-lica, Metallica, Met-al-li-ca) take themselves too seriously to take seriously. They are really good at guitar solos, of that there can be no doubt. They are less good at… well most of the other things that make music music. Maybe that’s too harsh - but their lyrics, their delivery, the overblown length of their songs, the fun-void at the centre of it all… it all points to the same logic that propels the ever more serious, ever more gritty reboots of Batman: you cannot laugh at this thing, this is serious - look how serious it is, it’s actually making some really serious points about… serious things. Hella good solos though.

👍
Jun 08 2021
View Author
4

I think this album was Lars reaching peak narcissist- his drums are pulled far too forward in the mix, but the album still sounds fresh today. Probably my 3rd favourite album by the band

👍
Nov 30 2024
View Author
5

This album was huge for me when it came out. I think it's Lars best drumming. Hetfield's vocals are ferocious. I saw this tour in Irvine on a Thursday, went to Hollywood the next day to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and back to Irvine on Saturday to see Metallica again. I went to work in the morning after all three shows. To be young again. Good times. Every song is perfect. 5 stars all day.

👍
Nov 20 2021
View Author
4

This is amazing! The playing on this track is phenomenal and the energy and power off the charts. This is not a genre I’m familiar with but I get the appeal - absorbing and exciting, an incredible sound. I kind of enjoy the angry political lyrics, less so the rebellious teenager stuff (but hey maybe this is as therapeutic as seeing a therapist), but overall a musical smack in the face.

👍
Nov 03 2021
View Author
4

Remember when Metallica was labeled "sellouts" for making the One video? It was a game changer. Yes, it was.

👍
Jan 18 2021
View Author
4

Metallica’s 4th album is refined from earlier works. It’s clear they found their footing with their new bassist Jason Newsted following the tragic death of bassist Cliff Burton in a tour bus accident. This album boats “One” which is a beautifully crafted piece of work even for being over 7 minutes long it’s easy to get lost in masterful guitar work. This is a solid thrash metal album (4th of 5 in a row masterpieces in their genre) from arguably the greatest Metal band ever assembled. Giving 4 stars, but would give it a 9.4 out of 10. “Hold my breath as I wish for death”.

👍
Feb 23 2024
View Author
3

I liked Metallica a lot more before my prefrontal cortex finished developing. Since then it's . . . less.

👍
May 14 2024
View Author
2

As a bassist, I feel for Metallicas bass player on this album... Would be nice to actually hear him... Love master of puppets, but not this one...

👍
Dec 06 2021
View Author
2

Yeah I can see why people like them, but I'm not one of those sorts of people.

👍
May 06 2021
View Author
2

Trop de similitudes avec Ray Charles.

👍
Dec 01 2024
View Author
5

Arguably the best Metallica album ever made. It's no wonder that everytime they try to do a "thrash comeback" it ends up sounding like Justice. Death Magnetic and Hardwired, I'm looking STRAIGHT AT YOU. Metallica's greatest moment influenced by personal tragedy. 10/10.

👍
Apr 24 2024
View Author
5

A masterpiece of thrash metal. One of my favorite albums of all time.

👍
Dec 18 2024
View Author
4

Fantastisches Album, mit zeitlosen Klassikern der Thrash Metal Musik. Ein toller klarer Klang der nur dadurch beeinträchtigt wird das ein bisschen der Bass flöten bzw. untergeht. "One" einer der schönsten Metal Songs ever und "Harvester of Sorrow" voll der Banger. Ich gebe 4 Sterne, weil "Master of Puppets" meiner Meinung nach noch besser ist.

👍
Jul 26 2024
View Author
4

The mix on this album was crap - it was very bass-heavy and I don’t like not being able to make out James Hetfield’s voice and lyrics. However, the drums were phenomenal and while this version of Metallica is less melodic and more thrashy than the Metallica that I prefer, there is definitely a place for this album in my heart. I loved the last track, “Dyers Eve.” What a way to end.

👍
May 15 2024
View Author
4

I remembered this album to be better than it is. Granted, One is sublime, and one of the best songs Metallica have ever made. But the rest is really uninspired; Thrash riffs chugging along with hardly any real original idea. Except for One, only To Live Is To Die offers something for the more melodically inclined. Yes, Thrash is not my favourite sub-genre, but Metallica can do (and have done) better even before this album. It doesn't help that massive disrespect was shown to bass player Jason Newstead, who was the new guy at the time, by making the bass tracks almost inaudible, and ruining the whole album's sound along the way. Compared to all the other albums on this list, this is slightly above average, which makes it a 3.5/5.

👍
Jun 20 2023
View Author
4

…And Justice for All, but Bass for None. As a teenager in the early and mid 90’s, I was a pretty obnoxious Metallica fan. They were the greatest band on earth, the band that mattered most to me. I’d stay up late nights in the summer watching Live Shit: Binge and Purge on VHS on my 13” TV with built-in VHS player (at least until 12:30, when I’d switch over to the antenna and pick up Late Night with Conan O’Brien). They’re the reason I started playing guitar. My identity as 14 year old was tied in very closely with being a Metallica fan. Justice, as us heads call it, was peak Metallica for me. It’s heavy and aggressive, technical with tons of twists and turns, and, most importantly it questioned authority - the long held past time of any American teenager worth their salt. Listening to it today, at 42, I can’t help but like it still, it’s practically ingrained in my DNA at this point, but holy fuck is this album longer than I remember. Maybe it’s just that time moved slower back then or my span of attention was longer. That there’s no bass on this record bothers more than it used to, as well. I get it and appreciate that it’s a homage to Cliff Burton, whose death left a massive hole in this band, but a lot of these songs would be better served with some kind of low end other than Lars’ omnipresent kick drum. About 40 minutes into this record, the sound of it starts to grate on your ears. In terms of runtime, less would be more on …And Justice for All. You could probably cut “Frayed of Sanity” and the record would be just as enjoyable. Conversely, in terms of instrumentation, less definitely isn’t more - this record is all high end and suffers as a result of that production choice.

👍
Oct 11 2022
View Author
4

All that's missing is Jason Newsted. Dyers Eve contrasts tragically with a song ten years later, "Mama Said."

👍
Apr 15 2021
View Author
4

Very cool, but one thing I wasn't crazy about is how many of the songs had no ending, they just stopped (and sometimes changed partway through like they know how to do a transition but not at the end of a song?) Also, fun fact: Keegan's house used to be owned by Lars Ulrich, the drummer

👍
Nov 03 2024
View Author
3

it's trite. it's been said. it's been a punchline and a dead horse and a nickel in the jar. but man -- not having bass (i will not be saying that word again in the review) on your thrash metal album REALLY makes you come to terms with how fucking bad Lars Ulrich is as a drummer. so many complex songs and all he can do is pound the same three patterns. he's like the guy in "Deacon Blues" who learns to play the saxophone as part of a midlife crisis, and you get the feeling this is his skill ceiling. instead of being OK with his cover band and job as a forklift operator, he's part of the biggest metal band in the world and earns millions from fucking up drum parts in front of thousands of adoring fans for over 40 years at this point. it's equally frustrating because for all the shit around Ulrich, Hetfield and Hammett are going insane on the guitar -- their most ambitious song structures and solos and scooped tones yet. and Lars, he's just not up to snuff. the whole band has to make room for him as he plods through each track. i also don't think that this album should be as long as it is, but i also really couldn't tell you what to cut. there's so much of it; i feel fatigued. "One" kicks ass though -- makes the whole thing worth it at least a little. the key to being a metal superstar is probably "writing songs based off of a book you read" if it and Iron Maiden's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" are anything to go on.

👍
May 29 2024
View Author
3

МОЙ РЭП - КУЛЬТУРИСТ И ОТЗЫВАЕТСЯ НА "ВИН ДИЗЕЛЬ"

👍
Oct 29 2023
View Author
3

Metallica’s …And Justice For All is their fourth and most ambitious album. It features some of their longest and most complex songs, such as Blackened, One, Harvester Of Sorrow, and the title track. The album explores themes of injustice, corruption, and oppression with a dark, heavy, and technical sound. However, the album also suffers from some flaws, such as the poor production quality, the absence of bass guitar, and the tediousness of some tracks. This album is often underrated in Metallica’s discography, as it is sandwiched between two classics: Master Of Puppets and the Black Album. It is a great example of progressive thrash metal and deserves more recognition, but it is not as accessible or enjoyable as their other works. I appreciate the album for its ambition and intensity, but I prefer to listen to their more balanced and dynamic albums. Therefore, I give it a solid 3 stars out of 5.

👍
May 07 2021
View Author
3

...And Justice for All, Metallica, 1988 -Starts boring and very generic (i.e. - sounds like every Metallica song ever) but I mean hey: listen to those drums, nothing not to love there. -Metallica: incredibly skilled instrumentation paired with near-total inability to make their songs distinguishable from one another. They set the bar high with their preceding album, Master of Puppets, and I'm curious what they could pull off just 2 years later. -Really loved the opening for ...And Justice for All; the song doesn't evolve into anything to write home about though. 9 minutes in and I realize: this album is going to feel long as hell. Thanks Metallica... -Eye of the Beholder is a pretty decent song but forgettable -One has some absolutely delicious guitar licks and their shot a stylistic shift in the vocals really pays off - they communicate a sentiment both hopeful and devastated. We love this one of course and it does a good job hoisting the album out of snoozefest territory. -The Shortest Straw returns the album into snoozefest territory. Like so many of their songs, we build and build and build up to some self-indulgent drum and guitar ram-jams and fall back into some repetitive lyrics. Yawn. -Yawning continues through Harvester of Sorrow as the formulaic-metal intensifies -Did I just hear the WIZARD OF OZ flying monkey chant sample used in The Frayed Ends of Sanity, like what?????? LOL sure why not. It works. -Basically zoned out the rest of the album. Snooze snooze snooze. Great instrumentation but mastery of your instrument and your genre only counts for so much.

👍
Jul 20 2024
View Author
2

Metallica what happened? One was great but the rest not so much. Full of their trademark sound but with none of the hook to make you come back. Its also very repetetive. And 9 songs still pushes over an hour.

👍
Jul 15 2024
View Author
2

It's a bit boring tbh. The songs don't merit going on on for so long. Also where is the bass?

👍
Jul 04 2024
View Author
2

Quelle déception ... Le début de la fin pour Metallica ! Fan absolu du groupe depuis le premier album (découverte du trash metal, grande évolution dans ma vie musicale qui m'a amené aux metals dits 'extrêmes'), je me souviens avoir acheté l'album dès sa sortie, et ... avoir été vraiment très déçu à la première écoute : - mauvais mixage, basse inaudible, son de batterie mauvais - morceaux terriblement longs et peu intéressants - album globalement mou, malgré les quelques accélérations ici et là (trop peu à mon gout) : où est passée l'énergie des précédents disques ? Même après d'autres écoutes, je n'ai pas changé d'avis et ai fini par abandonner l'album, puis abandonner Metallica avec l'album suivant ... A l'époque beaucoup d'autres groupes de trash faisait bien mieux ! Cette nouvelle écoute ne m'a pas fait non plus changer d'avis. => 2/5

👍
Mar 02 2024
View Author
2

Nr. 145/1001 Blackened 3/5 ... And Justice For All 2/5 Eye of the Beholder 2/5 One 2/5 The Shortest Straw 2/5 Harvest of Sorrow 2/5 The Frayed Ends of Sanity 2/5 To Live is to Die 4/5 Dyers Eye 2/5 Average: 2,33 Not the biggest fan of metal. Combined with the great lenght of the songs, made this not really fun to listen to.

👍
Nov 22 2023
View Author
2

Metallica is the Elvis Stojko of metal. This album in particular is straight ice dancing. Yes, like Olympics ice dancing. Everything is excessively choreographed, rehearsed to oblivion with the goal to be as robotic as possible and all the audience is waiting for is for you to fail. No failures here, congratulations, you're all robots.

👍
Aug 03 2023
View Author
2

This album sounds really thin and has some of the most unimaginative drumming of all time. No clue how this band got so big. This sounds terrible.

👍
Mar 13 2023
View Author
2

This felt like the longest album I've ever listened to. Goddamn these songs all go on forever. I will never "get" Metallica. Favorite track: One

👍
Mar 04 2023
View Author
2

this album is pretty one dimensional. I didn't really like that dimension.

👍
Nov 14 2022
View Author
2

I think I've aged out of Metallica. It's all so repetitive and dull anymore.

👍
Oct 29 2022
View Author
2

This is the third Metallica album I've had in this project, and I was not as taken by it as Master of Puppets or the Black Album. Not that there aren't some classic Metallica elements that I recognize and like. I get that they seem to be going for a bit more of an epic feel with the extended songs and changing tempos, but it lost me a bit. I'm also not sure what I think of environmentalist peacenik thrash metal. I like the message but it doesn't FEEL quite right.

👍
Oct 25 2022
View Author
2

LOUD NOISES - MORE LOUD NOISES - I LOVE LAMP

👍
Jan 11 2022
View Author
2

It's so...edgy. Not really a fan.

👍
Dec 02 2023
View Author
1

сука как же скушно, сухо, нудно муторно

👍
Sep 15 2022
View Author
1

Metallica is an iconic band in the overall metal style, there's no arguing about that. But let's try to be honest for a second: generally speaking, James Hetfield's delivery of his bland vocal lines is totally dull and unimaginative. Another guy actually *really* screaming his lungs out would have taken those songs up to another level. As for the music itself, it sounds way too paper-thin on this particular record compared to a lot of stuff that was later done in said genre, including Metallica's own "black album" (yep, a lot of critics were right: where's the goddamn bass?). So I guess that as far as albums go, you can keep *Master Of Puppets* and *Metallica* in your list of potentially essential LPs, if only for their cultural importance, and throw everything else into the "thrash" can. Number of albums left to review or just listen to: 798 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory: 106 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 50 Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more important): 46 (including this one)

👍
Apr 25 2022
View Author
1

Guitars, guitars, for adolescents only

👍
Jan 22 2021
View Author

Just a bit dull really - too much grunting and gnarling.

👍
Dec 17 2024
View Author
5

Man oh man was ...And Justice For All a great album. I have always heard from various different sources that this album was not very well produced but other than the bass not being very hearable (for lack of a better word)(and even then, it's common to not be able to hear the bass unless you listen closely in most metal tracks) it was pretty well mixed with it sounding as crisp and clean as you can get. Every song, of course, was incredible with them ranging from fast and ferocious thrash metal, to slower and more melodic technical metal. I absolutely love this album so much. Best Song: One Worst Song: To Live Is to Die

👍
Dec 17 2024
View Author
5

One of the big 4 for a reason. One of their best albums and a banger all the way through. 5/5

👍
Dec 14 2024
View Author
5

A metal classic and rightly so, what an album. Heavy when it can, but with quieter intros etc... it's not just full pelt the whole time and it is very listenable. There is excellent virtuosity here but it's all functional. I almost took one point off for the production. A lot of Metallica is about the interlocking of the kick drum and the bass, almost sounding as one instrument giving a solid basis on top of which the guitars and vocals can shine. However, the kick drum sounds quite tinny (I listened on a good stereo) and the bass is... where is the bass? A pity, this album could sound better but I'll still call it a 5 purely for the quality of the music.

👍
Dec 09 2024
View Author
5

This is why I need to reserver five star ratings on this list. This album deserves it like few others (but I definitely still have a few higher favorites). It's technical, clean, and never stops pushing forward for the entire thing. "One" is still one of my favorite song intros of all time, but there are so many bangers on this album. Five stars. That's all I can say.

👍
Nov 29 2024
View Author
5

Fantastic album, my favourite metallica album

👍
Nov 27 2024
View Author
5

It is impossible, in my mind, to separate my impressions of this album from the cataclysmic psychic impact of Metallica’s first ever music video (they had famously refused to make videos when such a thing was absolutely astonishingly a “fuck you” to the big business of metal inspired-rock, and a real statement of thrash metal integrity. We are here for music). A performance video interlaced with clips from the anti-war classic Johnny Got His Gun from the blacklisted Dalton Trumbo. The horrors of being exploded, losing all limbs and all ability to communicate, see, hear, the protagonist's subjectivity exists only in his mind, screaming to be heard. Outside, he is an objective, a test subject, a freak show, so much human meat. Even with Lars's serious drum/coke face mugging, it exists as a triumph to metal on metal's terms, "War Pigs" for the eighties. Bleak truth for truly bleak times, and the harbinger of that goodtimes torpor of the only me decade would come to a crashing end. Popular music, in all its permutations, could do more than bitches and money. And shortly after, it shortly did, before the rotten products of big business churned out the clone army, Metallica became rock stars, and that was that. After Cliff died, the band recorded Garage Days Re-Visited, a rough and ready covers E.P. with new bassist Jason Newsted, and it is my favorite Metallica record because it is rough, punk in its ethos, super fun and you can hear Jason ably laying down the low end. It was a great fit. Too bad, and for entirely bizarre reasons, his contributions to "And Justice" are almost conceptual, or a trace. A bass is in there. A bass should be there, and yet, years before the White Stripes conquerer Alternative Rock, it's Hatfield providing the low end, via guitar. Bafflingly, the various anniversary remixes have not corrected this. It has been about thirty years since I listened to "And Justice" front to back; with recent innovations in both cannabis and sound equipment, there is an uncanniness at work, a familiar made unfamiliar. I find myself noticing details flying out of the relentless full-on brutality of the attack overall. It's a weirdly new wave mix— but all guitar and drums and vicious barking of apocalyptic pessimism that drag on longer than they should yet don't feel that way at all—rather than synth driven concise, airless midrange, The sequencing is totally ace; there's little point to pulling out and highlighting the songs because each are part of a hole. Defiantly thrash, there are not singles, save for "One", which became a single because record companies like singles, but it is not a single of its time. It's not Bon Jovi or Bryan Adams. It harkens back to when some singles were like revolutionary pronouncements, not mere product, closer in structure to "Bohemian Rhapsody" than "Livin' On a Prayer", and there is no ersatz rocking here; they came to tear you apart with precise subjective truths about the Post-Reagan world, the exigence to this dystopian hellscape: This country is fucked. And that's how it felt. That's how it feels now. But with better weed and headphones. With this album, everybody else is chasing the thrash beast Metallica. By the end of the eighties/beginning of the nineties, the leading lights of, including the so-called Big Four, Thrash would release their idiosyncratic, refined and masterful takes on the genre. Rivals Megadeth would drop Rust in Peace. Anthrax would drop Persistence of Time. Slayer would unleash Seasons in the Abyss. Better still, Voivod beamed Nothingface from Dimension Hatröss to an unsuspecting planet, and Overkill would offer a thrash elegy with The Years of Decay. This period would also produce the grumpy gatekeepers debating "real thrash" and whether any of these folks sold out. The Black Album would answer that question for Metallica—however you think about that record. But this re-visit, in this moment in time, it's difficult to conceive of "...And Justice" in generic terms. It is a singular, coherent vision of existential dread, like the cracks in the iconic statuary cover illustrate, knowing that our collective self-delusion about America and Americans, reveal capricious violence and avarice as the truth national credo.

👍
Nov 27 2024
View Author
5

great metal album, classic metallica

👍
Nov 26 2024
View Author
5

Gotta love old school Metallica.

👍
Nov 20 2024
View Author
5

Metallica - ...And Justice For All Wow! This is my first metal album that I've ever heard, and also my introduction to Metallica, never expected to enjoy it. This album is PACKED with bangers, and that's saying something since "apparently" Metallica has made better albums than even this one, which is already amazing in itself. There are moments on this album where you just listen and feel it in your soul (I almost shed a tear when listening to "To Live is To Die" ;) ) this is great!! 1.- Blackened = 8/10 2.- ...And Justice for All = 9/10 3.- Eye of the Beholder = 9/10 4.- One = 10/10 5.- The Shortest Straw = 8/10 6.- Harvester of Sorrow = 9/10 7.- The Frayed Ends of Sanity = 9/10 8.- To Live is To Die = 10/10 9.- Dyers Eve = 9/10 FINAL SCORE: 9

👍
Nov 12 2024
View Author
5

another one from metallica, this one just as epic and aggressive as the last one. with a strong sociopolitical centered theme, this one packs a punch. many people think this album is poorly mixed, but the instrumental and lyrical content really prevented me from actually noticing. it's just a really good metal album, like most others in metallica's discography.

👍
Nov 12 2024
View Author
5

9/10 This is their best album in my opinion Favourite Song=One Least Favourite Song=Dyers Eve

👍
Nov 05 2024
View Author
5

Despite Lars deliberately killing Jason Newsted’s bass, this is one terrific album. Their songs grew longer, more technical, yet still with memorable riffs. Everything about this album is exquisite. They moved beyond simple Thrash with this one. Probably their best.

👍
Oct 28 2024
View Author
5

One of the formative albums of my youth. I had a tshirt with this album cover on it back in junior high. And what an album it is. Front to back, just pure thrash metal goodness. Yes, it's dumb that the bass is turned so low it's practically gone. But other than that everything is stellar. The lyrics are thought-provoking, the guitars are pure metal bliss.

👍
Oct 23 2024
View Author
5

Love the album. Guitar solo is amazing as always!!

👍
Oct 21 2024
View Author
5

Metallica is a heavy metal jam band. 9 songs, 65 minutes. Long, winding solos. 5 stars.

👍
Oct 19 2024
View Author
5

Love this album, listened to it a billion times.

👍
Oct 16 2024
View Author
5

Did not listen that closely, but it rocks!

👍
Oct 08 2024
View Author
5

Great album. Only way to pay this is loud.

👍
Oct 07 2024
View Author
5

All I did was look at the cover art and suddenly James Hetfield was in my living room yelling "DARKNESS IMPRISONING ME"

👍
Sep 25 2024
View Author
5

Amazing album. Although I rank Master of Puppets a little higher, I am always wowed every time I listen, even to the songs I like "least" on the album.

👍
Sep 18 2024
View Author
5

Favourite songs: Dyers Eve, Blackened, Harvester of Sorrow, One, ...And Justice for All, The Frayed Ends of Sanity, To Live Is To Die Least favourite songs: none 5/5

👍
Sep 18 2024
View Author
5

It's the best Metallica album. Yes, the bass isn't in the mix but it's a snapshot in time of a band at their peak, before it went downhill.

👍
Sep 03 2024
View Author
5

Lars is a piece of shit and he always will be, but it's still tough for me to give this anything but a 5

👍
Aug 31 2024
View Author
5

Perfect album from start to finish.

👍
Load more reviews