{"id":501,"date":"2025-04-12T10:28:13","date_gmt":"2025-04-12T10:28:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metalhed.com\/?p=501"},"modified":"2025-04-12T10:28:14","modified_gmt":"2025-04-12T10:28:14","slug":"metallica-ride-the-lightning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metalhed.com\/?p=501","title":{"rendered":"METALLICA Ride the Lightning"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Metallica<\/a> Ride the lightning was the second outing for this American band. After the Success of their first album Kill em all, and the subsequent touring it was time for Metallica to go back into the studio and top their first album. By this point they had Slayer and Anthrax having both released killer albums, it was upto Metallica to step it up a notch. And step it up a notch they did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The album recording kicked off in Feb 1984 as the band headed off to Europe to record the album under the watch of producer Flemming Rasmussen, who’d previously recorded for bands like Rainbow. I’m guessing the reason why the band went over to Europe to record was that the producer was more experienced than anyone in America when it came to recording Heavy Metal, who’d have been able to work on the project for the same budget.<\/p>\n\n

This time the band had 3 weeks to record, and the results from a studio point of view are infinitely better. Obviously having Hammett grounded in the band this time (rather than being drafted at last minute as he was on Kill em All)<\/i> meant the guitar solo’s fitted the songs better. The band had also improved their song writing abilities by this point using more complex song structures and better song dynamics. Fans who’d got into the band on the first album must have had a near coronary when the album started with an acoustic intro to the song “Fight Fire with Fire” but when the song kicked in properly listeners were pummelled with what would have been the fastest down picking double kick drum combo ever put to tape! Metallica were back faster, and heavier than ever. Good thing too as Anthrax had put out their debut album and probably taken pole position in the race to become the fastest band.<\/p>\n\n

After the beating the listener cops from “Fight Fire with Fire” the tempo is backed off a bit with the songs “Ride the Lightning” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls” which show case the bands improved musicianship and songwriting abilities. “Then came the semi ballad “Fade to Black” it showcased a new grasp of melody that the band had never shown before. It worried some fans who labelled it a sell out. Little did the band know what lay ahead in the 1990’s hahah! <\/p>\n\n

Side two picks up the pace again with “Escape” and “Trapped Under Ice”. Escape is not a song that i think aged as well as the others, but this is only a weak link in a band as talented as Metallica. Most other bands would kill for this song. Next up we have the epic “Creeping Death” and the haunting melodies of “Call of Ktulu” again showing off the bands new found control of melody and song writing dynamics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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