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album review
Kill 'Em All may have revitalized heavy metal's underground, but Ride the Lightning was even more stunning, exhibiting staggering musical growth and boldly charting new directions that would affect heavy metal for years to come. Incredibly ambitious for a one-year-later sophomore effort, Ride the Lightning finds Metallica aggressively expanding their compositional technique and range of expression. Every track tries something new, and every musical experiment succeeds mightily. The lyrics push into new territory as well -- more personal, more socially conscious, less metal posturing. But the true heart of Ride the Lightning lies in its rich musical imagination. There are extended, progressive epics; tight, concise groove-rockers; thrashers that blow anything on Kill 'Em All out of the water, both in their urgency and the barest hints of melody that have been added to the choruses. Some innovations are flourishes that add important bits of color, like the lilting, pseudo-classical intro to the furious "Fight Fire with Fire," or the harmonized leads that pop up on several tracks. Others are major reinventions of Metallica's sound, like the nine-minute, album-closing instrumental "The Call of Ktulu," or the haunting suicide lament "Fade to Black." The latter is an all-time metal classic; it begins as an acoustic-driven, minor-key ballad, then gets slashed open by electric guitars playing a wordless chorus, and ends in a wrenching guitar solo over a thrashy yet lyrical rhythm figure. Basically, in a nutshell, Metallica sounded like they could do anything. Heavy metal hadn't seen this kind of ambition since Judas Priest's late-'70s classics, and Ride the Lightning effectively rewrote the rule book for a generation of thrashers. If Kill 'Em All was the manifesto, Ride the Lightning was the revolution itself. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
more albums by this artist
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- Metallica
- Released 1991
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- Death Magnetic
- Released 2008
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- ...And Justice For All
- Released 1988
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- Master Of Puppets
- Released 1986
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listener reviews
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WHAT?
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- By JJKMAN28
- 3/31/2009 22:11:24
- I agree, how can you exclude Fight Fire with Fire and Escape? Especially Fight Fire with Fire because in my opinion its the best song on the album. Sure Fade to Black is good but it doesn't really have any hardcore riffs in it like some of the other songs.
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Very good improvement
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- By FOS yay
- 1/11/2009 05:41:36
- I love the advancement Metallica have made here over their previous
(yet still awesome) album Kill 'Em All. There are a few really good
songs here such as Fade To Black, For Whom The Bell Tolls, Ride The
Lightning, and lets not forget that kickass instrumental The Call Of
Ktulu. - 0 out of 1 people
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Classic
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- By ae1223
- 1/8/2009 17:44:43
- "Fade to Black" was the song that first made me fall in love with music. I owe a lot to Metallica.
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Fight the Fire
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- By MidDriftDragon
- 12/27/2008 00:00:14
- this is a great album
awesome instrumental
a step up from Kill Em All
in the top 5 for Metallica albums - 1 out of 1 people
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10/10
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- By FlyingHarry420
- 12/3/2008 21:57:01
- dude below me Escape And Fight Fire With Fire And some of the best songs ever dont exclud them
this is thrash metal at its peak - Be the first person to rate this review!
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9/10
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- By sidewinder321
- 10/29/2008 02:40:15
- In my opinion this album is 2nd only to Master of Puppets. This is where Metallica takes what was awesome in Kill 'Em All and improves on it, thus producing an album worth owning. Aside from the title track (which I believe the recording was probably left over from the Kill 'Em All days), James' singing has vastly improved since the band's last effort and goes for a lower growl rather than the high pitched nonsense found on the previous album. Also, this is the first album where current guitarist Kirk Hammett appears and he certainly demonstrates his worth through his blistering solos and thrashy riffs. The album has many awesome songs such as Ride the Lightning, For Whom the Bell Tolls, Fade to Black, Creeping Death, and Call of the Ktulu but unfortunately all of the other songs aren't too great. They may be enjoyable to listen to every once in a while but you find yourself listening to Ride, Fade, etc. much more. Overall Ride the Lightning is an excellent album and should have a place in every Metallica fan's or Metal lover's collection.
- 2 out of 4 people
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10/10
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- By Misery Messiah
- 7/21/2008 21:51:42
- By far the greatest album ever made. It has everything a rocker wants: the greatest ballad ever made (Fade To Black), the heavy guitar of Ride the Lightning, and the thrashyness of "Trapped Under Ice." Oh yeah, and the epic solos.
- 4 out of 6 people
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