We know when you think of holiday cheer, Metallica is the first thing that comes to mind, so we’re doing a Metallica-themed Advent calendar to help put a little metal up your ass as we make our way to Christmas.
Here it is – the birth of thrash metal. With all of the many eras of Metallica, its constant evolution, and its occasional steps out on a limb that typically result in near-universal fan revolt, it’s sometimes easy to forget that this band helped usher in an entire genre of music.
Originally titled Metal Up Your Ass, with the cover to feature a hand clutching a dagger emerging from a toilet, the album was renamed Kill ‘Em All when it was determined distributors would have a hell of a time selling it under the former name.
But damn does this album put some metal up your ass!
Due in large part to Dave Mustaine’s original influence and contributions, Kill ‘Em All sounds unlike anything else the band has ever done. It’s more frantic, unhinged, and the perfect blend of heavy metal and punk, topped with the finest of mind-bending solos. It also feels just the right amount of underproduced. For a debut album, it’s an incredible product. It’s also the Metallica album to choose when you just want to get fucking nuts.
At a time when glam metal dominated the scene, Metallica bucked the trend and pushed the genre to new heights, with their critically-acclaimed debut album remaining an essential piece of metal history. Most people credit Kill ‘Em All as the beginning of the thrash era, and it’s gone three-times platinum in its 37-year existence, which is just another symbol of the unbelievable endurance of these metal pioneers.
Album Essentials:
- “Hit the Lights”
- “The Four Horsemen”
- “Jump in the Fire”
- “Whiplash”
- “Seek & Destroy”
