Review Summary: An excellent album, but not the magnum opus it's made out to be...
Once Metallica released their sophomore album
Ride The Lightning in 1984, their unique brand of Thrash Metal with rhythmic riffs and ever-evolving song structures was set in stone. To put it bluntly, Metallica had set the metal world ablaze with their two studio albums quickly progressing the popularity of Thrash. In 1986, Metallica released their follow up record to
Ride The Lightning,
Master of Puppets. Considered as one of the most monumental albums in Thrash Metal history, the weight of
Master of Puppets is still carried to this day, in the same vein as
Peace Sells... and
Reign in Blood. While it didn't kick-start Thrash Metal as a genre, nor Metallica's career for that matter, the band's third record would ultimately showcase some of the best material in the band's long-running arsenal, and get newcomers to the sub genre in the process.
Right from the get-go, the album is ready to show off what it has to bring to the table.
"Battery" opens similarly to
"Fight Fire with Fire", with a Spaniard acoustic piece being countered by shrieking guitars and heavy riffs. While the song could easily be seen as a repetitive work for the band,
"Battery" is important as an opening, outlining the distinct differences between the two albums. The first thing that grabs your attention is the clear production, which even for a band as big as Metallica were, was almost unheard of in 1986. Instead of detracting from the rawness of the album, the increase in superb production and engineering is used to puncture your ear drums harder than ever before, making the contrast in tone between the calming acoustic set and the crushing riffs with thumping drums all the more potent. As an opening song, very little compares in quality or in conveying an album's distinction as
"Battery" does.
On top of the increase in production and engineering values,
Master of Puppets also focuses on encapsulating the mature writing style of
"Fade To Black" and bringing it to the forefront. This works on multiple tracks, such as
"Welcome Home(Sanitarium)", a song about a man whose abuse and mistreatment in an insane asylum drives his rampant madness to the point of frustrated agitation and dreams of breaking free from such a reality. Or
"Disposable Heroes", Metallica's first song to rebel against the idea of the modern military system, with lyrics of the manipulative government and their misuse of young lives. Hell, while
"The Thing That Should Not Be" doesn't focus on mature storytelling and is often considered the worst song off the album, it easily contains some of the best lyrics in Metallica's entire catalog with it's Lovecraftian speak of Kthulu awakening once more from the bottom of the sea, making the return as the most vile monster the world has ever known. Though the quality is fairly consistent,
"Battery" and
"Damage, Inc." both open and close the album with mediocre lyricism and generic, albeit catchy acts of blood pumping rage and violent fury. They get the job done well and really that's all that matters but they don't come close to the other songs in that respect.
Speaking of inconsistency, one thing that keeps
Master of Puppets from being the pinnacle of Metallica's career would have to be it's issues with filler. Though many will point at
"The Thing That Should Not Be" as the blistering thumb of the record's track listing, it makes good use of Hetfield's defiant and commandeering vocals and screams, and even has one of the best bass progressions in Metallica's entire career. It's atmosphere and build up is overshadowed by none, though it can occasionally feel like it suffers from a little bit of tedium and a lack of momentum. I instead would rather point to
"Leper Messiah" as the most pointless and least interesting song on the record. It feels overly long and dull, and just doesn't create hooks that really sink into your skull the same way the other songs on the record do.
"Damage, Inc." also stands out as an unnecessary addition despite being one of the most legendary songs on the record. While I understand the songs appeal, the masterful
"Orion" instrumental was much more deserving of taking it's place as the album closer, and really
"Damage, Inc." fails to end the album on a meaningful note.
In conclusion,
Master of Puppets is an excellent album, but not the magnum opus it's made out to be.While it does represent a lot of Metallica's best material, it also has some of the most blatant filler in the band's 80's timeline. I can't for the love of me understand how
"Trapped Under Ice" and
"Escape" are what stops
Ride The Lightning from being a masterpiece in fan's eyes, yet the same doesn't apply to
"Leper Messiah" or the massively overrated
"Damage, Inc.". That doesn't stop this from being one big thrill ride though, and a lot of it's acclaim is well deserved. This is a great milestone for Thrash Metal, just be prepared to get bored every once and a while. Highly recommended!
Best tracks :
"Battery"
"Master of Puppets"
"Welcome Home(Sanitarium)"
"Disposable Heroes"
"Orion"
Worst tracks :
"Leper Messiah"
"Damage, Inc."
