METALLICA: Kill 'em All

Produced by Paul Curcio

Released: 1983

Some may argue the point, and some, like Overkill, may be able to back it up, but this is where thrash truly began. Before Kill 'em All, thrash was just an embryonic, underground musical movement like thousands before it. After this release, metal would never be the same. While some may still regard this as one the best thrash albums ever, Kill 'em All became pretty dated almost immediately by its creator's very next release and those of the slew of like-minded bands that rose up in its wake. The lyrics are vacuous, the production is ordinary and some of the material is relatively weak but for its all faults, this is where the American thrash wave got its start and it is still a vital release in that regard.

"Hit the Lights" rips from the silence with all the energy and immediacy of a young and emerging band, a barely controlled eruption of rapid fire guitar solos exploding from all directions as frantic vocals spit out drivel like "when we start to rock/We never (want to) stop again!". Until St Anger, this is Hetfield's worst vocal performance as his voice wavers all over the place, but at least here he sounds excited. "Motorbreath" and "Whiplash" are further examples of early Metallica's triumph of speed over substance, the latter prefaced by "(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth", Cliff Burton's wildly impressive but, from an album point of view, completely pointless bass solo. There's more to making an album than youthful exuberance, and this may well have been the end for Metallica had this been the best they could do.

Fortunately for them, Kill 'em All is redeemed by a couple of tracks that remain classics to this day. "The Four Horsemen" is the the track that dominates the first half of the album. With its main riff written by Dave Mustaine, this is an infinitely more together piece than anything else on the first half of the album and hearkens at the epic approach to songwriting that Metallica was to take after this album. The lyrics in the bridge even strive for some level of sophistication, even if they get the name of the First Horseman wrong. Similarly, the second half of Kill 'em All is overshadowed by "Seek and Destroy", the song whose immediate classic intro led countless wannabe axemen to the guitar store for lessons. Both of these songs point the way forward for Metallica, displaying some of the menace of which they were truly capable later on.

Twenty-five years down the road, Kill 'em All's NWOBHM-on-speed thrash prototype may seem decidedly lame as metal continues to get more aggressive and extreme, but make no mistake: without this, metal as we now know it may never have come to be.

1. Hit the Lights
2. The Four Horsemen
3. Motorbreath
4. Jump in the Fire
5. (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth
6. Whiplash
7. Phantom Lord
8. No Remorse
9. Seek and Destroy
10. Metal Militia

Rating: 78%