Metallica: it is original a Heavy band Metal of the United States. It was founded on 1981 on Los Angeles by Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield. To date they have sold almost 100 million discs.

MembersPresentJames Hetfield - Voice/rythmical Guitar (1981 - present)

Lars Ulrich - Battery (1981 - present)

Kirk Hammett - Guitar leader (1983 - present)

Robert Trujillo - Under (2003 - present)

PreviousDave Mustaine - Guitar leader (1982 - 1983)

Ron McGovney - Under (1982)

Cliff Burton † - Under (1982 - 1986)

Jason Newsted - Under (1986 - 2001)

History

Concert in Madrid the 22 of June of 2003BeginningsIt is possible to be considered that the history of Metallica begins when in 1980 a young called Danish Lars Ulrich is transferred next to his family to Los Angeles. Son of the professional tennis player Torben Ulrich, Lars had developed to an enormous liking by the Heavy Metal during the '70 when NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal) reigned in the scene underground of Europe, and with its transfer to the United States, in principle anticipated by its father with the objective of the preparation of a race within professional tennis, this liking would practically become an obsession, mainly centered in the groups more underground of the new English current.

Its priority when arriving at Los Angeles, far from being centered in tennis, would be the one to operate its musical capacity along with other young people. This ambition would take to him in 1981 to publish an announcement in the Recycler magazine requesting a guitarist to concretely form a group with NWOBHM influences, being centered in its favourite bands: Diamond Head, Motörhead and Iron Maiden. Another young person responded to his announcement, was James Hetfield. The first joint tests took place, and although at the outset to James it did not convince the form to touch to him of Lars, ended up forming a group.

The key of this union was the subject that Lars had reserved on the part of his friend Brian Slagel, founder of at that time just created Blade Metal Record, in first recopilatorio who would publish the seal, denominated Massacre Metal. The name of the group was robbed by Lars to its friend Ron Quintana, who shuffled “Metalmania” and Metallica like possible names for new fanzine musical, although inclined more by the second.

To Lars it liked so much the second (Metallica) that quickly it recommended to him (to Ron Quintana) energetically first.Lars was transferred to the premises that James had next to Ron McGovney, that was one of the houses of the parents of McGovney whom allowed to their son and James to live in her. James requested to him to Rum that touched low in the band and it offered to teach to him to him. After incessant attempts to obtain a solista guitar influenced by Motörhead and Iron Maiden, they found to Lloyd Grant who was a young Afro-American guitarist with whom they touched first demo of titled Metallica “Hit the Lights” (1981). Lloyd did not think about remaining in the band and soon after Dave Mustaine would arrive to replace Lloyd in the guitar leader and thus to have the first alignment of Metallica, since in Dave Mustaine they found the ideal person to close the formation. The first step was the recording of the subject for the first delivery Massacre Metal.

The chosen one would be Hit the Lights, originating of the previous band of Hetfield, Leather Charm, in a version moved away enough of which a year later would appear in the first official album of the group. The debut of Metallica in direct would take place the 14 of March of 1982 in the club Radio City de Anaheim, in a performance in which the lack of tables on the scene caused serious problems to the band. Two weeks later would have the opportunity to amend their error being opened two nights followed for English the Saxon in Whiskey of Los Angeles. Like curiosity, it is possible to say that within the libreto of Inc. Garage they can be reproduced the notes that own Ulrich took at that time on the march of these two concerts, including setlists of both nights and the impressions of the drummer on the march of the same ones.

With edition Massacre the Metal in the month of June, the group, after apostatizing of the version of Hit the Lights appeared in he himself, to be completely out of phase of which it constituted his new sound, decides to probably record his first scale model, titled nonLife 'til Leather in a reference to the disc of Motörhead nonSleep 'til Hammersmith. Seven subjects would comprise of this scale model, between which was much more a version powerful and accelerated of Hit the Lights. With an agenda of concerts more and more fit, Hetfield and the Ulrichs begin to consider the substitution of Rum.

Years later, Rum said in an interview that the rest of the band left was in charge him of everything and often had to pay the single one. Simultaneously that begins to appear the problems with Dave Mustaine derived from an extremely violent character together with the extreme consumption of alcohol and drugs. Connoisseur of the necessity of Metallica to recruit a new bear, Brian Slagel recommends to Lars and James who see the band Trauma, that finished publishing one of its subjects in the second delivery Massacre Metal.

Hetfield and the Ulrichs would be made an impression totally with the skill and is present at in the scene of their bear, Cliff Burton, offering to him immediately entering to comprise of Metallica, which initially would be rejected by Burton.Still with McGovney in its rows, the band would record the 29 of November of he himself direct year one demo in in the The Waldorf of San Francisco, who would receive the name of Live Metal Up Your Ass and in which would release the Whiplash subject, unpublished until then.

The concert would have like teloneros to Exodus, whose solista guitar, a young person Kirk Hammett, would cause to a great impression in the tandem Hetfield-Ulrich, who before the increasing problems with Mustaine, begins to consider it like a perfect replacement. Just a short time later Ron McGovney decides to leave Metallica. Metallica never dismissed Rum as it is created. Ron McGovney declared: “It never listens to “These dismissed” or something thus from them. I resign, although it is obvious that, even though I never had resigned, of all ways were going to me to dismiss.” At the same time, Cliff Burton, who was having problems with Trauma due to the direction that the rest of the members wanted to take with respect to their music and that simultaneously was different from which Cliff wanted, decided to go to the rows of Metallica.

The only nonnegotiable condition that puts the bear was that the band was transferred San Francisco, where the new thrasheros sounds began to have a legion of followers who received the name of Bay Bangers Area. Of all ways, Lars, James and Dave already were thinking about changing themselves to San Francisco, because they had seen the energy and the enthusiasm of the scene thrash of that city, in addition of which the scene of Los Angeles was dominated by more and more the famous Hair Metal, with bands like Motley Crue and Ratt.Kill 'command post AllAt the beginning of 1983 promotional manager and of concerts Johnny Zazula (with the aid of its woman) is put in contact with the group to offer a transfer to them to New York, with the idea to organize several concerts in the Coast This, and if everything marched well, to record an album. After accepting the supply, Metallica initiates the trip the 1 of April, and after crossing all the country, they fix its new place of residence to the The Music Building de Yonkers, a building in which cohabited with several bands of rock, between which was Anthrax, which supposed the beginning of a great relation of friendship and camaraderie.

To the ten days from its arrival to New York, the situation with Dave Mustaine is made untenable completely, with which Hetfield and the Ulrichs surprise a just wide-awake Mustaine announcing to him that it was outside the group and that in a brief term left the bus which they had reserved for his return casa8 (later dave founds megadeth which also comprises 2 of the 4 great ones). For some, the factor that was finally decisive for the expulsion of Mustaine was the van accident that this one caused when leading ebrio in the passage that took to the group from San Francisco to New York.

The members already were prepared for this. They asked to him Jon Zazula who puts itself in contact with the guitarist of Exodus, Kirk Hammett, so that one to the band. At the outset, Kirk creia that the call of Zazula was a joke, but finally accepted. Of simultaneous form to the expulsion of Dave, Kirk Hammett left Exodus and she arranged myself to leave towards New York, arriving that same night at high hours of the dawn. Student of Joe Satriani; which always dira that Kirk is the worse student than she has had, Hammett would introduce a melódico, technical and streamlined sound in Metallica, that would become patent from the second album of the group, since first he was compound in its totality at the moment of its entrance. The debut of the new guitarist would take place in the Showplace New Yorker opening for The Rods. and Ratt.After a month of tests, Metallica would finally enter the 10 of May the Music America Studios to record its first album.

Tracklisting would practically be just as the one of nonLife 'til Leather, including like new features the Whiplash subject, already appeared in Live Metal Up Your Ass and the single one of low that Burton used to execute in the 5 concerts, under the name of Anesthesia - Pulling Teeth. In addition, also a rejuvenated version of the subject The Mechanix would be included, adding new riffs and ring-baptize it like The Four Horsemen. The production is the responsibility of Paul Curcio, proprietor of the studies and resident engineer, raising to its work mistrusts on the part of the group due to the difference of criteria with respect to the sound of the album.

After six weeks of work, the first work of Metallica would be sent in the month of July under the name Kill 'command post All. This name (“Mátalos to All”) came from the annoyance that produced in the group the refusal of diverse disc distributors to commercialize the album with the title that the group wanted to give him, Metal Up Your Ass (“Metal by the Ass”). Zazula, incapable to find record a company interested in publishing the disc, decided finally on the foundation of an own seal, Megaforce Record. Was obtained to the number of 17,000 copies sold in the two first 6 weeks, and mainly, Kill 'command post All remarkably contributed to extend the good reputation of Metallica, receiving an avalanche of favorable critics on the part of the press, that already began to see them like the initiators of a new current in the metal. As promotion form, Johnny Zazula would organize tour joint with Raven who the llevaria to all United States, consisting of 35 dates and baptized like Kill 'command post All For One Tour (the album that Raven was promoting calls “All For One”).

Later, and after several concerts in San Francisco, New York and Boston, and practically agreeing with the edition in Europe of single Jump in the Fire on the part of for Music Nations, the 3 of February of 1984 the tour European Seven Dates begins of Hell, in which they are in charge to open for English the Venom, having like moment summit the participation in the Aardshock Festival in Holland, touching before more than 5000 people, the hearing greater than they had had until the moment.Ride The LightningFinished his first European tour, Metallica would enter the 20 of February the Sweet Silence Studios of Copenhagen for the recording of its second album, falling all the weight of the production to resident Engineer Fleming Rasmussen, who or had worked previously with heavy weights like Mercyful Fate and Rainbow and later trabajaria with Brazilian the Grave or the Blind Germans Guardian. The fit budget which Zazula had turned the main problem during the recording of the album, that passed to a frenetic rate during less of a month, being finalized the 14 of March, and seeing themselves single interrupted by insolvent tour Hell On Earth next to The Rods and Exciter, finally cancelled by the little sale of entrances.

With this new work, Metallica would have to confront for the first time own originating critics of its fans due to the filtration of four subjects of the album in form of demo of work, concretely Fight Fire With Fire, Creeping Death, Ride the Lightning and the experimental and instrumental When Hell Freezes Over, first name of later well-known like The Call of Ktulu. To the considerable evolution shown in these subjects the latent rumor that was united the group was working in a ballad, which caused certain commotion within the sector more hardcore of fans of the group. Ride the Lightning, name that would finally receive the second album of Metallica, would suppose everything a change in the sound of the band, that was entered much more in melodicos and symphonic lands.

The composition workings counted on the collaboration of Burton and Mustaine, including this last certain riffs amazing in the subjects, as in the case of Creeping Death song published by Hetfield with a letter very hard, is single the most pleasant one according to the guitarist, who in his interludio took riff and the vocal line of the subject Die By My Hand. The controverted subject more of the album would be the suicidal dye ballad Fade to Black, written by Hetfield being inspired by the robbery of equipment that the band underwent the 14 of January of that same year, and seen by certain part of the first followers like a treason on the part of the band, to which they labeled openly like “sold”.

The first appearance of the band in the scenes after the recording would take place in two sold-out in the London Marquee, after which diverse concerts by Germany, Holland and Belgium would become. The most important moment of this tour would arrive the 3 from August in the Roseland of New York, where they would have a first contact with the seal Elektra, and in whom, after the concert, they would initiate the negotiations with Peter Mensch and Cliff Burnstein of the agency of management Q-Prioritize, which finally would end up buying the contract of Metallica to Johnny Zazula.

Probably this fact would foment the conversations of the band with Elektra, who would end up fichando them the 12 of September, after signing a contract in which an absolute artistic control was granted to the group on its race. The first movement of Elektra after recruiting to Metallica would be to reedit Ride the Lightning under its seal the 19 of November, simultaneously that Music For Nations, with which Zazula had a still effective agreement after the draftee by Elektra, publishes in Europe sigle Creeping Death, who would contain the The suite Garage Days Revisited, formed by the versions a.m. I Evil? of Diamond Head and Blitzkrieg of the group of he himself name. As well, tour begins new European, this time coordinated by Q Prioritizes with Robert Allen like tour to manager, that gives to beginning in the French city of Rusen the 16 of November and finalizes in the London Lyceum of London the 20 of December after to have visited France, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, Italy, Finland and England with an enormous success of I publish. Finalized the European tour, and after a rest per Christmas, Metallica initiates the 11 of January of 1985 tour by the United States and Canada next to its colleagues of Armored Saint, whose singer, John Bush, they had already tried to file previously in several occasions, and the WASP of Blackie Lawless, with those who the band had several rubbing due to the supposed ego of saying frontman.

It would be during this tour when the band begins to be well-known like Alcoholic by its excesses with the alcohol. To this the poster would be united which they placed in this bus, is not ed ***reflx mng, Sir. Her daughter is probably inside, that she gave an idea of the self-assured attitude of the group. After more than three months in the highway, the tour would have its end in the Starry Night Club of Portland.Masters of Puppets and the death of CliffSpent 2 years of tour, they returned to Copenhagen, he himself study where Ride The Lightning was recorded (Sweet Silence). From of Puppets arose Masters here, whose titled main song just as the album this valued by many fans like the best song of the band. In the tour of the Masters of Puppets the bus of the tour circulated around the Swedish wagon frosts, Cliff Burton was sleeping in the assigned bunk to Kirk Hammett (because this one last one lost in a bet playing naipes), and suddenly the bus overturned and fell on the body of the bear Cliff Burton, after leaving dismissed by the window, causing to him the instantaneous death the 27 of September of 1986. According to the conductor, the bus skidded due to the icy patches that were in the highway, which caused the upset; James, furious by the happened thing, tried to strike the conductor, being stopped by his companions; he himself Hetfield crossed a considerable distance of the highway, looking for the happy icy patches that the conductor had mentioned; it did not find anything. In the funeral of Burton, the Orion subject was listened to. Its death caused the suspension of the tour of the band, and the retirement of the three remaining members to think on the matter of its future. Finally band decided to continue with race musical of, and recruited to bear Jason Newsted of band “Flotsam and Jetsam”, recruited not by his form to touch, but because she was the only aspiring who held the drink rate of the other members of the band, in the position of the missing Cliff Burton.

The following year the band would return to Europe to complete the tour with its new bear. In his first performance with Metallica, Newsted, touched a single one of low, which caused a displeasure between fans of the band, that said that it was a lack of respect for the deceased Cliff Burton.Garage Days Re-Revisited and… And Justice For All In 1987 they would send a small album of versions of the groups that influenced titleholder to them “Garage Days Re-Revisited” to introduce to Newsted to fans, and in 1988 they would send new titled disc”… And for Justice All ".

This one is its darker album, with a sound dominated by dense rates of battery and very accelerated, of great complexity. In spite of which it could seem is a work melódico than his predecessors, with an absolutely negative atmosphere, and letters nearer the social, political and even ecological critic (“Blackened”). They emphasize the subjects “One” (was first vídeoclip recorded by the band, gathering scenes of the film “Johnny took its gun”; with this one vídeoclip, the band began to be recognized, but at the same time, they lost fans, same that erased them of sold), “To Live Is to Die” (dedicated to Cliff Burton being based on the sketches of a song which it was composing and although it is an instrumental subject, a poem is heard that was made up of the bearish deceased),”… And for Justice All " and “Blackened”. This production marks a landmark in the equipment of the guitars of Metallica, since valvulares Marshall leaves his full stacks, to much more bet by Boogie Table, obtaining an aggressive sound. the only one beats that it is possible to be attributed to him to the disc is, in spite of the evolution, the little quality in the production and the little volume that has the low one, which, almost is not heard or is impossible to watch at many moments.The Black AlbumIts following called work Metallica but better well-known like “The Black Album”, considered by the critic as the masterpiece of metallica, would be made hope until year 1991. Bon Jovi was produced by Bob Rock, known by their work next to the band. With songs like “Enter Sandman”, “Holier than Thou”, “Sad but True”, “The Unforgiven” and “Nothing Else Matters”, sold more than 500,000 copies in his first week in the U.S.A., being therefore one of the most sold of all heavy metal. Only in the U.S.A., the certifica RIAA 14 million copies sold from its exit to the street.

After this, the band made the tour Wherever I may roam, that lasted 2 years. After this tour, tour next to Guns began new n' Roses, the other group rock that at that time was a success. During the tour, in Montreal, Canada, the performance of Metallica steeply finished when during the song Fade To Black a fireworks exploded underneath James Hetfield, leaving it with serious burns, later the performance of Guns N' Roses was suspended, because Axl Rose suffered of an affection in the throat. The brief performance of Metallica and the cancellation of the show of Guns n' Roses caused the wrath of fans that caused multiple destructions, culminated this in hurt and excesses. Load/Reload and Inc. GarageThe Black Album would mark a point of flexion in the musical race of Metallica, and their two consecutive discs titled “Load” (1996) and “Reload” (1997), of identical styles to each other, totally are dominated by a sound that many old followers considered like commercial and very domesticated with smoother letters, in a style more closest the alternative rock that prevailed then.

Perhaps the chocante change for his fans was the change of image: the melenas were cut and changed easily reconocible logotipo that it identified to Metallica. The success of both albums was not as forceful as the one of the black album. All a new generation of adolescents convirtio in fans of Metallica, at the same time that many of their old fans were seen to a great extent “betrayed” by the new direction taken by the group, which since then takes feeding a great controversy. The Grammys they entered for the first time the category Heavy Rock instead of Heavy Metal, as it happened before the mentioned “Load”.

That same year the Finnish band Apocalyptica made debut with its tribute to Metallica “Plays Metallica by Four Hoops”, that were basically an album with covers of Metallica touched solely with Violonchelos. The 1998 would make a new work similar to the “Garage Days Re-Visited” titled “Inc. Garage. ”, although this time would be a loaded double album of versions of subjects of quite diverse styles that they influenced to the band in his already expanded race. Whereas disc 1 had covers recorded for the launching of the album, disc 2 contained complete the Garage Days originating Revisited of single of Creeping Death, and the Garage Days Re-revisited, in addition to several originating versions of faces B and an extract of the concert of versions of Motörhead that Metallica gave in the 50 birthday of Lemmy the 4 of December of 1995 in Whiskey.

The following year they would record in a direct concert in the “S&M” in collaboration with the Symphony orchestra of San Francisco, directed by Michael Kamen, who, years later, haria the same with the idolos of the Glam Kiss, also directed to the orchestras of the concert “The Wall” in Berlin and “To concert for George” and habia made the adjustments of orchestra for “Nothing else matters” in the Black Album. In this double album the mixture between music of songs of Metallica with orquestales adjustments is experienced. In addition, two new specially compound subjects for the occasion, Leaf Clover and - Human would appear, not being extracted first of them as second single of the disc.The Napster episodeIn April of 2000, Metallica demanded to Napster, the company that sent to the program homónimo that allowed the interchange of music in format MP3, by violation of the author rights, because a version of the song, still in process for the film Impossible Mission II was listened to in the radio of the United States. Two weeks later, Dr Dre also demanded to Napster.

In 1999, Napster already had been accused by the RIAA to break laws of intellectual property and to serve as asylum for the musical piracy in Internet, in addition of which some universities had called to prohibit to Napster, because the speed of its networks diminished. For May of 2000, Napster blockade the passwords of more than 35 thousand users provided by the Ulrichs and who had obtained songs of Metallica. Chuck D., The Offspring, Limp Bizkit and Courtney Love spoke in favor of Napster and warned on the opportunity that meant for consumers and artists. For Chuck D., Napster was a reaction, “the greater musical phenomenon from the Beatles”, “the industry has been boasted of to guide the hearings; fans has had the technology for the first time before the industry”.

In its defense, Napster I allege that Serbian single like conduit of the information. In June of that year, the RIAA pidio to eliminate of Napster all the content pertaining to the greater disqueras. In September of he himself year, Metallica and Dr. Dre sent letters to Harvard, Columbia and other universities so that they restricted the access to Napster. October, Dave Matthews Band became the first group in allowing the distribution of a song via Napster, with venia of his company. In addition, the 17 of January of 2001, Jason Newsted left Metallica.Saint Anger and Some Kind of MonsterIn 2001 the bear Jason Newsted, who previously (Load-Reload period) had had serious discussions with the other members on his projects outside the group, would leave Metallica alleging physical wearing down and personal reasons. Just a short time later, in the controverted interview made by Playboy to all the members of the band separately several months before the march of Jason, would be discovered that a great part of the march of the bear came based by the negative rotunda from Hetfield to the publication of the disc of Echobrain, the alternative band of Newsted.

After a length casting in search of substitute, would be replaced by Robert Trujillo, who was bearish of Suicidal Tendencies (band hardcore of Venice), Black Label Society and bear of Ozzy Osbourne. It is possible to stand out that Jason Newsted, after leaving Metallica, belonged during a time to the band of Ozzy. This same year the satirical band is created tribute, Beatallica, which fuses the music of The Beatles and Metallica.

They had a legal problem with Sony, that has the right on the material of the Beatles, but were helped by Lars the 9 Ulrichs. The band would return to international the musical panorama in 2003, with new work of titled study “St. Anger” and repeating in the producer position Bob Rock, who in addition touches the low one in the album. Faithfuls to their guideline to evolve with each new album, in “St. Anger” purely mix the rates thrash with melodías very characteristic of denominated Nu-Metal. As peculiarities of the disc emphasize the absolute absence of single of guitar, and a sound of the box of the totally novel and equally controversial battery that was in the box, which tapeworm a metallic overtone instead of the one of used dry wood until then. this, mainly, is the cause of which a disc of the Nu-Metal call is considered him, because this style, aside from combining power with shaved, melodicas and/or extreme voices, one of its significant characteristics but is the use of that type of box In the 2004 of Monster”, that narrates the production of the “St. Anger” in the middle of discussions and problems after exit of Jason and of the rehabilitation of James Hetfield, of who would be sent to the documentary “Some Kind already knew its passion by the alcohol.

Hetfield had entered the alcoholism after a trip to Siberia, where according to him its only drink was the vodka. In the documentary one they make appearance Jason Newsted and his Echobrain band (Lars and Kirk go to one of their presentations, they go towards the dressing rooms and when Jason arrives already habian itself gone) and the guitarist of the first days, Dave Mustaine, who has a touching conversation with Lars on his dismissal and its race with Megadeth.The present timeIn the 2006 band I make tour Escape from the studio 06 where they touched “Masters Of whole Puppets” in commemoration to its 20 anniversary. During this tour, the band I touch 2 new songs: New Song and The Other New Song. Soon the 18 of Julio in Moscow will continue with the Sick tour of the Studio 07 finalizing their tour, Russia. The 4 of December of the 2006 were sent the compilation of all their videos from 1989 to the 2004 The call Videos. This includes all its videos from One to Some Kind of Monster and like bonus, the two versions of the video of One, the theater version of The Unforgiven of 11 minutes, the trailer of the film Some Kind of Monster and in addition for the first time in DVD the 2 introduction of of One. Also Kirk and James appeared in the Metalocalypse program and the whole band in the Simpson, in addition you would apareceran in the film Get Thrashed. In the 2007 they recorded cover of Ennio Morricone The Ecstacy of Gold that appeared in the disc tribute “We All Love Ennio Morricone”.

The group already I have been confirming the launching of its new album that began to be recorded the 14 of March and has Rick 10 Rubin like producer replacing to Bob Rock, its producer for more than 15 years. Metallica, at the present time, has sold more than 100 million discs in all the planet and belongs to the stroll of the fame in Hollywood.