Metallica Album: “Kill'em All [Deluxe] [2 LP]”

Metallica's 1983 debut wasn't exactly a good representation of them. "Kill `Em All" isn't nearly as dark as Metallica's later releases, like "Ride the Lightning." Plus, this album is a lot faster and thrashier. "Kill `Em All" is the sound of original thrash metal. Now, this band didn't give birth to speed metal (Motorhead did), but Metallica were the first to release a studio LP. Later in the 1980's, thrash would become very popular and bands like Anthrax, Testament, and Slayer would crop up.

Since this is the first available album that James, Kirk, Lars, and Cliff played together, it is somewhat immature. James' vocals are high pitched and some of his lyrics (i.e. "We'll never stop/we'll never quit/'cause we're Metallica!") are pretty amateur, but it's interesting to see what Metallica were like 20-some years ago. And "Kill `Em All" is still a very entertaining listen and great thrash. It may not be as brutal or rapid as say Slayer, but it's very catchy and full of fiery, breakneck-speed, buzzsaw guitar riffs and scorching solos.

1. "Hit the Lights" begins with the guitars slowly fading in, then, after Lars does a little smattering drum pattern, Kirk and James set their fret boards on fire with fast running riffs. This song has an audible, beeping bassline, but the real highlight is the several careening, almost screeching guitar solos.

2. "Four Horsemen" is Metallica's very first single, and it's still in regular rotation at radio stations (where I live, at least). It's not as fast as the first track, but it's quite catchy. It has an almost galloping beat, at times, and two more long, winding, classical sounding guitar solos.

3. "Motorbreath" begins with a drum intro, and a thumping snare drum runs throughout, but the really fast chugging guitar riffs are what dominate, here.

4. "Jump in the Fire" has more fast, chugging guitar work, but these riffs are different because they're groove-y and very catchy. Plus, there's another long, increasingly fast guitar solo near the end.

5. "(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth" is primarily, just one long solo. But it's not the work of Kirk or James... it's a bass solo! Cliff plays low, gluey, rumbling notes which make for a buzzing, beeping, ascending, occasionally wailing and wah-wah solo. A relaxed drum beat kicks in around the 2:40 mark, but Cliff makes this song world renowned among the metal community.

6. "Whiplash" begins with a low thumping of a bass drum, then James and Kirk come aboard and light up this track with "whiplash" speed guitar work and tempo changes. I enjoy how the beat builds to a point, then pauses, and James shouts "Here we go!" Briefly, at the end of this song, it becomes a stop-start beat.

7. "Phantom Lord" has another stop-start rhythm and riffs, and a couple pick slides, but James' vocals are almost inaudible because they're drowned out by the guitars. The beat then slows way down, but some heavy riffs and a pair of cascading Hammett solos speed it back up.

8. "No Remorse" is still a staple of Metallica's live show. It has rhythmic chug and churn riffs and one more, long, wailing guitar solo which makes this song gain density and speed.

9. "Seek & Destroy" has another very famous opening guitar melody, before it turns to crunchy riffs. This song is, musically, fairly repetitive, but it's still plenty catchy thanks to James' vocals.

10. "Metal Militia" is highlighted by more insane, rip-roaring guitar work.

So, "Kill `Em All" is a great thrash record and it has great musicianship. Even though it may not be the best representation of Metallica, and it's not as classic or essential as Metallica's second and third albums, it's still a great listen and it is very highly recommend for all metalheads. Plus, this is a very influential, original, and a milestone album, so if you want a complete heavy metal or thrash-metal collection, you definitely need to pick this up.

METAL UP YOUR ASS! This is Kill 'Em All, and you get exactly what you payed for.

Fast, Hard, Thrashy, all words made up discribe this masterpiece.

It starts off with Hit The Lights, which in my mind is probably the least good song on here, but it only goes up hill now.

The Four Horsemen could be a posterboy for thrash metal, In everyway thinkable it is a song to be respected and listened to.

Motorbreath is also a unique song, the intro drumming is awesome.

Jump In The Fire is a fast thriller of a song, if you like fast check this one out.

Now for (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth. This song is simply a showcase of the unmatched talent which is Cliff Burton.

Whiplash is also one of the fastest songs on this cd, it never slows down for a second.

Phantom Lord really stands out for me because of the solo. I dont think i've heard a better solo to date, which makes it great.

No Remorse is quite a good song, its fast and thrashy, I just cant call it one of favorites.

But now onto my personal favorite, Seek and Destroy. Seek and Destroy is a combination of catchy lyrics, fast creative riffs, and amazing solos.

Metal Milltia is one of the thrashiest songs on here for sure, but after a few listens i just couldn't find it to be a hit for me.

Basically, If your a fan of Thrash Metal at its best, or a Metallica fan in general, get out there and add this cd to your collection !!!

Heavy metal is a dead genre now but this, Metallica's debut LP, ushers back in all the imagery of 1980's doom, gloom and talk show worry talk again every time you hear it. 'Kill 'em All' comprises ten tracks (twelve if you can get your hands on the 1984 rerelease with the Diamondhead and Blitzkrieg covers) that pulsate with a speed/thrash energy not heard since. Perhaps a little dated to younger ears today, there is a lot to enjoy on here. In the speed category we have 'Hit the Lights', 'Motorbreath' and 'Jump In the Fire', while 'Seek and Destroy', 'No Remorse', 'Whiplash' and the masterful 'The Four Horsemen' line the forefront of the thrash section. The terrific thing about this album is that its sound hardly betrays the tender ages of its creators (20 years old on average). This was hard, fast, nasty music which combatted well the growing armies of glam-metalheads who were also coming out of L.A. . While not as refined as 'Ride the Lightning' or as well produced as 'Master of Puppets', 'Kill 'em All' possesses an exceedingly powerful feel (if all bands had a freshman release as killer as this, the record labels wouldn't know where to put the money!)and if there is any filler ('Motorbreath' and 'Whiplash' only being the weaker tracks), it has yet to show itself to these ears. There's also a few extra goodies in here. Apart from being shown the ugly mugs of these good natured lads in their post-pubecent stages, there is the strange 'Anesthesia - Pulling Teeth'. I don't like it as a song but I can appreciate why it was included: essentially as a buffer zone between the raunchy power of 'Jump in the Fire' and the blind road racing rocker 'Whiplash'. Also look out for 'Metal Militia'. Forget its monotony of sound and imagine the marching metal troopers descending upon every aspect of pop culture you never liked and wrecking them to bits. That's what 'Kill 'em All' meant to me ten years ago when I first found it and, although I only rarely listen to it anymore (why bother when I can play every part of every song using my mind's own 'MP3 player'), I would surmise that that meaning still exists to some smaller degree for me today........

Metallica was the unquestionably greatest band of the 80's, metal or otherwise. This certainly isn't the album that proves they were the best(though its vastly superior to the wretched music most of America associates with the 80's), but it's good enough to show that they were destined to be at least one of the top bands of the era.

This is of course their debut album, and like many debuts, they've not fully developed their style, and though its got many glimpses of the brilliance that would follow, it is alongside some relatively mediocre material that would later be weeded out. This is certainly partially due to the fact that the material for this album was written before Metallica's line up had fully solidified, so Dave Mustaine has 4 writing credits, and Kirk Hammet and Cliff Burton don't have any song writing credits.(other than Buron's solos, of course.) Lyrically, it's not quite to standard Metallica yet, with some lame "We're a band" songs, and some dumb supernatural/occult-ish themes that aren't often found on their later albums. However, as is often the case with lousy lyrics, I don't care at all. The singing is a bit wacked out too. Hetfield barely sounds like himself on most of the album, and frequently doesn't sound human at all. He hasn't fully developed his vocal style, so he shrieks more than shouts occasionally, which rarely happens on later albums. Also, Lars Ulrich's drumming is quite rudimentary on this album. He never stood up to the other major thrash drummers, but he definitely got a lot more flashy and interesting on the next couple of albums. Though this is definitely their rawest album, it's important to define what precisely that means in this case. It's rawer in that it's simpler and rougher, but, as is not often the case, the rawest album isn't the heaviest, fastest and most intense. Granted this album doesn't have anything that's as slow or soft as some later material, it also is generally lighter sounding, and doesn't have anything that is even close to as heavy as later tracks like Fight Fire With Fire and Damage Inc.

In the end, the only real reason this album is weaker than later ones is that is simply less consistent, and less varied. The next 3 albums had maybe 3 weaker tracks between them, while this album is about half great, half still good, but unspectacular. Still, the great stuff can be quite brilliant. The Four Horseman, apparently primarily done be ex-bandmate Dave Mustaine, shows the direction of later albums, with it's extended instrumental sections and stunning solos. Seek & Destroy, one of the best known songs from this album, is similarly epic, with a surprisingly catchy chorus for a metal song. Jump In the Fire in easily my single favorite track, as it has my favorite main riff from any Metallica song.(no small feat)Also of particular interest is the bass instrumental, (Anesthesia)--Pulling Teeth which is particularly astounding considering Cliff Burton was only 19 or 20 at the time(As was the entire band). Motorbreath is the last real standout track, and is actually one of the tracks least representative of later Metallica due to its short length and relative simplicity, resulting in it being almost a straight punk-song with a solo thrown in and half metallicized riffs. Sadly, the rest of the album is not nearly as inspired, if far from bad. Sure, plenty of cool riffs abound, especially on No Remorse and Metal Militia, but nothing else found here really jumps out at you that much.

Still, this is a very solid, sometimes spectacular metal album, which should be of interest to any fan of the genre, or anyone interested in significant albums, as this is the first thrash album, making it indirectly responsible for the emergence of numerous metal sub-genres.(I should mention, Show No Mercy might have been first, cause they came out the same year and I don't have the specific release dates for them, though I doubt it, cause if it were I'm sure I'd have heard a bunch of Slayer-fanatics point this out.)

Originally released in 1983 "Kill `em All" was Metallica's first album. The album was re-released in 1995. This album represents Metallica in their rawest form. Similar bands from the genre included: Exodus, Testament, Forbidden and England's Venom.

Metallic was formed in 1981 by drummer Lars Ulrich and vocalist James Hetfield in Los Angeles California. They have released ten full-length albums and show no signs of slowing down.

"Kill `em All" is Metallica at its most visceral level. The guitar riffs and solos explode with crackles of electricity. Lars Ulrich's drums thunder throughout each song. James Hetfield's throaty lyrics help push anyone listening into head banging ecstasy.

I would highly recommend this CD to anyone who wishes to explore the ferocity of heavy metal music. I also believe anyone interested in the west coast metal underground scene, that exploded in the early eighties, would find this CD essential to their listening experience.