MoeFOH's Album Of The Week... Week #49

[MoeFOH]

MoeFOH's Album of the Week 🎶

Same as the movie thread, each week we're going to spotlight an album... be it a classic, new release, hidden gem, or outright turd... and open it for discussion: i.e. post up your favourite tracks, clips, lyrics, experiences if you saw live, etc... or dive deeper and give us a critique on why you think it's great, overrated, or a complete train wreck... And finally score it for us...  

All contributors go into a monthly prize draw for a 3-cigar sampler! 

PM me with suggestions if there's an album you want to nominate for next week's discussion. 

 

Week #49: Master Of Puppets

Moe says: Much like Pink Floyd, the Metallica catalogue (well, I must admit my listening dropped off a cliff after St Anger and a minor dabble in Death Magnetic, so not the entirety of it) is usually very mood based as far as album selection goes. But if I'm going pre-Bob Rock era then MOP is usually the go-to. Stunning album! In the right mood, cranked, it's hard for me to think of any HM peers... but that's just my opinion. 9.5/10. Over to you!

Master of Puppets is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released on March 3, 1986, by Elektra Records. Recorded in Denmark at Sweet Silence Studios with producer Flemming Rasmussen, it was the band's last album to feature bassist Cliff Burton, who died in a bus accident in Sweden during the album's promotional tour.

The album's artwork, designed by Metallica and Peter Mensch and painted by Don Brautigam, depicts a cemetery field of white crosses tethered to strings, manipulated by a pair of hands in a clouded, blood-red sky, with a fiery orange glow on the horizon. Instead of releasing a single or video in advance of the album's release, Metallica embarked on a five-month American tour in support of Ozzy Osbourne. The European leg was canceled after Burton's death in September 1986, and the band returned home to audition a new bassist.

Master of Puppets peaked at number 29 on the Billboard 200 and received widespread acclaim from critics, who praised its music and political lyrics. It is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influential metal albums of all time, and is credited with consolidating the American thrash metal scene. It was certified six times platinum by the RIAA in 2003 for shipping six million copies in the United States, and was later certified six times platinum by Music Canada and platinum by the BPI. In 2015, Master of Puppets became the first metal recording to be selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Over to you...

How do you rate it? 🤔

Thoughts, experiences, memories... post em' up! 

Score it out of 10!  

[MoeFOH]

 

[Low]

This is going to be slightly controversial, but I think this is Metallicas weakest album pre Bob Rock. In my opinion there's at least two guaranteed skips (Thing That Should Not Be Named, Leper Messiah) when listening and maybe three (Orion) depending on mood. The highlights of the album are potentially the most recognizable songs that Metallica released during this time frame, but when I'm going to skip 1/4 of the album I can't put it higher than any of the other three. I would still probably give it a very favorable score of 7.5/10, as the other 3/4 of the album I don't skip is some of Metallicas best work

[Ford2112]

Orion. Killer album. Last one with Cliff. Kirk hadn't started using the wah yet so much. 9/10 simply because Ride is their best. Nah its a 10. Blood will follow blood. Dying time is here...Damage Inc.

 

[Low]

9 minutes ago, Ford2112 said:

Ride is their best

Have you heard this version of Justice? It's been remastered to actually include the bass this time around. Ride would also probably be my favorite studio album, but if this was the version that was released, I think it would take the cake.

 

[Chibearsv]

Title song and Orion get played a lot in my car.  Enough to warrant a future hearing aid I’m betting. Not an album I’m listening to end to end. I could say that about most albums though.

[Greenhorn2]

Not my favorite album from Metallica but still has some good works on it. 8-8.5/10.

[Capn_Jackson]

My favorite is And Justice for All, especially the unofficial version where someone boosted the bass (And Justice for Jason, as mentioned by @Low). Master is probably my second favorite. My older brother made sure I was well-versed in Metallica as a child of the 80’s. Still a fan to this day.

[Puros Y Vino]

10/10 for me.  Was already a Metallica fan when this came out.  Metal has never been about hit singles but rather full albums with cohesive tracks.  And IMO there isn't a weak track on this album.  MOP took a similar song layout as the previous album Ride the Lightning.  Open with an acoustic intro that lead into a head ripping, chainsaw riff.  Follow that up with a epic 7/8 minute song(in both cases the title track). Have a few slow crunchers, some fast stuff and an instrumental piece.  I saw them in concert about a month or two after Cliff's death.  The show was amazing.  Jason "new kid" did a fine job filling in for Cliff but many were bummed that he was gone.  You can sense a bit of sorrow in the air.   Just a few years ago I found a video bootleg of that concert on Youtube.  I'm still a fan.  Load/Re-Load are very atypical Metallica albums, more of a Southern Rock  sound turned up to 12.  And to this day I cannot listen to St Anger or that turd of an album they did with Lou Reed.  I do wish they didn't alienate Jason Newstead.  He really brought a lot of energy to their live shows and yes, it is criminal how they mixed down his bass in the And Justice for All album.  I have nothing against Rob Trujillo, but Jason really was the guy they should have stuck with.  They've got a new album coming in April I believe and from the two tracks they released on Youtube, it looks promising.  I hope they can keep going for years to come.

[Doctorossi]

I think Ride the Lightning is their best album, but this will do for second place. The relentless Disposable Heroes (probably their best song for me), Orion (that creamy guitar tone in the breakdown section!) and Damage, Inc. are enough to make it a must. 8/10, bordering on 9/10.

[Ford2112]

19 hours ago, Low said:

Have you heard this version of Justice? It's been remastered to actually include the bass this time around. Ride would also probably be my favorite studio album, but if this was the version that was released, I think it would take the cake.

Justice is great but I could never put it over Ride the Lightning regardless of the mix.