For this week, I will be going over one of the most iconic albums of all time: Master Of Puppets by Metallica. Master Of Puppets, released in 1986, is a trash metal album. It was recently re-popularized when the title track was featured in the hit show Stranger Things. This album would mark the last of bassist Cliff Burton’s work with the band, as he would unfortunately pass away in a bus accident shortly after. Master Of Puppets received widespread acclaim from critics, and is considered to be one of the most influential and greatest metal albums of all time.

“Battery” opens the album with pure electricity. The song starts off with a smooth acoustic guitar riff, before adding in drums, bass, and distorted guitars. Then, it moves into pure thrash metal greatness. The song moves at a lightning fast pace, and keeps you hooked with its catchy lyrics.

The title track “Master Of Puppets” is one of the most iconic metal songs of all time. It is extremely notable for its use of down-picking and long instrumental sections. “Master Of Puppets” starts with a heavy guitar riff, before transitioning into its first verse. This song features even more catchy lyrics than “Battery.” After the first verse, the song transitions into a lighter instrumental section featuring a guitar solo by Kirk Hammett. The final guitar solo was heavily influenced by David Bowie’s song “Andy Warhol.”

My favorite song on the album, “Orion,” is an 8-minute-long instrumental piece. “Orion” is probably the closest Metallica ever got to making a progressive rock song. It starts off with a heavy guitar section, before transitioning into a spacey bridge featuring a bass solo from Cliff Burton. This song cemented Cliff’s legacy as an incredible bass player. The song was named “Orion” (after the star constellation) for its spacey bridge. After this section, the trash metal comes back to combine with the bass to create an epic finale to this instrumental masterpiece.

Overall, Master Of Puppets is an excellent album all around. I would recommend it to anyone looking to get into the metal genre of music. I would give Master of Puppets a 9/10.