Metallica’s ‘Black Album’ Turns 25: Disturbed, ADTR, Deftones, Shinedown + More Reflect
Twenty-five years! It's hard to believe, but Metallica's 1991 self-titled fifth album, more commonly known as "The Black Album," turns 25 years old today (Aug. 12). But even with so much time passing, the album still sells plenty of copies each week and is the one of the biggest sellers of all-time. One of the reasons why the album has endured is that it is a highly influential release that pushed metal into the mainstream and introduced new listeners to the brilliance of heavy music. As we reflect on the 25th anniversary of Metallica's "Black Album," we spoke with a number of musicians in the hard rock and metal genres about their experiences with being introduced to the landmark album. Watch it all play out in the video above.
Disturbed's David Draiman recalls being particularly thrilled to hear Metallica's "Sad But True" in a club as a teenager. He recalls, "Just hearing that riff and feeling that groove and it just being something so unbelievably powerful and raw and yet still catchy and infectious." The singer goes on to call "Don't Tread on Me" one of his favorite songs. "That record was their moment for the stars to align, for everything to be right at the right time," adds Draiman. "They transcended the genre and they took metal to the next level. They took metal to the masses."
A Day to Remember's Jeremy McKinnon discusses just how difficult it is to not only make a monster hit metal album, but also one that connects on such a wide level. "When it comes to mainstream metal, I think it's fair to say that it doesn't get any better than that," says the singer. "For a band to play speed metal and write a record that my mom knows, heart to heart, I mean I don't know what else to say … you guys are bad ass."
Asking Alexandria's Ben Bruce credits "Through the Never" for making him want to start playing metal licks. Shinedown's Eric Bass and Deftones' Sergio Vega reflect on their youth and listening the album repeatedly, and Steel Panther's Stix Zadinia also shines a light on one of the album's unsung heroes -- producer Bob Rock. Watch all of the commentaries in the Metallica "Black Album" salute above, and make sure to do like Eric Bass says and put on the "Black Album" and listen to it, from beginning to end, and enjoy the timeless music that Metallica created.
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