Vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield, drummer Lars Ulrich, and guitarist Kirk Hammett forged ahead with Jason Newsted, who appeared on 1988's …And Justice for All, their first album to reach the Billboard Top Ten. Master of Puppets, their major-label debut, found the band marshaling their forces but months after its release, the band suffered a tragic bus accident that killed bassist Cliff Burton. Emerging from the feverish metal underground of the early '80s, Metallica became a word-of-mouth sensation with their indie releases Kill 'Em All and Ride the Lightning, records that helped them land a contract with Elektra. By that point, Metallica already had experienced enough upheaval for two careers.

Metallica is the definitive heavy metal band, the group that brought the gnarly underground sounds of thrash metal into the mainstream, then reshaped the contours of heavy music and hard rock once they became the biggest rock band in the world after the release of their self-titled 'black album' in 1991.

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