THE BIG 5: METALLICA’S BIGGEST MOMENTS IN THE FIVE YEARS SINCE ‘DEATH MAGNETIC’

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On Sept. 12, 2008, Metallica unleashed their ninth studio album, ‘Death Magnetic.’ Still being criticized for 2003′s ‘St. Anger,’ Metallica’s latest effort received positive reviews from both critics and fans. An album chock full of pure rock and old-school thrash, ‘Death Magnetic’ was a significant comeback for the legendary band.

With seemingly different answers every time the question is asked, every fan wants to know one thing and one thing only: When is the next Metallica album coming out? While it’s been five years since ‘Death Magnetic,’ the band has actually been quite active during that time period, taking part in some of the most memorable events in their careers. Below, we run through five of Metallica’s biggest moments in the five years since ’Death Magnetic’ was released:

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction

2009

 

 

On April 4, 2009, Metallica were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It was the moment fans had been waiting for, and it definitely lived up to expectations. With Jason Newsted being inducted alongsideJames Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo - and late bassist Cliff Burton - it only made sense that the five guys would jam together onstage. That's exactly what they did as they tore into renditions of 'Master of Puppets' and 'Enter Sandman.'

 

The Big 4

2010

 

 

Metallica have always been considered one of the most legendary thrash metal acts of all time. Not ones to steal the spotlight from their comrades, Metallica joined forces with Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax to form The Big 4. On June 16, 2010 in Warsaw, Poland, for the first time in history these four bands shared the stage together. The Big 4 would prove to be such a success that the four bands would play several more shows across the globe, including Yankee Stadium in New York City.

 

The 30th Anniversary Concerts

2011

 

 

Exclusive to Met Club members, Metallica played four shows at the Fillmore in San Francisco, Calif. in celebration of their 30th anniversary. History was made as guests like former members Dave Mustaine, Jason Newsted and original bassist Ron McGovney joined Metallica onstage to perform classic tunes. Other highlights included the debut of brand new songs from the 'Death Magnetic' recording sessions, that would later be part of the 'Beyond Magnetic' EP. Thirty years into their career and Metallica were still full of surprises.

 

Orion Music & More Festival

2012

 

 

After celebrating 30 years of rocking the world, some bands might take a breather. Metallica did the exact opposite, and early in 2012 announced their next step toward total domination: Orion Music + More, a two-day festival planned and put on by Metallica, and in its inaugural year featured the band headlining both nights in Atlantic City. Night one saw the band playing 'Ride the Lightning' in its entirety and night two gave fans the experience of hearing 'The Black Album.' Orion was such a success that it returned the following year, this time setting up the festival in Detroit.

 

'Metallica: Through The Never'

2013

 

 

The phrase, "Go big or go home" must be Metallica's personal slogan. The band never does things halfway, and with their first full-length feature film, they are making sure everything is huge. Opening on Sept. 27, 2013, 'Metallica: Through The Never' will debut on every IMAX screen in North America. The biggest metal band in the world meets the biggest movie screen in the world. With a dark apocalyptic story intertwined with epic concert footage shot in 3D, 'Metallica: Through The Never' proves that Metallica are always thinking of the next big thing for them and their fans.

 

TOP 10 FREDDIE MERCURY QUEEN SONGS

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Queen are one of the few classic-rock bands in which all four members individually participated in the songwriting process. But none contributed more songs or more hits than singer and pianist Freddie Mercury, whose singular voice and inimitable command of stage and crowd earned him legendary status long before AIDS robbed the world of his talent. That legend still burns brightly 20 years on, and it’s no exaggeration to state that the songs Mercury crafted beside his Queen bandmates will continue to retain their stadium-filling appeal and glamorous luster through the ages. All hail to the king — here are the Top 10 Freddie Mercury Queen Songs.

10

‘Mustapha’

From: ‘Jazz’ (1978)

 

 

The opening volley from 1978’s ‘Jazz’ album is a brilliant showcase for Mercury's vocal acrobatics backed by all of Queen’s inimitable heavy rock power and a rare glimpse into his typically played-down Parsi heritage. 'Mustapha''s head-scratching lyrics are partly tongue-in-cheek gibberish and partly a blend of English, Persian and Arabic words spun into Mercury's own musical Esperanto -- otherwise known as the universal language of rock.

Hear ‘Mustapha’

 

 

9

‘My Fairy King’

From: ‘Queen’ (1973)

 

 

A highlight of Queen’s first LP, ‘My Fairy King’ represents one of the first full-scale flowerings of Mercury’s boundless imagination, genre-bending eclecticism and one-of-a-kind talent. In addition to displaying the vast range of both his voice and piano skills, the song’s rococo glories and fanciful storytelling foreshadow some of Mercury's grandest, wildest and most ambitious creations for the band in the years ahead.

Hear ‘My Fairy King’

 

 

8

‘My Melancholy Blues’

From: ‘News of the World’ (1977)

 

 

Another sterling showcase for Mercury's sublime piano playing, ‘My Melancholy Blues’ is one of the most distinct songs in Queen’s canon -- not only because of its unusually low-key, jazz-like approach and spartan instrumentation (just Mercury on piano, John Deacon on fretless bass,Roger Taylor on brushes and no sign at all of guitarist Brian May), but because it finds Mercury in a subdued, confessional mindset totally at odds with his larger-then-life rock-god persona.

Hear ‘My Melancholy Blues’

 

 

7

‘Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to ... )’

From: ‘A Night at the Opera’ (1975)

 

 

Heads up: Never cross Freddie Mercury -- you might find your villainy immortalized in song. Such was the fate of former Queen manager Norman Sheffield on ‘A Night at the Opera’'s withering opener, ‘Death on Two Legs,’ which garnishes Mercury’s blistering insults with Brian May’s ‘Jaws’-like power chords. Curiously, Sheffield would go so far as to write an entire book to dispute this legend – even though that didn’t stop him from suing Queen for libel after first hearing the song and being handed his walking papers.

Hear ‘Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to...)’

 

 

6

‘Somebody to Love’

From: ‘A Day at the Races’ (1976)

 

 

Even though it was made to follow in the chart-topping footsteps of the incomparable ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’ ‘A Day at the Races’’ climatic centerpiece, ‘Somebody to Love,’ is anything but a half-assed sequel. It shares little with its predecessor beyond multiple sections and lofty ambitions; Mercury and Queen essentially took their trademarked choir vocals from the opera house to the church pulpit in a sanctified display of earthly devotion inspired by American gospel music.

Hear ‘Somebody to Love’

 

 

5

‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’

From: ‘The Game’ (1980)

 

 

Queen’s first U.S. No. 1 single (and a Top 10 smash in a dozen other countries), the playful, irresistibly catchy ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ stripped away the dense arrangements found in most Queen songs. And “stripped” is the key word, since Mercury allegedly composed his tribute to Elvis Presley and ‘50s rock 'n' roll while lounging in a bubble bath. The singer would later perform the song’s acoustic rhythm guitar parts himself -- in the studio and at Queen concerts, to the delight of fans.

Hear ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’

 

 

4

'Love of My Life'

From: ‘A Night at the Opera’ (1975)

 

 

It pains us to omit the exquisite ‘You Take My Breath Away’ from our list of the Top 10 Freddie Mercury Queen Songs, but there's no way we would exclude Queen’s signature ballad ‘Love of My Life,’ which was written by Mercury for his girlfriend at the time, Mary Austin. In its original studio form, found on 1975’s ‘A Night at the Opera,’ the song’s excessively florid arrangement (complete with harp!) proves almost too saccharine to swallow. But when performed onstage as a duet between Mercury and Brian May, ‘Love of My Life’ attained a second life, even becoming something of an anthem in South America.

Hear ‘Love of My Life’ [Live]

 

 

3

‘Killer Queen’

From: ‘Sheer Heart Attack’ (1974)

 

 

Queen’s breakthrough single amazingly condenses all of their novel sonic trademarks (Brian May’s harmonized guitars, those layered vocals, etc.) into three near-perfect minutes of orgiastic heavy glam rock. No wonder the song took 'Top of the Pops' by storm in the fall of 1974, with its lyrics citing everything from Moet Chandon to Marie Antoinette, caviar to etiquette, guillotines to laser beams – all of them meant to evoke both luxury and absurdity. Never mind that most of it makes no sense. As Mercury himself would have probably explained it, “Who cares, darling, who cares?”

Hear ‘Killer Queen’

 

 

2

‘We Are the Champions’

From: ‘News of the World’ (1977)

 

 

It’s only natural that the frontman for one of history’s greatest stadium rock bands would come up with one of the greatest sporting anthems. With a little help from Brian May’s complementary ‘We Will Rock You,’ 'We Are the Champions' soon raised audiences to their feet the world over -- no matter how large the arena in which Queen increasingly found themselves performing as their global fan base swelled. It's not much of a surprise that a scientific research team recently identified it as the catchiest song in the history of popular music.

Hear ‘We Are the Champions’:

 

 

1

‘Bohemian Rhapsody’

From ‘A Night at the Opera’ (1975)

 

 

What’s left to say that hasn’t already been said – in duplicate, triplicate and four- or five-part harmony – about the inevitable crowning achievement on our list of the Top 10 Freddie Mercury Queen Songs? The magnificent ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ sounds just as ambitious, revolutionary and preposterous (but in the best possible way) today as it did nearly 40 years ago, when Queen first unveiled it, leaving ears ringing, eyes bulging and jaws gaping. Simply put, nothing else compares with Mercury's magnum opus and Queen’s definitive song.

Hear ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’