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Metallica Albums Ranked Worst to Best
May
Ranking Metallica’s studio albums requires making difficult comparisons among several remarkably different eras of the band’s career.
The long-reigning kings of metal rose to fame as part of a fierce cadre of bands who injected an aggressive new energy into metal, helping to revolutionize the genre with other early thrash legends like Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer. But co-founders James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich haven’t been content to rest on those laurels – something that’s earned them millions of new fans even as it caused some older ones to scratch their heads.
Their second era, which lasted from 1990-2003, saw them collaborate with producer Bob Rock and achieve staggering commercial success with 1991’s self-titled “black album.” At one point, Rock even served as bassist in the group between the tenures of Jason Newsted and Robert Trujillo, shepherding them through the agonizing recording sessions for the divisive St. Anger.
Perhaps that album’s polarizing response heralded a return to Metallica’s thrash roots on 2008’s Death Magnetic. Although their recorded output has slowed down considerably over the past two decades, the band has remained at the forefront of the rock world by employing the same basic approach on 2016’s Hardwired … to Self-Destruct and 2023’s 72 Seasons. This era also saw them take one of their most surprising left turns with Lulu, a highly experimental 2011 collaboration with rock legend Lou Reed that deeply divided supporters from both camps.
Which record of original songs ranks as the pinnacle? Keep scrolling to see where your favorite lands on our list of Metallica Albums Ranked Worst to Best.
Metallica Albums Ranked
There are moments of indecision when compiling this list. After all, we really could have had – for the first time ever – a three-way tie for first.
12. ‘Lulu’ (2011)
We weren’t sure whether or not to count Lulu, the band’s collaboration with the legendary Lou Reed, as a proper Metallica studio album. But, once we decided to do so, there was no question where it would rank on this list. Both parties deserve a lot of respect for trying something so different. But the end result – this plodding spoken-word mess – is really hard to sit through.
11. ‘St. Anger’ (2003)
Metallica again bravely, but perhaps misguidedly, experimented here with the methods that made them the biggest metal band in the world. The high-tech production of Metallica’s previous albums is replaced with something much more grainy and shrill. Oh, and Kirk Hammett wasn’t allowed to play any guitar solos. But the biggest problem? The disjointed and bloated songwriting, which ultimately wasted a big bundle of tantalizing riffs.
10. ‘Reload’ (1997)
This is the follow up / companion to 1996’s Load, which was originally planned to be a double album. Everything from here on out is unquestionably worth your money – in this case, thanks to songs like “Fuel,” “Devil’s Dance” and the manic “Prince Charming.” But as Reload stretches past the 75-minute mark, it’s hard not to hear some of the songs as leftovers.
9. ‘Death Magnetic’ (2008)
Metallica makes a long-awaited return to their thrash roots, with epic, immaculately crafted compositions reminescent of their earlier masterpieces. Make no mistake, it’s a blast to listen to. Still, Death Magnetic just doesn’t stick as strongly in your head as the landmark records we’ll discuss later in this gallery.
8. ’72 Seasons’ (2023)
Like 2016’s Hardwired … to Self-Destruct, 72 Seasons finds Metallica straddling the line between their early thrash days and their commercial ’90s period. There’s no backing into the occasionally fatiguing LP; the title song starts with windstorm guitars and doesn’t let up for another seven and a half minutes. The intensity rarely wavers on “Shadows Follow,” “Sleepwalk My Life Away,” “Chasing Light” or the surprisingly compact “Lux Æterna” either. It’s archetypal Metallica, but the soul cleansing of 72 Seasons feels genuine, a lifetime of burdens lifted, at least partially, for now.
7. ‘Hardwired… to Self-Destruct’ (2016)
Eight years after ‘Death Magnetic,’ Metallica returned with a looser, fuller sound on ‘Hardwired… to Self-Destruct.’ It features their best collection of riffs in decades, and several songs that should earn a spot on the band’s “all-time” playlist. However, after a very strong start the second half gets a bit bogged down with plodding, repetitive tempos and over-baked ideas.
6. ‘Load’ (1996)
After stripping the Metallica sound down to a bare minimum with their world-conquering Black Album, the band loosened things up just a bit – adding a dose of Southern boogie to songs like “Ain’t My Bitch” and “2 X 4.” Mix two-thirds of this one with about one-third of Reload, and you’ve got an undeniable classic.
5. ‘And Justice For All’ (1988)
Just about any other metal band would be proud to call this album their signature work. But the thin production remains a big sticking point, and the somewhat repetitive songwriting betrays the fact that this is the third time Metallica followed roughly the same formula in crafting an album.
4. ‘Metallica’ (1991)
Metallica perhaps understandably shifted their songwriting style drastically on the follow up to 1988’s And Justice For All. Some fans missed the thrash riffs and complex song structures that made them metal pioneers. But Metallica made 80-bajillion or so new fans who followed them into this more straight-ahead hard-rock territory, and they’re unquestionably right about songs like “Enter Sandman” and “Sad But True.”
3. ‘Ride the Lightning’ (1984)
We’re now left with a tight, three-album horse race between undisputed masterpieces. In fact, Ride the Lightning could easily top this list. Metallica confidently and dramatically expanded the sound of their debut album, which was barely a year old at the time. Highlights include the pummeling “Creeping Death,” the dramatic “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and their terrifically warped version of a power ballad, “Fade to Black.”
2. ‘Kill ‘Em All’ (1983)
By comparison, Kill ‘Em All seems a bit raw and unhinged – but, in this case, that’s not a bad thing at all. Unlike St. Anger, this time around the dazzling combination of speed and precision on songs like “Hit the Lights” and “Jump in the Fire” hits even harder, thanks to the lack of production.
1. ‘Master of Puppets’ (1986)
It may not have matched the huge steps forward made by their last two albums, but this time out Metallica refined what they already had proved they could do in the sharpest and most powerful ways imaginable. There’s not a wasted second on any of this album’s eight songs. It would take another half decade for the world to realize it, but in reality Master of Puppets – and not the Black Album – is the album that made Metallica the still-reigning kings of heavy metal.
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