10 Best Sequel Songs In Rock

There's a bit of a joke amongst Metallica fans that the 4th track on every album is normally reserved for a ballad of sorts. Even though we had gotten used to such songs like Fade to Black and One off of their '80s output, the amount of raw emotion on the Unforgiven was a bit more than some fans may have expected. While this tale of pain from James Hetfield struck a nerve with fans, it was time to turn the page just a few years later.

After the Load album saw these thrash titans going in much more experimental directions, their followup Reload brought some familiarity back with The Unforgiven II. Granted, it's hard not to look at this like a carbon copy of the original, with the same opening horn line and returning to the theme of "what I've felt, what I've known" on the chorus. At the same time though, this song works more in the context of the band's career at that point.

Despite having a few cringy lines like "are you unforgiven too?" (get it?), this is one of the few radio-friendly Metallica songs that still feels at home when put up against something like Welcome Home (Sanitarium). With an additional extension of the trilogy being made on Death Magnetic, our protagonist has certainly resonated with James throughout the years.