10 Greatest Closing Tracks In Metal

By the mid '80s, thrash metal was still just being born. Rather than the sounds of Anthrax and Megadeth dominating the metal mainstream, thrash metal titans were building their congregation from the ground up, with songs that had too many great licks to count. Even though Metallica's Kill Em All set the standard for what thrash could be, fans were in for something much more epic on Ride the Lightning.

Instead of just another thrash banger to send us off, the Call of Ktulu is much grander in scope, being the first full-blown instrumental that the entire band had taken on. Even though most of these eight minutes are comprised of the same few riffs played over and over again, the dynamic choices are what separate it from the rest of the metal world. Inspired by the Lovecraftian monster of the same name, these riffs feel like the mythical beast arising from the depths of the sea and destroying everything in sight.

Even though he would get his true bass showcase on Orion, this ending belongs to Cliff Burton, whose distorted four-string is so integral to the song that it practically sounds like the cries of the monster as it begins to come to fruition. The effect ended up working so well that Burton was even credited for playing 'lead bass' on the song. The Call of Ktulu might not be heralded as the best Metallica song in their catalog, but with something this epic to close off your album, metalheads knew things weren't going to be the same again.