10 GUTSIEST Moves Metallica Ever Made (And Whether They Paid Off)
4. Collaborating with an Orchestra
Metal, by nature, has been known as a nasty genre, with Metallica being no exception. For as many classic tunes are in their catalog, the band always work best when they are hammering out manic riffs that sound like they should playing out of a grimy garage. On the other hand, S&M proved that even the harshest metal could clean up nicely.
After the initial experimentation with an orchestra on the ballad "Nothing Else Matters," the group remained friendly with arranger Michael Kamen, who suggested that they play a full concert with an orchestra. While the idea seemed too crazy to work, the actual execution back in 1999 ended up being one of the greatest moments in Metallica's career. From one song to the next, every single epic moment in Metallica's career was brought up to 1000 when the additional instruments were added.
Though you may have heard something like "Master of Puppets" a million times, the fact that the band were able to pull it off with the help of strings, brass, and woodwinds turned it into one of the most jaw-dropping moments of the band's career.
The band themselves were so blown away by the results that they even ended up contributing two original songs "No Leaf Clover" and "- Human" for the specific concerts. There were a lot of questionable decisions leading up to S&M, but it's a miracle that these two disparate genres can gel so well together.