10 Hidden Details In Hard Rock Tracks You Never Noticed
4. Lars Ulrich Vocal Debut On "Ride The Lightning"
Metallica has been known as a band that is stretching for different influences all the time. However, before their mainstream rock glory years with The Black Album or their questionable delve into heavier territory on St. Anger, the band were known as a no-nonsense thrash metal machine.
Even though Master of Puppets is lauded as the band's masterpiece, their previous effort Ride the Lightning also captures the band's penchant for writing thrash metal epics. The title track of the record deals with a man being put in the electric chair after being convicted of a crime he didn't commit. While the hard-hitting vocal track is dominated by James Hetfield's growl, the song also features the vocal stylings of a young Lars Ulrich.
Buried deep in the mix on the line "I don't want to die," Ulrich can be heard providing screams, intended to mimic the sounds of the protagonist. To Ulrich's credit, the screams are incredibly punchy and add to the overall despair that comes with the song's subject matter.
Suddenly, the song went being just another Metallica stomper to an actual engaging piece of audible theater. These sonic nuances were later phased out of the band's sound, but this still remains an interesting look at what the band were up to in the studio.