10 Most Underrated Rock Albums Of All Time
2. Garage Inc. - Metallica
Metallica didn't really have anything to prove by the end of the '90s. After being thrash legends for the duration of '80s, their domination of the rock charts with the Black Album gave metal one of its most classic records. Once the band came off touring for their experimental albums Load and Reload, it was finally time to cut loose and have some fun.
While something like covers albums aren't that important in a band's catalog, Garage Inc. is one of the more adventurous moments in Metallica's history.
From one song to the next, the band have an absolute blast going through the songs of their heroes like Thin Lizzy and Black Sabbath, but there are also some left field choices like "Tuesday's Gone" by Lynyrd Skynyrd and "Loverman" from Nick Cave. Even though these songs don't sound great on paper, they work wonders once put through the Metallica model.
Above all, this album shows the band to be excellent arrangers, as they take material by bands like Misfits and Blue Oyster Cult and spin them into the Metallica formula. The crowning achievement is "Mercyful Fate," where the band do a rapid fire take on one of the great progenitors of black metal.
Nothing on this album is going to reach the levels of something like "Fade to Black" or "Master of Puppets," but once you strip away all of the adornment, Metallica was still a kickass band who could turn any song into something special.