Metallica's second album, Ride The Lightning, is an undisputed classic, providing the template for Master of Puppets, widely considered their masterpiece. But back in 1984, even though they were unofficial leaders of the burgeoning thrash metal movement with their debut album, Kill 'Em All, Metallica already began to distance themselves from their peers. What did they do for album two? How about an epic, proggy instrumental (The Call Of Ktulu), an attempt at a Judas Priest-type single (Escape) and a mid-tempo, sing-along anthem (For Whom the Bell Tolls)? Then there's Fade to Black, a ballad, of sorts (by thrash standards, anyway). But even though it's still heavier than anything Motley Crue was pumping out at the time, this was a huge risk for a band still struggling to make a living in a genre where diversity was frowned upon. Grassroots thrash fans were already screaming sell-out - but the risk paid off. Regardless of what one thinks of the song itself, Fade to Black is arguably the best-known track on the album.
D.M. Anderson works and lives in Portland Oregon. He is the author of two young adult novels (Killer Cows & Shaken) and a collection of dark tales (With the Wicked). He has also published several short stories which have appeared (or will appear) in various anthologies and magazines such as 69 Flavors of Paranoia, Night Terrors, Trembles, Encounters, Implosion, Strange Fucking Stories, Perpetual Motion Machine. He documents his adventures in the dark on on his movie site, Free Kittens Movie Guide
