Metallica: Ride The Lightning - Ranking Every Song Worst To Best

Taking its viewpoint from the Angel of Death and its name from an offhand reference made by Burton while the band were watching the 1956 film The Ten Commandments, the penultimate cut from Ride the Lightning is arguably the band at their most ballistic on the record; a song that feels more like the natural progression of Kill 'Em All's frantic sound.

Crammed with references to the book of Exodus, it's widely hailed as one of the band's masterpieces by fans and critics (which just goes to show the depth that its parent record has for it to only come third on this list). It's fast and furious quite unlike anything else on the album - and on an album that has no shortage of pace, that's saying something.

Speaking of Exodus, the book shared its name with Hammett's former band before he joined Metallica - and it was from his time there that he brought the middle act with him, where it had been part of an unreleased live cut known as Die By His Hand in performances.

Here it's a big, brutal chant that nestles into the skull and knocks on it repeatedly to brilliant effect.