1. Dyers Eve
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6kb5fvv6_A Perhaps the last thrash metal track that Metallica ever released (depending on how you categorise St Anger & Death Magnetic) Dyers Eve is five straight minutes of 195bpm eardrum shattering metal. The song's lyrics read as the suicide note of a thoroughly disillusioned and angst-ridden character, venting furious rage at what he feels was a childhood stifled and a lifetime ruined. It's heavy stuff, especially if you consider how autobiographical those lyrics might have been given James Hetfield's upbringing, but it sets a dark tone and mood that the music matches perfectly. The song begins suddenly, breaking the outro of To Live is to Die, with a great unorthodox, rhythm based intro, before kicking into overdrive some 30 seconds later. The track is unrelenting thrash metal, barely taking a moment to catch its breath, comparable to Slayer' s Angel of Death. The song was never played live until 2004, perhaps a few years too late considering the physical toll this particular song requires in its performance. It certainly would have been interesting to hear a version of this song from the band on the Justice for All or Black Album tours.