Released a week after the first Suicidal Tendencies album, Metallica makes history with their 1983 debut Kill 'Em All by becoming one of the first thrash metal bands to ever come out of the North American continent.
Some people aren't really a huge fan of this record, but I am. "Hit the Lights," "The Four Horsemen," "Motorbreath," "Jump in the Fire" and "Seek and Destroy" are all classics as well as the late Cliff Burton's bass solo track "(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth." While not as timeless as their later albums, 1984's Ride the Lightning or their 1986 classic Master of Puppets, Kill 'Em All is still one of the band's strongest works and a fine piece of thrash metal, and as good a marker as any for the debut of the genre, if that makes any sense at all.
The guitars are the highlight of this album. All the main riffs are memorable and even a lot of the secondary ones are as well. Kirk Hammett's lead work is frantic (no pun) and energetic, and several of the solos on this album rank among his best. Hetfield's vocals still have the intensity of youth and are far more raw than his pathetic singing on St. Anger. Cliff's bass work is poignant and audible unlike a lot of early thrash albums. The track "Anesthesia" is sometimes called an extended solo, but it's really just a sweet bass instrumental, rich with effects and cool melody lines. Lars is a terrible drummer, but he clearly did his best to hide it on this album.
Every song on this album is unique and contributes something to the album in total. "Hit the Lights" is obnoxiously quick and full of lead guitar. "The Four Horsemen" has a killer solo section and a lot of great riffs. "No Remorse" has awesome vocals and particularly memorable lyrics, plus a ton of killer riffs (the Cannibal Corpse cover of this song is even heavier than the original). "Phantom Lord" has a clean bridge to add a change of pace to the all out thrash attack.
This is a must-have album for any Metallica fan. Whether you are a new or old fan, yes, I recommend you check it out, chill back and take an excellent journey back to their humble beginnings. The speed at which these guys can play while making some awesome music is incredible. Playing this music in your car will make you want to put the pedal to the metal and rock all night long. As far as I am concerned this is the peak of Metallica as far as their music.