The sixth and seventh episodes of “The Metallica Podcast: Volume 1 – The Black Album” have been released in conjunction with the 30th anniversary of the band’s self-titled fifth LP, better known as The Black Album. The podcast’s weekly episodes explore the stories behind and the legacy of the best-selling album in the history of Nielsen Soundscan.
Official description of episode six: “While recording this episode, METALLICA coined a new nickname: Team Ugly. It’s about going from being the underdogs to selling millions of concert tickets and records — while never forgetting who they are and where they came from. Guests include: Robert Trujillo, J Balvin, Tomi Owó, David Fricke, Ron Quintana, and Brian Slagel.”
Official description of episode seven: “The story of ‘The Metallica Blacklist’. Not just any covers album, it’s living, breathing proof of the power of every song on The Black Album — as interpreted by 53 of the most diverse artists and bands imaginable from all over the world. Guests discussing their METALLICA firsts, why they chose their song and how they made it their own include DEPECHE MODE‘s Dave Gahan, J Balvin, Juanes, Kamasi Washington, Andrew Watt, Mickey Guyton, Keith Morris of OFF!, and many more. Special guest Marc Reiter, a key member of METALLICA‘s management team based at METALLICA HQ, shares the charitable impetus and logistical aspects of this mammoth project.”
The Black Album is one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed records of all time. Its 1991 release not only gave METALLICA its first No. 1 album in no fewer than 10 countries, including a four-week run at No. 1 in the U.S., its unrelenting series of singles — “Enter Sandman”, “The Unforgiven”, “Nothing Else Matters”, “Wherever I May Roam” and “Sad But True” — fueled the band’s rise to stadium headlining, radio and MTV dominating household name status. The album’s reception from the press was similarly charged, building over the years from the top 10 of the 1991 Village Voice Pazz & Jop national critics poll to becoming a constant presence in the likes of Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time. The album’s impact and relevance continue to grow — as proven by one indisputable fact: The Black Album remains unchallenged as the best-selling album in the history of Nielsen SoundScan, outselling every release in every genre over the past 30 years.
To commemorate its 30th anniversary, the Grammy-winning, 16-times-platinum-certified Black Album received its definitive re-release on September 10 via the band’s own Blackened Recordings.
