13. Metallica- Ride the Lightning(1984)- Rock/Metal Album Track Ranking Series

The almighty Metallica is the second band(after Black Sabbath) to be featured for the second time in my ranking series with- you guessed- its second album, Ride the Lightning, so here is how I rate and rank the tracks from this legendary record:

8. Escape- 7.5(Good)

7. Trapped under Ice- 8(Solid)

6. The Call of Ktulu- 8.5(Very Good)

5. Fade to Black- 9.5(Fantastic)

4. For Whom the Bell Tolls- 9.5

3. Ride the Lightning- 9.5

2. Fight Fire with Fire- 10(Stellar)

1. Creeping Death- 10

OVERALL RATING: 9.06

Once again, the difference between the top 5 tracks on this super album is extremely small for me, but it appears that Creeping Death has wom the battle for my favourite track not only from Ride the Lightning, but- spoiler alert- from the entire Metallica catalogue. How could I not adore such a monstruos track with incredible riffs, a great bridge, fabulous guitar solos and deep biblically-related lyrics? This track has it all, so at least for the time being it has no challenger for the position of greatest Metallica track!

The positions from 2 to 5 have constantly switched throughout the years. Fight Fire with Fire currently occupies the honourable second place thanks to its sheer ferocity and breakneck speed, it's definitely the heaviest song on an already really heavy record! 

The title track takes the bronze medal, followed closely by the hits For Whom the Bell Tolls and Fade to Black. There's so much greatness în. these tunes that I feel tempted to rank'em all in 3rd place, but there has to be a separation, and the fact is enjoy Ride the Lightning slightly more than the other two tracks due to its Foster tempo, remarkable chorus and the fantastic guitar parts from the second half of the song.

As for the other 3 songs, I can briefly say that The Call of Ktulu is a cool instrumental, Trapped under Ice a solid, fast-paced thrasher, and Escape is a pretty good track as well, so obviously there are no skippable moments on Ride the Lightning.

So, is RTL my favourite Metallica record? Its overall rating of 9.06 place it incredibly close ahead of Kill'em All, which has 9.05, so basically they are equal for me, but there are a still a couple of top notch albums to be ranked in the nearby future(it's easy to guess which ones)  so after rating and ranking them as well I will have a clear picture of my favourite Metallica records.

To sum it all up, Ride the Lightning is a superb album, showing the prowess of a young band destined to conquer the world, a record I will never ever stop listening to with immense pleasure!

Ranking Rock/Metal Albums: #4. Metallica- Kill'em All(1983)

My rock/metal album ranking/rating series continues with the debut of no other than the biggest band of the planet, Metallica, so here comes my track ranking and rating:

 10. (Anesthesia)- Pulling Teeth- 8(solid)

    9. Phantom Lord- 8

    8. Hit The Lights- 8.5(very good)

    7. Metal Militia- 9(great)

    6. Jump in the Fire- 9

    5. Motorbreath- 9

    4. Seek & Destroy- 9.5(fantastic)

    3. The Four Horsemen- 9.5

    2. No Remorse- 10(stellar)

    1. Whiplash- 10

    OVERALL RATING: 9.05

    The fourth album in my series is also the first one with no song whose rating goes lower than 8, which says a lot about how much I love this album.

    The breakneck pace and crushing inensity of 'Whiplash' have made it my favorite track, although 'No Remorse', with its incredible riffs, outstanding soros and great chorus is also a strong candidate for the first place, and the epicness of 'The Four Horsemen', another absolute banger, has installed it in third position, ahead if mid tempo, anthemic rockers like 'Seek & Destroy' and 'Jump in the Fire'. Anyway, no weak track whatsoever, so my ranking can change at any time, and lower placed tunes can also advance in my hierarchy in the future.

'Kill'em All', with its raw, fierce sound and sheer, youthful energy, remains an essential  album, whose influence on the growth of speed and thrash metal is massive. It will always have its place in my playlists and my heart!

Metallica Meme- My Creation