METALLICA has revealed the definitive reissue of their five-times-platinum sixth studio album, Load, set for release on June 13 via the band’s own label, Blackened Recordings.
Remastered by Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering under the supervision of Greg Fidelman, the Load remastered limited-edition deluxe box set is now available for pre-order at Metallica.com, where fans can also find the complete package details and track listings. Pre-order customers will instantly receive four tracks: “Until It Sleeps (Remastered),” “Until It Sleeps (Herman Melville Mix),” “F.O.B.D. (‘Until It Sleeps’ Rough Chorus Vocal Idea Mix),” and “Until It Sleeps (Live at Slim’s, San Francisco, CA – June 10, 1996).”
Load (Remastered) will be released in formats, including standard 180g 2LP, CD, cassette and digital (including a Spatial Audio mix using Atmos). Standard pre-orders receive “Until It Sleeps (Remastered)” IG, expanded edition pre-orders receive “Until It Sleeps (Remastered)” and “F.O.B.D. (‘Until It Sleeps’ Rough Chorus Vocal Idea Mix)” IGs. The 2LP, 3CD expanded and deluxe digital versions for the first time ever feature the extended version of “The Outlaw Torn”, originally edited for release due to time constraints of the CD format.
The “Load” remastered limited edition deluxe box set is an ambitious and comprehensive time capsule of 1995-97 era METALLICA, jam-packed with exclusives including previously unreleased demos, rough mixes, live performances, on-air and television appearances, and much more. The one-time pressing will include the remastered “Load” album on 180g double vinyl, a “Mama Said” picture disc, and “Loadapalooza ’96”, a 140g triple album recorded live during METALLICA‘s Lollapalooza headlining run at Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre on August 4, 1996. The set’s 15 CDs range from the remastered “Load” album to never-before-released collected riffs, demos and rough mixes, B-Sides and rarities, and a wealth of live material, while its four DVDs offer a plethora of behind the scenes, in-studio and live footage, on-air and television appearances, the band’s Polar Beach Party visit to Tuktoyaktuk, Canada, and more. Rounding out the box’s content are memorabilia including a pack of 14 Rorschach Test cards, a Pushead patch, an 11×17 Lollapalooza poster, a Rolling Stone cover reproduction, a five-pack of guitar/bass picks, lyric sheets, two laminated tour passes and a deluxe 128-page book.
While METALLICA’s Load and Reload era remains one of the most divisive periods in their discography, guitarist Kirk Hammett recently expressed his openness to revisiting that sound.
During a recent episode of the “Rolling Stone Music Now”, he reflected on the album’s bluesy, groove-driven style and hinted that he wouldn’t mind crafting another record in a similar vein.
Could fans see a return to the Load era’s bold musical direction? Here’s what Hammett had to say (as transcribed by Blabbermouth): “Yeah, who knows? We might just say, ‘Okay, let’s go back to the ’90s again.’ It’s not a bad idea. We haven’t said that to each other yet. And it’s interesting because when Load and Reload came out, there was a lot of derision, there was a lot of backlash. It was too much change.
“We changed our appearance, we changed our sound, we changed the way we recorded,” he continued. “I was even playing different guitars and f**king tuning to E flat and listening to a lot of blues and jazz. And so all those factors came out on Load and Reload to make what Load and Reload are, and Load and Reload are so different from anything that came before it. It’s interesting, ’cause nowadays I run into fans and they love that era — they love Load and Reload. But when those albums first came out, it was, like, ‘F**k Load. F**k Reload. F**k METALLICA.’ But nowadays we play ‘Fuel’ and people go nuts.”
“ When I was a teenager, I listened to all the [LED] ZEPPELIN albums except [Led] Zeppelin III, because it was more acoustic and I just wanted the high-energy, aggressive stuff, ’cause that’s what I’d like when I was a kid. But over time, I really came to embrace Zeppelin III and how wonderful it is. And now I f**king fully understand it and its place in ZEPPELIN‘s catalog. And I think a similar theme kind of happened with Load and Reload. After people got over the initial shock and the challenge, people kind of sat down and gave an honest listen and said, ‘Oh, it’s not really that bad at the end of the day.’
When the interviewer suggested METALLICA‘s image, specifically their nail polish and short hair, influenced album perception more than the music itself, Kirk responded: “One of the reasons why I cut my hair, bro, is ’cause I didn’t think I looked good with long hair when I wore a suit jacket. So I cut my hair so I looked better when I wore a suit jacket. I swear to God. That was one of the only reasons. There wasn’t like any fricking huge thing. I showed up and I cut my hair. Then literally the next day, Lars cut his hair, because he was already thinking about it. And so James [Hetfield, METALLICA frontman] saw that Lars and I cut our hair and he f**king went for it. It just seemed like a cool, kind of nice change. And [then-METALLICA bassist] Jason Newsted already had short hair by that point.”
Source: metaladdicts.com
