Metallica‘s longest songs are oftentimes a great way to show the band’s musical ambition. This group started as a thrash metal outfit and often had the tendency to write longer pieces, such as “Master of Puppets“, “Disposable Heroes“, or “…And Justice for All“. That is something that a lot of bands from the 80s didn’t use to do.
Therefore, there are some interesting songs from the band’s catalog that deserve a second look. Here are, listed, the ten longest Metallica songs in terms of duration, with some interesting history behind them.
10. Some Kind of Monster – 8:26 minutes
The early 2000s were not kind to this band. Most people at the time were expecting “St. Anger” to be Metallica’s comeback record as they were aiming for something rawer and thrashier. However, the writing process was anything but peaceful, with bassist Jason Newsted prior to the recording and issues boiling between James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich.
The final result shows those issues. This Album has one of Metallica‘s longest songs, “Some Kind of Monster” and one of the first to be included on “St. Anger“. Considering issues such as Hetfield’s rehab at the time, the lack guitar solos, and Lars’ now-infamous snare drum, songs on this album were always bound to lose.
Instrumentally, the song maintains the jamming feel of the album with that particular drum sound with a somewhat monotonous development that is accompanied by Hetfield‘s characteristic vocals of that time. The final part of the song is probably the most compelling, adding some rhythm changes and the singer’s voice has a stronger and more aggressive tone.
The entirety of the “St. Anger” album was a creative failure on Metallica‘s part. Most fans and critics panned the record, although guitarist Kirk Hammet, while talking with Rick Beato in 2023, defended the project:
“I think stuff like that’s important to have in your catalog. ‘Cause you just don’t want a lot of the same thing. You want peaks and valleys; you want contrast. It’s what makes it interesting. And if you have a catalog that’s just perfect, people get bored of it. There’s a lot of the same thing. Sometimes people wanna get challenged by their favorite band. I love YES. The first three or four YES albums are brilliant. But then they took a freaking left turn into somewhere else. And I loved it, ’cause it was challenging. And it forced me to listen even harder.”
9. Orion – 8:27 minutes
Beyond being one of Metallica‘s longest songs, “Orion” is one of the best metal instrumentals. Written by Cliff Burton, the song came out a few months before the bassist died in a bus accident. The song was played at Burton‘s funeral, cementing the value and connection this song has to the late bassist.
“Orion” is part of the album “Master of Puppets” and is the penultimate song on it. The song combines metal elements with orchestral traits and adds several bass and guitar solos. The development of the song is almost a journey through different rhythm changes, including the memorable interlude. One of several Metallica masterpieces.
This song is often heralded as Burton’s masterpiece and his crowning achievement as a bassist. Speaking to Guitar World in 2023, current Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo voiced his admiration for Burton:
“When I auditioned for Metallica in 2002, I was playing in Ozzy Osbourne’s band with one of Cliff’s best friends, Mike Bordin of Faith No More. I was staying at Mike’s house in San Francisco and in the guest room at Mike’s house, where I would be practicing Metallica’s music, there is a big photo of Cliff – and at a random moment at two in the morning, I looked up and saw that photo. I actually spoke to the photo. I said, ‘Cliff, I won’t let you down, I promise. I’ll give it my best shot.’ So in a weird way I feel connected to Cliff. I feel like I know him.”
8. Master of Puppets – 8:36 minutes
It is the same album but now the title track is the eighth among Metallica‘s longest songs. This track is not only one of the band’s signature songs but also one of the most popular in metal in general.
From the beginning, “Mater of Puppets” gets the listener’s attention with that iconic guitar riff. Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield‘s guitar work and Lars Ulrich‘s drums convey the energy that runs throughout the song.
The melodic interlude also deserves a lot of recognition for being one of Hetfield’s few solos in the band’s history. The lyrics talk about addictions and how they take over someone’s life. A metal epic that has become timeless over the years.
7. All Within My Hands – 8:48 minutes
“All Within My Hands” is the song with which Metallica concludes “St. Anger“. As mentioned earlier, this entire album’s recording process was very negative for the band, which is reflected in the music. A lot of people have criticized Hetfield’s vocal performance on this song, but the context of his addiction and rehab process makes it more understandable.
Most of the songs on this album have eternally associated with the 2004 documentary, “Some Kind of Monster“, which covered the band’s struggles at the time. Lars Ulrich talked about at BBC Radio in 2023, discussing the band’s desire for transparency:
“Transparency has always been a really big thing for us. And so we decided very early on that the bands that we appreciated and the bands that we were inspired by, most of them were very transparent. And we wanted to have the door, the connecting door to the fans, be as open wide as possible. I think if you decide to open the door, the only thing you can do is open the door completely. You can’t cherry-pick when to let people in. It’s gotta be the good and the bad, and it’s gotta be all of it, and there’s gotta be continuous access.”
Regarding the song itself, Ulrich‘s drums play a major role at first, although the snare drum sound gives it a disservice. The guitar work is simple yet effective. Hetfield’s vocals in this song, as mentioned earlier, were a point of contention for the fans. The song is about exerting control over other people and has implicit Hetfield‘s feelings regarding Jason Newsted‘s departure from the band.
6. The Call of Ktulu – 8:53 minutes
“The Call of Ktulu” is an instrumental song that closes an album widely regarded as one of the best in the metal genre, “Ride the Lightning“. The song was written by the four original members of the band (Hetfield, Ulrich, Burton and Mustaine). It goes from a soft guitar intro to combining with the drums and bass, giving it a degree of strength and energy that characterized that album.
It was the band’s full instrumental and showed their quality, with a slow but satisfying crescendo. Hetfield‘s riffs are on point and Hammett‘s guitar melodies are some of the best in the band’s catalog. The name of the song comes from a book by H.P. Lovecraft of which Cliff Burton was a great fan.
5. …And Justice for All – 9:47 minutes
The title track of this 1988 release is by far one of Metallica‘s longest songs and one of the most ambitious. The band was still dealing with the loss of bassist Cliff Burton in 1986, but this album cemented its comeback. A notorious difference was the strong emphasis on longer, more technical songs like the title track.
Kirk Hammet, speaking in Gibson Icons on YouTube in 2021, explained why the band aimed for a more progressive sound:
“In the late ’80s, the music culture kind of steered itself towards musical proficiency, and how proficient you were with your instrument, and how virtuosic you can be with your technique. There was a lot of emphasis on that kind of thing, and there were a lot of instrumental albums being put out by a lot of guitar players that were super-successful.”
It is also worth pointing out that the band tended to play medleys or shorter versions of this album’s songs during the corresponding tour. In fact, the songs’ length and complex nature were part of the reason they aimed for a simpler sound on the “Black Album” in 1991.
This track, in particular, is a Metallica epic, going from calm, melodic arpeggios to Hetfield‘s monolothic riffs and a strong vocal performance. The instrumental portions of the song are some of the band’s most ambitious and intricate passages. The lyrics are about corruption in the government and the injustices that result from it.
4. To Live is to Die – 9:48 minutes
“To Live Is to Die” was for several years the longest song in the band’s discography. The track is practically instrumental and was written by and for Cliff Burton. It features some of the bassist’s final recordings as well as some inclusions from the band in order to celebrate his life. Kirk Hammett went on record in 2023 stating that he wished there were more recordings and material of his former bandmate:
“For people who are coming into Metallica and finding out about Metallica, there’s just not enough information about him. If there’s one thing that I actually have a regret about, it’s not documenting Cliff enough. But, you know, back then, we didn’t know that it would be the situation that it is now. And so it would have been weird to say: ‘Okay, Cliff, come here. We’re just gonna film you.’ Weird. But if there’s one thing, I just wish there was just more Cliff footage.”
The sound of To Live Is to Die is intended to represent a kind of journey about people’s life and death. It balances some melodic interludes with heavier ones. The song follows a lot of the classic structure of the “…And Justice for All” album, which means longer, more drawn-out compositions.
3. The Outlaw Torn – 9:49 minutes
The album “Load” generated different opinions, but it left some very good songs like “Until It Sleeps“, “Hero of the Day” or “Bleeding Me“. One of those very good songs (perhaps the best on the album) is “The Outlaw Torn“.
It has a slower sound than what Metallica did in the 80s and Hetfield explores another style of singing that has a very interesting final product. The lyrics talk about looking for a replacement for a loved one who is no longer here.
The “Load” era remains divisive to this very day in the metal community. Fans are alone in that since James Hetfield showed his criticism in 2022:
“You’ve got two guys that are really driving the thing – Lars and myself – and when we don’t agree, there has to be a compromise. But, as far as doing something that doesn’t feel right, I’m sure there’s been a few times that it’s happened. The Load and Reload era, for me, was one of those; the way that was looking, I wasn’t 100% on with it, but I would say that that was a compromise. I said, ‘I’m going with Lars’ and Kirk’s vision on this. You guys are extremely passionate about this, so I’ll jump on board, because if the four of us are into it, it’s going to be better.’ So I did my best with it, and it didn’t pan out as good as I was hoping, but, again, there’s no regrets, because at the time it felt like the right thing to do.”
2. Suicide & Redemption – 9:57 minutes
“Suicide & Redemption” is part of the 2008 album, Death Magnetic, and is the band’s only instrumental since the album “…And Justice for All” twenty years prior. It is also the only Metallica instrumental that did not feature Cliff Burton in any shape or form. The song combines solid riffs with some solos, with a strong and fast style although with slower passages.
All band members are credited on the song. It is a rarity in Metallica’s catalog and showed a different mentality from the “St. Anger” days.
1. Inamorata – 11:10 minutes
Finally, we come to Metallica‘s longest song, Inamorata. The song closes what is, to date, the band’s last album, “72 Seasons“. The term Inamorata means female lover and the song is about love and hate. The lyrics also have a connection with “My Friend of Misery” from the “Black Album” since there are phrases that appear in both songs.
The style is very much what the band has opted for in their latest works: aggressive but without reaching what their beginnings were. Hetfield‘s voice is also softer and more melodic than that of more classic Metallica songs.
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