Spin #113 : Master Of Puppets : Metallica

SUNDAY DROP - SPIN # 113 FROM THE R'NR WITH RYLO RECORD COLLECTION

I don't think I can say anything about this album that you don't already know. From the iconic imagery on the front cover, to the image etched into our minds of 'Stranger Things' character, Eddie Munson, playing 'MASTER OF PUPPETS' on top of the RV. I've shown our kids that clip (until all the creepy monsters got too scary) and also had some fun drumming along to this song as it played LOUDLY through our Marshall Woburn II speaker. The only way to listen to heavy metal records, is LOUD or with good headphones. We might have gotten a little carried away during this spin and at one stage I may have used our daughter as a guitar, as they both laughed their little heads off. I'd love to get a more recent copy of this album, because the mastering has been improved a lot since my copy came out. I think my dad has a newer copy of this record. I'll ask him what it sounds like and do a comparison. Yes, by now you've read this far and know that we are spinning Metallica's third studio album, 'Master of Puppets', which was released in 1986. There are quite a few standout albums released in 1986 - Megadeth's - 'Peace Sells.....But Who's Buying?', Slayer's - 'Reign In Blood', Motorhead's - 'Orgasmatron', Iron Maiden's - 'Somewhere In Time', Ozzy Osbourne's - 'The Ultimate Sin' and Flotsam and Jetsam's - 'Doomsday for the Deceiver'. This is the second Metallica album to be reviewed from our collection - Check out our #49 Spin - Kill 'Em All here.

This album also has some sadness surrounding it. During the touring and promotion of this album, there was a horrible accident on the road that resulted in the death of their bassist, Cliff Burton. To honour his greatness, place a copy of 'Master of Puppets' on your turntable or stream along as we spin our 113th record from the R'nR collection. I'll include pictures from time to time, but because this is a public format, I won't be showing our children's faces, as the reach of the Internet is truly disturbing.

Our son rocking out to the album

We've had a busy week and even celebrated Night Kat Kiz's 22nd birthday (that's her age according to our son). The kids had an awesome time celebrating for her and I think she enjoyed all of her presents and hugs. I made some Laksa and although it was different to the previous time that I made it, I would describe the taste as "Delicioso". Thanks to Grammy and Gubby for the birthday cake and presents too. The choccy cake was very much enjoyed by the kids and I could tell just how much by their chocolatey grins. We also had another birthday pinata - this time a unicorn.

Ok, back to the music. After looking at this copy carfeully, I think this Music For Nations copy may even be a bootleg. I swear it doesn't sound as good as I've heard these songs before. I'll have to research where my copy comes from at a later stage. The LP is a nice yellow colour and the classic MFN label is on show, but there is no lyric sheet and the jacket feels quite flimsy. On the back of the album jacket is the classic metal pose of the band - Cliff Burton, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield. It also shows them playing live to the masses and Burton in his beloved Misfits shirt and denim jacket.

The opening song and title track, 'BATTERY' and 'MASTER OF PUPPETS' kick off Side I. The energy that these two songs create in the room is electrifying. The kids are running around with their metal faces on and our daughter looks like Hetfield on the back cover because they both have such long (80's) hair. Both of these songs are an absolute blast to drum along to and I remember hearing 'MASTER OF PUPPETS' for the first time and being mesmerized. I could see that very same look on our 5 year old sons face as he heard the vocals, "Just call my name 'cause I'll hear you screaaaaaam. Master, Master". Our kids are going to have the coolest taste in music as the grow, but for this 50 or 55 minutes they are little headbangers.

They didn't get into the next couple of songs, 'THE THING THAT SHOULD NOT BE' and 'WELCOME HOME (SANITARIUM)' as much. Maybe because they were all out of energy, and to be honest, I think that I was too. Side II starts off with 'DISPOSABLE HEROES' and is a song that sounds awesome when Metallica played it live. My favourite song on this album would have to be the second song on Side II - 'LEPER MESSIAH'. The drumming, the pacing, the chugging - pure 80s Metal right here. Unfortunately, it doesn't get the same praise as other Metallica songs but I think it's worthy of recognition. The vocals that always get me headbanging are, "Send me money, send me green, heaven you will meet. Make a contribution and you'll get a better seat. Bow to Leper Messiah". Followed by that riff! Wow! What would be your favourite song from the album?

We have seen dramatic improvement in our children's behaviour and imagination, by limiting their screen time. We have actually gone the entire weekend last week up until now without any television. They didn't watch a lot before this week but we did put on ABC kids to round out the night before bed. I think our daughter asked for a pony show once during the week and our son hasn't at all. Their speech, focus and attention during conversations has improved and there has been a lot less outbursts of anger. Night Kat Kiz and I will keep this up for as long as we can and have special family movie time all together over the weekend coming. It's not always easy when we are trying to cook dinner or do housework but watching them complete puzzles and build cubby houses has been so nice to watch. Our kids have been helping with the cooking and our son even started bringing plates to the sink and helping to wash up - without being asked. I mentioned the word 'introduced' during conversation and our daughter and she did have a mini-Muffin meltdown because she then wanted juice.

I think that I enjoyed Side II of this album better and found myself getting lost in the instrumental of 'ORION' as the sunshine filtered through the window. We are going to go for a walk down by the water and take some frozen pea's with us. The ducks seem to love them and we will try and spot the giant fish that we saw last week in the pond. The record comes to an end with the pulsating 'DAMAGE, INC.' and pumps you up just enough to get you in the mood to spin another Metallica album. If you are following up with another one straight away, then put the follow up album, 'And Justice For All' on your turntable. I do have a better version of that copy and can tell you that it sounds an awful lot better.

I hope that you enjoyed our spin this week and that you will add a copy of Metallica's 'Master of Puppets' to your collection, if you don't already own it. Soak up the sunshine while it's out today and brace yourselves for the cold weather. By the time we spin our next record, it will be officially Winter. Hug your loved ones and appreciate the happy moments. Life seems to be passing by too quickly these days.

Until our next Spin......